The human race is unique in the animal kingdom, as the human form is designed by nature for a lifetime of walking upright on two legs. This upright posture was adopted a few million years ago, when our primitive ancestors began to run in order to hunt and chase game across the plains of Africa. As a result, the human form includes an S-shaped spine, an upright pelvis, long and hard leg bones, and arched feet for a lifetime of standing upright and fighting gravity. This gives the human race many natural advantages, but even today, fighting gravity upright takes its toll on the body, and chronic lower back pain and spinal distress are quite common. The good news is that invasive surgery is only needed for severe back or spinal injuries, while non invasive methods, such as chiropractic adjustment tool, yoga, and range of motion data testing, can be used for most other back pain cases. A patient can visit their doctor and get referred to a specialist, and hospital patients may have access to a physical therapist and various rehab tools and systems. So, when is it time to have a chiropractic adjustment tool used, or stretch test?

Rates and Causes of Back Pain

Chronic back pain is common around the world today, and that certainly includes the United States. In that nation, many studies and surveys are done to track how often and why citizens suffer from chronic back pain, and some patterns have emerged. After all, back pain ranks second among all reasons why Americans see their doctor, behind only upper respiratory issues. The numbers show that at any given time, some 31 million Americans are suffering from back pain, and this accounts for one in three women and one in four men. Around 50% of all working adults in the U.S. admit to having back pain symptoms every year, and experts say that 80% of all Americans will experience back pain symptoms at some point in their lives.

What is causing such high rates of back pain? Many surveyed Americans blame ongoing stress for their lower back pain, and pregnant women may experience spinal distress during their pregnancy. Citizens who work hard manual labor jobs for years, such as construction, are liable to wear out their spine and back muscles, and develop chronic pain at some point in their lives. Suffering a physical injury, such as a sports accident or car accident, can also strain the back and cause pain. Finally, back pain is common among the elderly, who have spent many years upright fighting gravity. Thus, their spines have started to collapse, and this will reduce flexibility, pinch nerves, and inflame joints, thus causing chronic back pain.

Dealing With Chronic Pain With Non Invasive Medicine

Many cases of joint pain, stiffness, and lower back pain do not call out for surgery at all. Instead, someone who suffers from spinal issues or back pain can visit their doctor, then get referred to a specialist, such as a chiropractor. At a chiropractor’s office, the doctor may use chiropractic adjustment tools and even their bare hands to readjust a patient’s bones and muscles. With these non invasive chiropractic adjustment tools, the doctor can relieve pressure on the patient’s bones, joints, muscles, and nerves, thus clearing up pain and restoring the patient’s mobility and arcs of motion. Similar results can be achieved when the patient signs up for private yoga sessions and performs a variety of poses and stretches to loosen up their muscles and joints.

At a hospital, physical therapy tools can help a patient recover and regain their strength, mobility, and arcs of motion. While performing therapy exercises, the patient may have their movements captured with range of motion testing cameras, and the therapist can use special software to study the results and gauge the patient’s progress. Stretching out band and cords can help the patient demonstrate their maximum arcs of motion, strength, and pain threshold, another useful reference. Handheld muscle testing devices can be used on the patient while they perform a variety of exercises or poses, which use simple blunt force to get a reading and evaluate the patient’s muscle strength in a certain area of their body.