More than 26 million Americans between the ages of 20-64 experience low back pain.  Globally, an estimated 22-65% of adults suffer from it every year.  Treatment recommendations can vary significantly, from relative rest to surgery.  Despite the medical literature not recommending and clinical guidelines discouraging the use of spine surgery in routine cases of acute low back pain, rates of spinal surgeries…
Continue reading…Tag: back pain
WSJ: Conservative Treatment of Back Pain
Today’s Wall Street Journal talks about treatment of back pain.  Whether people experience back pain because they are more active during the summertime or because the pain seemingly appears out of nowhere, most cases can be treated conservatively.  Given time alone, most cases of back pain will resolve on their own with relative rest.  In cases where…
Continue reading…Are Today’s Sports Harming Your Children?
A New York Times Op-Ed article this week discusses an important trend of children playing sports at a highly specialized and competitive level at earlier and earlier ages.  Both parental and social pressures have contributed to this concerning trend, as it has led to greater rates of serious injuries in young athletes, both at the recreational and professional levels….
Continue reading…Increased Risk of Back Injuries In Young Athletes
Young athletes have become much more involved in sports, playing on multiple teams during a season and throughout the year.  Specializing in one sport has become more commonplace as well.  A recent study in the Journal of Sports Health featured on NPR found that in most sports, specializing in a single sport led to higher rates of back…
Continue reading…Exercise Can Improve Back Pain
Back pain has been known as one of the most common injuries people suffer from.  In an NPR segment this week, various treatments for lower back pain were discussed.  The article notes that many clinicians are finding that more conservative treatments can help to improve people’s symptoms without the need for aggressive treatments. Spinal injuries can be…
Continue reading…Can Antibiotics Cure Chronic Back Pain?
A recent article in the European Spine Journal reports that up to 40% of patients with a history of chronic back pain from a herniated disc may find improvement with long term antibiotic therapy. A double blinded, randomized controlled study evaluated 166 patients with a history of chronic low back pain greater than 6 months…
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