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Is Spinal Manipulation Effective For Sciatica?

Sciatica is an umbrella term used to describe leg symptoms, such as pain, numbness, or tingling, caused by spinal conditions.  Irritation or entrapment of the spinal nerves as they exit the spinal canal can lead to severe symptoms and disability.  The majority of these cases can be treated conservatively including Physical Therapy and possible spinal...

Relieve Sciatica: Positioning to Decrease Pain

By: John Crawley, PT, DPT, OCS Low back pain known as lumbar radiculopathy or more commonly as sciatica can be a debilitating condition. The condition is marked by severe pain that can present from the low back to the foot. The pain can be intermittent to unrelenting. Characteristics of this type of pain are the...

Arm pain referred from the cervical spine (cervical radiculopathy) often is the result of nerve root compression by either bone or soft tissue in the bony canals of the neck.  These canals protect the nerve roots as they exit from the spinal cord, but can also compress these neural structures leading to pain, numbness, pins and...

Steroid Shots No Better for Back Pain Than Placebo

The use of low back injections is often utilized for patients with low back pain and nerve pain (radicular pain) and/or leg numbness, pins and needles, or nerve root weakness (radiculopathy). In an older adult these symptoms may be due to a narrowing of the canals in which the low back nerve roots exit (lumbar...

Correlation vs Causation in the Management of Low Back Pain

Did you know the more movies Nicolas Cage makes; the more people drown in pools? Or the worse the rating of M. Night Shyamalan on Rotten Tomatoes; the less total newspaper sales? There is a significant difference between correlation and causation in the world and is especially noted in medicine. As we all deal with...

Thoracic manipulation by Physical Therapists has previously been shown to improve pain and function in patients with elbow, shoulder, and neck pain. Authors continue to research the mechanisms behind its’ effectiveness including a beneficial cascade of events in the peripheral and central nervous system, as well as, a possible biomechanical change in the spinal joints....

Introduction Low back pain (LBP) is a common, disabling condition with both musculoskeletal and non musculoskeletal contributions. It has been reported that greater than 80% of individuals will experience LBP within their lifetime and 20-30% of individuals are affected with these symptoms at any point in time[1]. Katz et al. reported the cumulative cost to...

Spinal manipulation, dating at least to Hippocrates’ writings, is one of the oldest known medical treatments. Currently, these treatments are commonly performed by Physical Therapists, chiropractors, and physicians to treat a variety of musculoskeletal pains. Evidence supporting spinal manipulation is primarily found in three areas: headache, neck pain, and low back pain. This data supports...