Explaining Muscle Spasms

Back pain is a sensation experienced by a wide variety of people. Proper education can help people be aware of common ways to develop back problems and make informed decisions to prevent back pain in the future. Awareness of methods chiropractors use can help people feel more confident and comfortable seeking help for back pain. Education of common ways to develop back problem, ways to prevent chronic back pain, and methods used by chiropractors to treat back pain is the best way to help people make informed decisions to prevent back pain but also how do deal with it if they experience back pain.

There are many common ways to develop back problems. One of the most common causes of back pain is muscles spasms; which are sudden, involuntary muscle contractions and are often attributed to the overuse of a muscle, an accident, or a sports injury. Certain disc disorders may cause pain in the lower back. A disc may bulge resulting in the compression of surrounding spinal nerve roots causing irritation or inflammation. The body responds by immobilizing the affected area and stop pain by tightening surrounding muscles potentially causing muscle spasms. Muscles can also be too tight for various reasons including lack of exercise, too much exercise, dehydration, or electrolyte loss. Sprains and strains are also common cause of back problems. A sprain is an injury to one of the ligaments that support the spine or the joints, whereas a strain is a muscle or tendon injury. Sprains or strains in the back may result due to falls, improper lifting techniques, car accidents and various other incidents. Another common cause of back pain is spinal nerve compression. When spinal nerves are compressed or pinched the nerve becomes inflamed and the messages sent to the brain cause the sensation of pain. Nerve compression may be a result of numerous disorders such as a herniates disc, thickened ligaments, and osteophytes. Three common causes of back pain include muscle spasms, strains and sprains, and spinal nerve compressions.

There are many ways to prevent back pain from becoming a problem and they are linked to a maintaining a healthy lifestyle. The occurrence of back pain generally increases with age as the effects of a person's decisions have greater impact. People who are overweight or obese are at higher risks due to excess strain that is being put on the spine, thus, it is important to maintain a healthy body weight. Lack of activity is also a cause of back problems as the muscles around the spine become weak and are therefore more likely to get injured. Exercise and stretching is important to prevent back pain as exercise strengthens the muscles and stretches prevent the muscles from tightening. Job safety is also crucial to avoiding back problems. Jobs that involve heavy lifting are dangerous and proper technique is important to prevent injuries. Office work can be just as dangerous although is often not thought of in this way. Poor posture while sitting in a desk for nearly eight hours straight for many years can lead to spinal injuries. Thus to prevent back problems in an office environment proper posture is important as well as frequent stretching and insuring that the person gets an adequate level of physical activity outside of the work day. Preventing back pain is linked to maintaining a healthy lifestyle including proper weight, physical exercise and stretching, and safety in a work environment.

Chiropractors have various methods that they use to help patients overcome the pain of back problems. The most common method used by chiropractors to treat back pain is spinal manipulation. Spinal manipulation is applying a force to spinal joints that move specific joints or surrounding joints just beyond the normal range of movement. The general goal of spinal manipulation is to minimize pain and regain normal functions to the spine. Therapeutic exercise and stretches and often used to strengthen muscles and tissues decreasing pain and encourage healthy joints, stretching specifically helps keep tissues flexible. Chiropractors also use a variety of physical therapy modalities including muscle stimulation, ultra sound, and ice and heat therapy. Muscle stimulation uses electrical pulses that are transmitted to specific areas of the body and can be used to reduce pain or inflammation. Ultrasounds use sound waves and when applied to soft tissues and joints they help reduce swelling increase blood flow and decrease pain stiffness and spasms. Ice therapy can be used to reduced swelling and help control pain generally immediately after the problem occurs, while heat therapy can be used to relax muscles which increases circulation and can provide pain relief. Chiropractors are well informed and can discuss treatment options that are suitable for each person individually.

Back pain is a problem that affects many lives, whether personally experiencing it or sharing the burden of a friend or family member. Education is one of the best ways to fight back pain. Knowledge of ways back pain develops can also help people take proper measures to prevent experiencing chronic back pain in the future. If back pain does develop it is important for people to feel comfortable approaching chiropractor, this can be achieved by a basic understanding of techniques used by chiropractors.