Chiropractic Care of Inflammatory Richmond Back Pain
The variety of spinal conditions abounds! Your Richmond chiropractor is well aware of this. Johnson Chiropractic welcomes them all! For optimal relief of pain and limited function, the first step is recognition of the condition then arrange its proper treatment. Johnson Chiropractic is experienced in both! This week’s highlighted condition is inflammatory back pain, axial spondyloarthritis, and the spine-specific type, ankylosing spondylitis.
AXIAL SPONDYLOARTHRITIS
Axial spondyloarthritis is an inflammatory back pain condition. It is often missed as a cause of chronic low back pain while approximately 1% of the US population experiences it. Traits of axial spondyloarthritis consist of onset before 45 years of age, morning stiffness, improvement with exercise not rest, alternating gluteal pain, and good response to nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug treatment. Other characteristics of axial spondyloarthritis care enthesitis (inflammation of tendons and ligaments insertion into bone), dactylitis (inflammation of a toe or finger), peripheral arthritis, extra-articular appearances (like psoriasis, inflammatory bowel disease, or uveitis), positive for the human leukocyte antigen B27, and a family history of the disease. Prompt diagnosis is important as is referral to a rheumatologist for evaluation and cooperative care. (1) Not only is axial spondyloarthritis missed in medical practices, but it’s sometimes overlooked in chiropractic offices, too. (2) It’s just not identified as what it is: an immune-mediated inflammatory disease. Your Richmond chiropractor is aware and looks for it so that typical lapses of time - sometimes years - will not go by between symptom onset and diagnosis. Since it’s a back pain condition, axial spondyloarthritis can be diagnosed and co-managed with chiropractic care for effective outcomes.
ANKYLOSING SPONDYLITIS: A SUBSET OF AXIAL SPONDYLOARTHRITIS SPECIFIC TO THE SPINE
One type of axial spondyloarthritis is ankylosing spondylitis. Spondylitis means inflammation of the vertebrae. Interdisciplinary management with chiropractic and medical care with rehabilitation often works well for these patients in reducing their symptoms and increasing musculoskeletal function. (3) Treating this condition requires gentle care that certified Cox® Technic chiropractic physicians are good in delivering. A case of a 30-year-old male first diagnosed when he was 12 years old whose condition, despite medical care, led to fusion of his sacroiliac joints and his facet joints in the lumbar and cervical spine. The patient was treated with chiropractic spinal manipulation of his thoracic, lumbar, and cervical spine areas and physical therapy stretches for 12 weeks. His advanced condition reacted well with some improvement in pain and flexibility. (4) Another male patient aged 34 years with a 10-year history of AS was treated for 18 weeks with chiropractic spinal manipulation and mobilization. This resulted in a 90% improvement in a disease activity index and an 85% improvement in a functional index from beginning to end. (5) Johnson Chiropractic delivers very gentle spinal manipulation and mobilization in the form of Cox® Technic distraction decompression. An advanced state of the condition doesn’t preclude chiropractic care or its resulting good outcomes.
CONTACT Johnson Chiropractic
Listen to this PODCAST with Dr. Gabriel Monterrubio on The Back Doctors Podcast with Dr. Michael Johnson. He describes his use of the Cox® Technic System of Spinal Pain Management for treating ankylosing spondylitis.
Schedule your Richmond chiropractic appointment today. All types of spine-related conditions are welcome!
