Normal Degeneration Linked with San Jose Spinal Stenosis
Normal degeneration of the spine may sound odd when discussing degeneration, but age encounters us all. Age generates degeneration normally. Our San Jose chiropractic practice acknowledges and respects age for its effect on the spine and its influence in paraspinal muscle and disc degeneration. They go together. Chiropractic Solutions treats them gently and effectively, especially when our patients do their part in coming to appointments, exercising, and taking supplements that can be beneficial. It is all part of the San Jose chiropractic treatment plan!
NORMAL DEGENERATION: Age
Age. Not a topic we enjoy talking about, but age doesn’t care. It keeps doing its thing. Age played a considerable role when researchers compared the fatty infiltration of muscle in normal people to that in patients with lumbar spinal stenosis who were matched for age, BMI, weight, etc. The paraspinal muscle alterations in lumbar spinal stenosis patients and normal people were comparable. Degeneration of these muscles related to age was more obvious in lumbar spinal stenosis patients particularly in the multifidus muscles. (1) In a radiographic study of degenerative lumbar spinal stenosis patients, age-related risk factors were noted. Researchers wrote that greater intervertebral disc height and more severe vertebral endplate failure may stimulate degenerative lumbar spinal stenosis because of the amplified mobility of the segment, promoting disc degeneration. Weakened paravertebral muscles may weaken lumbar spinal stability. (2) Indeed, the spine and all its muscles are linked. Chiropractic Solutions looks at them all, to their response to treatment, to their role in the pain.
BACK PAIN AND ITS PALS
Low back pain has friends. It brings with it degeneration, change, fat, imbalance and more. Researchers adknowledged intervertebral disc degeneration as being the number one cause of chronic low back pain. It’s a common and recuring condition in spine surgery realms. Disc degeneration is linked to disc inflammation which makes sense since it is avascular tissue. As we humans age, researchers explained that its bone marrow changes to bone marrow fat, starting an inflammatory response in the disc and paraspinal muscles which play a role in spine stability. As the muscles fill with fat, low back pain transitioned to chronic. (3) In a study of patients with lumbar spinal stenosis and sciatica/leg pain, researchers noted that lumbar degenerative diseases caused paravertebral muscle degeneration with higher levels of intramuscular fat infiltration. Women’s paraspinal muscles were significantly reduced. The erector spinae muscle and multifidus muscle in older aged patients were described as having more fat in them. (4) Chiropractic Solutions realizes that aging contributes to back pain’s development, path, and treatment.
LESS IS MORE: Treating Aged Back Pain
Since researchers observed that with age comes fatty infiltration of paraspinal muscles and inflammatory responses in the disc, it is logical that doing less if back surgery is performed would be sensible. A recent study wrote that adding fusion to a decompression back surgery for lumbar spinal stenosis increased the risk of new stenosis on an MRI two years later at the operated level or at an adjacent spinal level even when spondylolisthesis (a condition that one vertebra slipped on another one) was seen at surgery. (5) Less is more frequently when managing back pain. Gentler treatment can go far in reducing pain. That’s the motto of the CTFDD treatment plan at Chiropractic Solutions: gentle spinal manipulation, gentle exercise, etc.
CONTACT Chiropractic Solutions
Listen to this PODCAST with Dr. Joseph Beissel on The Back Doctors Podcast with Dr. Michael Johnson as he describes the relief with The Cox® Technic System of Spinal Pain Management for a patient with chronic low back pain.
Make your San Jose chiropractic appointment today. There’s no escaping age or its accompanying pal, degeneration. If disc degeneration and spinal muscle degeneration are now your pals, trust Chiropractic Solutions to get you all on a path to healing.
