CHOOSING WISELY (1) – WHAT TO DO ABOUT BACK PAIN
Every profession is setting
forth recommendations for practitioners to abide
by when dispensing health care in
hopes of opening conversations between patients and
their healthcare providers and among healthcare providers themselves. Your
La Grande chiropractor at Paulette Hugulet, DC, LLC is always ready for such a
conversation about La Grande back pain. Back pain is a huge
health concern upsetting 80% of us in
La Grande at some point in life. Back pain is handled by many sorts of physicians in many types
of specialist societies. Their societal recommendations are related
concerning imaging (Do not perform in
the first 6 weeks of pain except if there are “red
flags.”), attempting non-surgical care before
imaging and/or referring for back surgery, and progressing
the patient care from passive to active care. More
precisely, the American Academy of Physical
Medicine and Rehabilitation recommends not ordering repeat epidural steroid
injections without checking for the response to
the latter one and not prescribing opioid drugs for acute disabling
low back pain without evaluation and a test of other
alternatives. (2) The American Chiropractic Association recommends not doing
repeat imaging to see how the patient is responding,
not getting spinal imaging for acute low back pain in the first
6 weeks of pain unless there are red flags,
and avoiding long term use of passive care
but instead shift the patient to active care. (3) The American
College of Emergency Room Physicians recommends sidestepping
lumbar spine imaging in non-traumatic back pain except if there are
severe or progressive neurological deficits or a suspicion of an underlying issue.
(4) The American College of Physicians recommends not getting
imaging studies in patients with non-specific low back pain. (5) The North
American Spine Society recommends not advocating bed rest for
more than 48 hours for low back pain, not ordering EMG studies to figure
out the cause of spine pain, and not getting
advanced spinal imaging (ex MRI) within the first six weeks of
non-specific acute low back pain without red flags. (6)
The Danish Health Authority recommends not sending patients for
back surgery for a lumbar disc herniation with radiculopathy except
if the severe and debilitating back pain persists
for 12 weeks regardless of
non-surgical treatment. (7) It’s up to you, the La Grande back
pain patient or concerned loved one, to choose wisely the path of
care for back pain relief. Use these professions’
recommendations for back pain care to begin a conversation
with your La Grande chiropractor, your La Grande back pain specialist, at Paulette Hugulet, DC, LLC as you choose the type of care proper for your La Grande
back pain relief.
Listen to this PODCAST
from the Back Doctors' Podcast series about two cases of back pain helped with Cox Technic, one with imaging and all sorts of care and the second case without any imaging studies.
TIP OF THE MONTH: Try Non-Surgical Interventions for La Grande Back Pain
Common La Grande non-surgical interventions for
La Grande back pain relief are pain medications, exercise, manual
manipulation, massage, and heat/ice. (8, 9) Included in the top non-surgical
interventions to try before La Grande back surgery is spinal
manipulation (10) of which 90% (11) is delivered by
chiropractors. The Cox Technic System of Spine Care – spinal manipulation with
exercise, nutrition and passive care for pain and inflammation reduction with more
active care importance as pain decreases – matches
Choosing Wisely recommendations as it seeks 50% relief of
pain within 30 days of care (which is more than the 30% or greater improvement
in self-reported pain and function pursued by medicine [12])
before advanced imaging or surgical referral in absence of red
flags. Bring your La Grande back pain to Paulette Hugulet, DC, LLC! Make it your first La Grande back pain
relief healthcare stop!