Spinal Conditions

Spinal Condition Treatments in Urbana, OH

There is an extensive list of conditions that can affect your spine, nerves, and muscles in your back. The conditions explored below are some of the most common and broad examples that affect most patients. The key underlying connection is poor spinal health and degenerating structural integrity that is causing advanced wear and tear, herniating discs, pinched nerves, and damaged cartilage among others.

The team at Donay Chiropractic Life and Wellness Clinic utilizes a variety of methods to manage, mitigate, and reverse the effects of these conditions. Techniques such as general chiropractic, non-surgical spinal decompression therapy, traction therapy, and many others.

What Causes Facet Joint Syndrome?

For patients suffering from lower back pain, as many as 40% of cases are due to facet joint damage. You may not notice the early onset of facet joint syndrome as symptoms sometimes only show once the condition has reached a tipping point.

Facet joints are the smaller exterior connections between the vertebrae and like all joints, can be damaged by bad posture and age-related wear and tear. As the discs begin to breakdown, the pressure of body weight becomes uneven, leading to inflammation and the shifting of weight onto the facet joints. The sudden added weight, combined with thinning of joint capsules and cartilage, results in painful bone on bone contact and nerve pinching.

Symptoms Of Facet Joint Syndrome

The most prevalent symptom of Facet Joint Syndrom is a dull ache or chronic pain in the spine, back, or neck. Because of the nature of the condition, pain can be sudden and happen when twisting a specific way. Any of the following symptoms could be indicators of facet joint damage:

• Specific movements cause pain (twisting or standing from a seated position)
• Neck/lower back pain (could extend into your legs)
• Difficulty arching or overarching your back
• Tenderness
• Stiffness
• Pain

What is Sciatica?

The sciatic nerve is the largest nerve in the body and travels from the center buttock, directly down the back of the thigh, all the way to the foot. Sciatic pain is often misdiagnosed as a pulled muscle or joint pain instead of a nerve response. According to data from the National Institutes of Health, as many as 90% of sciatica cases are due to herniated discs causing nerve compression. You will typically feel pain on one side or the other and it will worsen with physical activity.

The team at Donay Chiropractic Life and Wellness Center in Urbana, Ohio are experts at getting to the root of your pain and fixing the issue at its core. By using a method called spinal decompression, they can target specific discs that are causing the issue. It works by gently stretching the spine, creating a negative pressure within the disc to “un-bulge” or retract these affected discs.

Symptoms of Sciatica Pain

Sciatic pain can be overwhelming and can severely impede your mobility. Left untreated, it will continue to cause paralyzing pain that will only diminish your quality of life. If you think you might be experiencing sciatic pain, seek treatment as soon as possible so that you can begin treating the condition and relieve your pain. The most common symptoms of sciatica include:

• Sudden, severe pain in your low back or leg
• Muscle weakness in your leg
• Numbness/tingling in your leg
• Chronic pain around the mid-buttock area
• Pain when bending
• The pain subsides when you lay down
• Trouble controlling your bowels or bladder

Spinal Stenosis

There are two forms of spinal stenosis, cervical stenosis is when pain occurs in the neck area, and lumbar stenosis which occurs in the lower back. Pain is caused by the gradual narrowing of the spaces between the vertebrae in your spine. This narrowing process begins to put pressure on the nerves in the spine and, left untreated, will continue to manifest into chronic pain or nerve damage.

The team of experts at Donay Chiropractic Life and Wellness Center use a combination of therapy options including chiropractic adjustments and non-surgical spinal decompression to alleviate pressure on the vertebrae in the spine, giving them the critical opportunity to regenerate and repair. Managing spinal stenosis is all about resolving the underlying condition, restoring the structure of your spine, which ultimately relieves you of the symptoms.

Dr. Donay is a strong advocate for non-surgical methods like spinal decompression for the simple reason that a large percentage of patients can be treated without surgery! Studies have shown that roughly 20% of patients that undergo surgery for spinal stenosis, will need multiple surgeries.

Symptoms of Spinal Stenosis

Spinal stenosis is typically a condition that has a gradual onset. As the structural integrity of the spine become compromised, more pressure is placed on the nerve roots which directly relates to the pain you feel along with the following symptoms:

• Weakness
• Numbing or loss of sensation in arms or legs (depending on the nerves being affected)
• Burning or persistent pain

Treating Spinal Conditions With Chiropractic Therapy

If you are experiencing any of the symptoms mentioned above, we strongly urge you to schedule a consultation at your earliest convenience to have your condition diagnosed. Conditions that affect the spine are very serious and early detection and prevention are critically important to mitigating damage and restoring structural integrity to your spine. Early treatment can help you remain healthier and more mobile as you age! Call or schedule a consultation online today!