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How To Help Scoliosis Back Pain At Home

Consider Seeing A Physiotherapist

How to Relieve Your Scoliosis Back Pain in 30 SECONDS

If your pain is bad, it may also be worth seeing a physiotherapist who can give you special exercises for your case and show you how to do them safely. They can also provide other treatments which may help provide scoliosis pain relief including massages and acupuncture. I have seen many physiotherapists over the years and had massage therapy and acupuncture, both of which have helped me. I have also been referred to Pilates classes by my GP.

Treatments For Degenerative Scoliosis

If youâre an adult with degenerative scoliosis, your doctor might recommend physical therapy, stretches, and exercises to help you build up your strength. Over-the-counter medication and using a brace for short periods of time might help to relieve your pain. If your legs bother you, an epidural or nerve block injection can offer temporary relief.

You may be disabled by pain in your back or legs from degenerative scoliosis. This can reduce the quality of your life. If nonsurgical treatments havenât helped you, it may be time for an operation.

Surgery can improve your spinal balance and relieve nerve pressure on your spine, which helps with pain. The bones in your spine may be fused together to correct its alignment.

After spinal surgery, youâll need plenty of time to recover, many follow-up visits to your doctor, and physical therapy. Before your operation, talk with your family and friends about the kind of support youâll need as you get better. Some people choose to stay in a nursing home or rehabilitation facility for a while after surgery.

Physical Therapy For Scoliosis In Austin Tx

Physical therapists are well-versed in correcting and treating scoliosis. People who have mild scoliosis can therefore be successfully treated without surgery or medication.

At Endeavor Physical Therapy & Wellness, we take pride in our experienced medical team of licensed physical therapists and other healthcare providers. We serve the areas of Austin, Manor, Round Rock, Pflugerville, Cedar Park, Bee Caves, and Hutto.

If you have any questions or would like to schedule a consultation, contact our friendly staff today by calling us at 284-7192 or by filling out our appointment request form online now. Together, we can help keep your back and spine healthy for a lifetime.

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What Is The Prognosis For Scoliosis

School screening programs have helped to identify many cases of scoliosis early. This allows people to be treated with either observation or bracing and avoid the need for surgery in many cases. Most people with scoliosis can live full, productive, and normal lives with a relatively normal life expectancy. People with scoliosis are able to become pregnant and have children with no increased risk for complications. They may be at increased risk for additional low back pain during pregnancy. In general, as the degree of spine curvature increases, the prognosis worsens.

Newer advances in surgery have allowed for less invasive surgical methods that have less pain and shorter recovery periods. Surgery recovery time depends on the specific procedure that is performed some may require an extended hospital stay with an in-patient stay at a rehabilitation facility while others may recover quickly and not require a rehabilitation facility. These techniques are still being developed, but the initial results are very promising.

The Top 5 Benefits Of The Strauss Method

How To Treat, Reduce Eliminate Lower Back Pain At Home ...
  • Reversal of curve progressionand significant postural change with improved cosmetic appearance. Yes! It is possible to have modest reduction, even in adult scoliosis, and it is very likely to see substantial postural improvement!
  • Gives patients control over their condition. Scoliosis sufferers can finally be done with that feeling of hopelessness and helplessness for good, because they know that they hold the power for real and lasting change.
  • More lung capacity and more room for organs. Many scoliosis sufferers do not realize the effect their condition has on their lung capacity and organ position. Once they begin to see improvement from their treatment, they cant believe the improvement in comfort and health that they feel.
  • More energy. Many of our patients have reported more energy to do the things they love to do such as spend time with their family and friends, be independent, and have enjoyable and productive work lives.
  • Relief or reduced chance of future pain, disability, or deteriorated aesthetics. This is the primary concern for scoliosis sufferers, especially for adult patients.
  • The Strauss Method has given scoliosis sufferers freedom, quality of life, and peace of mind. You wont believe the additional benefits that come with slowing your progression and decreasing your pain. You have the opportunity to non-invasively improve your condition and your life. What would you give to have hope that your condition will not get worse, but instead will improve?

