So what is the cause of back pain? The number of injuries, misalignments, and conditions that cause back pain seems endless. Due to the complex structure of the back that is required to absorb stress while permitting movement, many elements of this structure such as tendons, ligaments, discs, muscles, and bones can become irritated or damaged resulting in pain. Sometimes it is severe trauma, such as a car accident, that can result in back pain and other times it is minor repetitive stress that causes the most damage. Therefore, you may not be able to recall any particular event that caused the onset of your pain. In addition to all of these possibilities, physical injury is not always the primary cause. Emotional stress can also increase the sensitivity of your body and mind to pain.
So how can chiropractic help my arm and leg pain? As with any condition, you want to start with treating the most common and typical cause of the pain and symptoms first. Misalignments (subluxations) of the vertebrae in the neck or back are responsible for the vast majority of arm and leg pain. As described above, when these joints aren’t moving properly, they cause irritation, and lose their ability to communicate via the nervous system. This can cause what is called radicular pain (arm or leg pain), or even radiculopathies (arm or leg pain with accompanying symptoms) if the damage is bad enough. Many people are surprised when they see that many of the nerves in our body travel from our spine all the way to the ends of our finger tips and toes.
Your shoulders are used in just about every activity that you do. These activities add stress to your shoulders and enough stress can cause damage or irritation of the shoulder joint. This damage can cause rotator cuff tears, tendinopathies, aberrant movement patterns, or improper shoulder positioning that can cause pain with movement or loading. Chiropractic can help by optimizing movement of the spine which is required for shoulder movements, fixed position of the shoulder, or even give exercises that will improve the capacity for the shoulder to endure load.
The hips receive all of the load when we are standing or sitting. Jobs that require long hours in one position can cause stress to these joints that lead to inflammation and swelling. One of the benefits of chiropractic care is that it can help reduce pain and inflammation in the hip joint. Chiropractors use gentle adjustments or manipulations to realign the spine, which can help alleviate stress on affected joints. This can result in decreased pain levels and a reduction in joint inflammation.
Chiropractic care can also help improve range of motion and flexibility in the hip joint. By restoring proper movement to the spine and pelvis, chiropractors can help improve the function of the hip joint and reduce pain and discomfort.
