Jay is a 42-year-old male who came to the clinic with recent onset of low back pain. Low back pain wasn’t something new to him as he had done a lot of squats growing up and had worked in construction ever since graduating college.
In the past, when he would irritate his back the pain would go away within a week or so. However, in this instance, he said the pain had been persistent for about a month, and it was getting to the point where it was having a negative affect on his ability to work.
Oftentimes I hear people say pain isn’t “normal.” However, with more than 80% of the adult population experiencing low back pain at some point, I argue that having some back pain at some point in life is pretty normal. I always assure people that often it is nothing to worry about as long as we are smart about it. What I do think is abnormal is long-lasting, persistent pain that doesn’t seem to be helped with normal “home remedies.”
It was my opinion that in Jay’s case it was time to start digging a little deeper, and it was smart for him to make an appointment.
One of my mentors would always say that he has never seen a case of low back pain without dysfunctional hips. I couldn’t agree more. My evaluation of Jay — which included squats, lunges and active and passive ranges of motion — led me to the obvious conclusion of hip dysfunction.
Jay’s treatment consisted of:
- Hip mobility exercises to address tightness
- Decompression therapy of the lumbar spine to open up the spine and benefit the health of intervertebral disc
- Body awareness exercises, so he could feel when he was in good positions versus bad positions while doing physical labor
Thankfully, Jay’s case was not a difficult one, and it was easily resolved in a few sessions.
When evaluated correctly, a majority of low back pain cases can be resolved much like Jay’s — quickly and with minimal care.
DR. TYLER IDEUS
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