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    Disability Related To Scoliosis In Adults

    Another terrible consequence of untreated scoliosis is disability. You lose your freedom to do the things that you love to do and can become less and less independent. Some severe scoliosis sufferers cannot even stand or walk because their condition is so degenerative. This is known as postural collapse and occurs in adults due to the relentless effect of gravity on the scoliotic spine.

    As scoliosis patients become older, the likelihood of disability increases. Without treatment, disability from scoliosis can cause you to be confined to bed, unable to move without the aid of someone else, and completely without freedom to do the things that you enjoy.

    One Strauss Scoliosis Correction patient had such severe scoliosis that she could not walk and was confined to her bed. She was without any freedom and independence. But after just 6 weeks, she was able to walk and move again without any pain or discomfort:

    What Are The Causes Of Scoliosis

    The habitual positions that you adopt on a daily basis can often lead to Scoliosis.

    The spine becomes so accustomed to using certain muscles in a certain position, that over time you are now hard wired to hold this abnormal posture.

    For example:

    • Playing sport with dominant arm only
    • Always carrying bag on one side
    • Favoring one side at gym
    • Always sleeping on one side

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    Keep Your Joints Warm

    Its common for scoliosis pain to worsen in cold weather as tight muscles stiffen even more. To combat this, set the thermostat to a warm, comfortable temperature at home and dress in warm clothing when you leave the house. If youre feeling especially achy, soak in a hot bath or apply a heat pack to the sore areas along your spine.

    Heat And Cold Therapy

    how to treat scoliosis pain at home

    The use of hot pads and ice packs on your bodys affected areas is a simple home remedy that offers pain relief. Place a hot pad wrapped in a towel on the painful site and dab it for about twenty minutes. You should feel some relief. Heat soothes pain and encourages blood flow to the affected area. If the pain persists, consider switching to cold therapy that entails placing an ice pack covered in a towel on the affected area for about twenty minutes. Cold has proven to reduce inflammation effectively. A combination of heat and cold therapy with other remedies such as stretches and exercises will effectively relieve back pain.

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    Strengthening Exercises For Scoliosis

    To perform the following Scoliosis exercises, you will need to learn how to bow the spine.

    Bowing is the active movement of a specific part of the spine which allows for certain areas to be stretched or strengthened.

    The aim is to move the spine so that the Apex of your curve is shifted towards the opposite direction.

    The Universal Guide To Lower Back Pain: Everything You Ever Wanted To Know Straight From The Experts

    In This Article: | | | | | | | | | |

    If youve ever had lower back pain stop you from doing what you want, youre not alone. Lower back pain is one of the most common medical problems in the world. It is a leading reason why people visit a doctor, affecting more than 80% of adults at some point in their lives. According to the Global Burden of Diseasea significant study published in the Lancet medical journallower back pain is also a leading cause of disability.

    While severe lower back pain can cause worry, pain severity is not always an indication something is seriously wrong. Photo Source: Shutterstock.

    You may not be able to prevent lower back pain, especially as you age and your back loses some strength and resilience. Fortunately, there are many ways you can get relief, no matter the cause of your back pain.

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    What Are Some Other Causes Of Lower Back Pain

    The shape of your spine, and well as spinal diseases, are other culprits in lower back pain. Depending on a range of factors, your doctor may look for:

    Abnormal spinal curvature. A normal spine resembles a gently curved letter S when seen from the side. Abnormal curves include:

    • Lordosis, in which the spine curves too far inward at the lower back
    • Kyphosis, in which the spine is abnormally rounded in the upper back
    • Scoliosis, in which the spine curves from side to side, often in a C shape

    Normal and abnormal curves of the spineArthritis. There are more than 100 types of arthritis, many of which can cause lower back pain. The most common types include osteoarthritis , rheumatoid arthritis, and ankylosing spondylitis.

    Cauda equina syndrome . Compression of the bundle of nerves that forms below the spinal cord in the lumbar spine. It is a rare but serious disorder that requires immediate medical attention and possibly emergency surgery. CES got its name from the fact that the fanned-out bundle of nerves resembles the base of a horses tail.

