Physiotherapy management of back pain
Back pain is one of the most common conditions that we see in our clinic at Ramp Up Physiotherapy.
According to the Australian Beaureu of Statistics National Health Survey (2017-18) an estimated 4.0 million or 16% of people in Australia reported having back problems. That’s a big chunk of us! It’s no surprise then that back pain is one of the most common reasons people have for visiting a physio. Back pain is often associated with a variety of conditions, such as: sciatica, muscle strains, disc herniation, scoliosis, pregnancy, or quite commonly, non-specific lower back pain. Non-specific lower back pain is when it isn’t possible to identify a specific structural reason or disease that is causing the back pain. According to the World Health Organisation, back pain is non-specific in approximately 90% of cases! WOAH!
Anyway, that’s enough of the statistics! You’re not here for a math lesson.
At Ramp Up Physiotherapy, we take a holistic approach to managing your back pain. The reason we do this is that there often isn’t one particular structure at fault for your back pain (remember that back pain is non-specific in 90% of cases). Often things like: daily activities, work ergonomics, stress and sleep can contribute to back pain as well.
On your initial consultation we work with you to uncover the potential factors contributing to your back pain. We will discuss when the pain started, what aggravates and eases it and what your lifestyle is like. Our physical assessment often includes a range of motion and strength assessment, plus palpation of the back and surrounding area.
Our first goal is always to get you feeling better so we will often provide you with some hands-on physio, home exercises, and self-management advice to help reduce your back pain.
Depending on our findings, future sessions may involve some further treatment, adjustments to your program, and investigation/assessment of other factors that could be contributing to your pain. We may assess your work ergonomics, sleeping posture or provide a graded regime for returning to exercise or hobbies. It’s important to us at Ramp Up, to not only resolve the pain, but prevent it from coming back. It’s even more important that we focus on getting you back to doing what you want, and off the treatment table!
References:
Australian Institute of Health and Welfare 2023, Chronic musculoskeletal conditions: Back problems, < https://www.aihw.gov.au/reports/chronic-musculoskeletal-conditions/back-problems> , viewed 08/03/2024
World Health Organisation 2023, Low back pain, <https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/low-back-pain#:~:text=Specific%20LBP%20is%20pain%20that,in%20about%2090%25%20of%20cases. > , viewed 08/03/2024.