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This book was written for you.
The purpose of this book is to help you live a healthier and happier life.
The human body is one of the most complex structures known to man and it can be very difficult to find accurate and helpful information when your body is having a problem. This book is designed to simplify the complex topic of lower back pain.

A long-time mentor of Superior Physical Therapy, Gary Gray, has described the lumbar spine as the “crossroads” of the body. Movement and forces from the arms and thoracic spine move down through the lumbar spine to the pelvis and legs. Movement and forces from the legs and pelvis are transmitted up to the thoracic spine and arms.

Because the lumbar spine is the movement “transportation” center, it can develop symptoms if the movement flow in the body, known as the kinematic chain, is restricted.

The frequency of symptoms in the lumbar spine resulting from movement has led to the development of lumbar stabilization programs to prevent motion of the lumbar vertebra. These programs, while well-intentioned, are ill-conceived. Instead of limiting motion, we at Superior Physical Therapy assert that the lumbar vertebrae must move in all three planes. The goal is to promote bone motion while normalizing (not eliminating) the relative motion between adjacent vertebrae.

We wrote this guide to help you better understand back pain treatments. With this information, you can make an informed and intelligent decision. If you have any questions about back pain treatment, you are invited to call us at231.357.3930.We have dedicated our business to educating consumers, and we will be happy to help you in any way we can.

Patients will find that the benefits of an epidural steroid injection include a reduction in pain, primarily in leg pain (also called sciatica). Epidural steroid injections (ESIs) are a common treatment option for many forms of low back pain and leg pain. They have been used for low back problems since 1952 and are still an integral part of the non-surgical management of sciatica and low back pain. The goal of the injection is pain relief; at times the injection alone is sufficient to provide relief, but commonly an epidural steroid injection is used in combination with a comprehensive rehabilitation program to provide additional benefit.

In 1957 a comprehensive research study proved that abdominal strength has absolutely no correlation with how our lower back feels or functions. Yet I still see Doctors, physical therapists, chiropractors, personal trainers giving people core strengthening exercises to help relieve their lower back pain. Good luck because there is no evidence to suggest that abdominal strength has anything to do with how your spine is functioning. You must look at the areas above and below the spine for the answer.