    Discitis or osteomyelitis.Both infections of discs and bone can cause severe pain and require prompt medical attention.

    Spinal tumors. When cells divide and multiply unchecked, the result is a tumor. Both benign and malignant tumors can cause lower back pain. They can either originate in the spine or metastasize there, meaning theyve spread from somewhere else in the body.

    Adolescent Scoliosis In Adults

    How to Treat Back Pain

    Adolescent Scoliosis in Adults is the adult version of scoliosis that presented during adolescence. Once skeletal maturity is reached , a patient with Adolescent Idiopathic Scoliosis is now said to have ASA. There is typically a slow increase in the curvature that began during teenage years in an otherwise healthy individual that becomes progressive during adult life. Where does that put you 10 years from now? 30 years from now?

    Here are characteristics of Adolescent Scoliosis in Adults :

    • Any curve type as long as it presented during adolescence
    • May be stable or progressive
    • May develop a degenerative stage later in life
    • Often not painful until later in adulthood
    • Pain typically an issue in unbalanced curves, especially curves in the lower rib cage area and those that are only in the lower spines
    • Often progressive later in life in a degenerative phase

    Despite extensive research, the only thing that we know about the future of the ASA patient is that we dont know. Pain becomes an issue for a majority of AIS sufferers, but there is no way of knowing exactly how your case of AIS will progress or deteriorate over time.

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    Adult Scoliosis Can Be A Pain In The Back And Legs

    Just like the padding in our knees wears downover time, so can the cushioning in our spines. In some adults, this can resultin a side-to-side curvature of the spine a condition called adultdegenerative scoliosis.

    Adult scoliosis is different from idiopathicscoliosis, which typically affects children and teens. Idiopathic scoliosis candevelop without an apparent cause and accounts for approximately 80% of scoliosiscases in the U.S.

    Adult degenerative scoliosis is awear-and-tear breakdown of the spinal discs and joints that results in shiftingand twisting of the vertebrae. As the degeneration progresses, the spine canbecome more out of balance, resulting in back and leg pain. As adults livelonger, more active lives, were seeing an increase in cases of adult scoliosis.

    According to The Burden of MusculoskeletalDiseases in the United States, approximately 5.88 million adults in the U.S. have adultscoliosis, though some estimates suggest that number could be as high as 141million because rates of the disease are not well reported.

    Adult degenerative scoliosis is a wear-and-tear breakdown of the spinal discs and joints that results in shifting and twisting of the vertebrae. As the degeneration progresses, the spine can become more out of balance, resulting in back and leg pain. As adults live longer, more active lives, were seeing an increase in cases of adult scoliosis.

    Carlos Bagley, M.D.

    How Can Adult Scoliosis Affect The Legs

    In adults, scoliosis is an acceleration of the agingprocess in the spine. As the tissue degenerates, the spine begins to curve intoa C-shape instead of the classicS-shaped curve of idiopathic scoliosis. The curvature causes a spinalimbalance, making it tough for patients to stand up straight, walk, or runwithout pain.

    Spinal stenosis, a narrowing of the spinalcanal, is often paired with adult scoliosis. It causes compression of nerves in the spine, whichresults in shooting pain, tingling, heaviness, weakness, and numbness in the buttocksand the legs a cluster of symptoms more commonly known as sciatica.

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    What Is Adult Scoliosis

    Scoliosis is an abnormal curvature of the spine . There is a natural, forward-and-backward curve to the spine. With scoliosis, the spine rotates and develops a side-to-side curve. Curves may be as mild as 10 degrees, or as severe as 100 degrees or more.

    Most cases of scoliosis are mild and dont need treatment. In adults, the degree of the spinal curve may or may not determine treatment. Treatment is geared towards relieving symptoms, and not necessarily fixing the curve. The goal is always to decrease pain and improve function.

