pine problems can be complex and are often misdiagnosed. If you are suffering from back pain or one of its potential consequences, such as pain in the hips, groin, knees, feet, or legs, it is vital that you choose a practice that can detect, diagnose, and treat this complex condition.
Nicky Snazell Clinic has skills and technology which are unsurpassed in the UK in resolving severe and chronic lumbar spine problems.
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The spine runs from the head down to the pelvis, and its purpose is to provide protection for the spinal nerves, provide movement, and absorb shock. It’s natural ‘S’ shape provides great strength to help support the body.
The spine is divided into 3 main sections:
There are joints between each pair of neighbouring vertebrae, called facet joints. These joints allow for movement, such as bending or twisting and also provide added stability in the spine.
The lumbar spine consists of the 5 lowest and largest vertebrae, which support the highest loads. The most common problem areas in the lumbar spine are the 2 lowest lumbar vertebrae, L4 and L5, but problems can also occur in L1, L2, and L3 above.
The spinal cord is linked to pairs of nerve cords which exit between each pair of vertebrae, and in the lumbar area, are linked to the bowel, bladder, groin, hips and the legs down to the toes. Interference with these nerves can cause or be an added factor in problems in any of these areas. Examples are:
Interference with the nerves can be caused by a disc bulge or, worse, by a ruptured or herniated disc. Sometimes a growth of bone can cause nerve impingement. Common symptoms include tingling, numbness, pain, and muscle tightness, and, after extended periods, hair loss on the legs, varicose veins, and toenail problems. More serious impingements can cause loss of control of the legs, bladder or bowel.
Additional lumbar spine problems include osteoarthritis in the facet joints, typified by stiffness in the morning or after sitting for a while, and general muscle tightness that causes pain and mobility issues.
Lumbar spine problems can be complex and are often misdiagnosed. MRI scans will show disc and facet joint problems, but muscle contracture is completely undetectable and, as a result, may lead to a patient unnecessarily suffering treatable, severe and chronic pain.
If you are suffering from back pain or one of its potential consequences, such as pain in the hips, groin, knees, feet, or legs, it is vital that you choose a practice that can detect, diagnose, and treat the condition. Otherwise, all that will happen is that the symptoms, rather than the cause, will be treated. A sure sign of treating the symptom and not the cause is that you have to keep going back for a recurring problem. If that is you now, then maybe a change would be sensible.
Facet joints in the lower back (lumbar) can become locked due to muscles going into spasm or a fold occurring in the joint meniscus. This can be caused by a movement or injury that occurred recently or some time ago, and movement will be restricted depending on the position the joint was locked in. To gain range of motion, other joints near the lock will tend to be moved excessively, and pain will ensue near the lock or sometimes on the opposite side. If
a facet joint in the lumbar is locked, it can cause sciatica symptoms. A lack of core stability muscle control is a prime cause of lumbar facet joint lock.
Provisional diagnosis is by physiotherapy assessment, and treatment options to reduce the pain, inflammation, stiffness, and weakness include: physiotherapy, chiropractic or osteopathic mobilisations, manipulation, core stability, specific spinal rehabilitation exercises, posture advice, laser, Acupuncture, Gunn IMS dry needling, shockwave, pulsed shortwave, massage, nutrition, and counselling. MRT can be used as a preventative treatment to slow the deterioration.
This type of wry neck usually disappears after one or two days, and it can be due to:
Congenital torticollis (present at birth) may occur if the foetal blood supply or muscle development was injured or if the foetus’ head is in the wrong position while growing in the womb.
A physiotherapist will assess you and perform corrective manipulation, sometimes massage is required, however, you can always request a specific general or sports massage from our receptionists and they will help ensure that you see the right member of the team for treatment.
Of course, there are rare occasions where in order to relieve you of your pain the physiotherapist may need to manipulate the problem area. It is rare this will cause you more pain than you are in, but you may be acutely aware of your pain. It is best to speak with us if you have any concerns. Nicky and her team of exceptional healers will always do their utmost to remedy your situation with as little pain as possible. Please read our testimonials to find out more.
This depends on the severity of your knee condition but we have had patients, go another 11 years before replacement is required, that is nearly the length of time a new knee can last. Sometimes helping them with addressing issues and resulting weight loss can be the answer, we are here to support you, make an appointment today and let us help you with your knee pain.
As a degree-level trained professional, your physiotherapist never stops learning and will also most likely continue to develop and train in other areas such as acupuncture. Your physiotherapist will likely perform some types of massage, but a clinic will generally also have dedicated massage therapists who will be performing sports and full massages on a daily basis.