    Though scoliosis itself is painless, the normal age-related degeneration of the spine may lead to symptoms. These symptoms are treated the same whether there is scoliosis or not. Scoliosis only becomes a factor when surgery is being considered. Changes in the appearance of the body are also possible depending on the degree of the spinal curve.

    In general, most scoliosis in adolescents occurs in the thoracic or rib cage portion of the spine. In adults the main concern is typically in the lumbar or lower spine. This portion of the spine is most susceptible to the changes seen with aging or degeneration.

    Condition Severity And Pain

    Scoliosis, How to Self-Mobilize at Home to Improve Posture

    For both adolescents and adults, the severity of their condition plays a role in the symptoms they experience.

    Scoliosis has three severity levels that classify the condition: mild, moderate, and severe. Severity levels are determined by the size of the curvature. This is determined via an X-ray and a measurement known as the Cobb angle.

    The Cobb angle measures how far a crooked spine bends and twists away from a straight alignment. A condition classified as mild has a Cobb angle measurement of 25 degrees or less a moderate classification covers curvatures with a measurement between 25 and 40 degrees severe scoliosis is classified by a curvature measurement of 40+ degrees for adolescents and 50+ degrees for adults.

    The more severe a spinal curvature is, the more likely it is that the patient will experience pain along with other symptoms. That doesnt mean there is no escape from that pain through adjustments, exercise, and stretches, a reduction can be achieved that improves function and relieves pain and discomfort.

    The more severe a curvature is, the harder we have to work, but once the results of that hard work are seen and felt, patients have the motivation they need to keep up their hard work and continue living their best lives with the condition.

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    Progression Of Scoliosis In Adults

    Even worse than the severe pain or limiting disability that can occur for scoliosis sufferers is the feeling of utter helplessness to do anything about it. When you do not receive treatment for scoliosis and simply watch and wait, you are vulnerable to the likely outcome that your curve will get much worse over time.

    The above series of X-rays shows the progression of an untreated child from ages 9 to 13. You can see that this patients upper curve progressed 45 degrees and the lower curve progressed 37 degrees in just 4 years. In an adult, the curve progression is typically much slower.

    Research shows that the curve progression in an adult will vary between 0.5 to 3.0 degrees per year, depending on the shape of the curve, overall curve size, and the age of the scoliosis onset.

    It was previously thought that progression only happens for people with more extreme curves of more than 30 or 40 degrees. But more recent studies on scoliosis have proven that scoliosis curves can and often do progress drastically and in a shorter period of time, especially as you get older.

    A 2003 study found that 36% of adolescents with scoliosis had progressed by more than 10° after 22 years.

    Damon was diagnosed in 10th grade. After X-rays and visits to specialists no treatment was prescribed because his scoliosis wasnt bad enough. He went to a chiropractor and acupuncturist but all it did was lessen some pain and discomfort while providing no visible changes:

    Scoliosis Treatment In Adults: Traditional Options

    Traditional scoliosis treatments require that you either do nothing or commit to dangerous and risky surgery.

    Below are what youve been told are your only options to experience relief from your scoliosis. As you can see, none of them are satisfactory because they do not address the root cause of scoliosis. Additionally, they are risky, uncertain, and in some cases, downright dangerous.

    Option #1: Watch and Wait

    You already know how risky, dangerous, and uncertain it is to take the traditional advice of watch and wait. While it is possible for our exercise based scoliosis programs to prevent further progression and pain, it is more challenging to treat progression and pain once it has already begun.

    Besides this, watch and wait has serious implications for your mental health. Traditional medicine does not always account for the fear, uncertainty, and hopelessness that is a part of the daily lives of those with scoliosis.

    Option #2: Risky and Dangerous Surgery

    Scoliosis Surgery in adults

    Surgery to correct scoliosis involves placing one or two metal rods stabilized by hooks and screws along the spine in an effort to prevent further curvature. The surgeon uses pins and bone grafts to keep the rod in place next to the spine. This is called fusion surgery. The spinal bones are fused together, destroying the joints of the spine.

    High risk of complication

    Here are some firsthand accounts by people who had the Harrington rod surgery:

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