Low back pain is one of the most common diagnoses we treat in physical therapy at ActiveFit. Studies show that 80% of the population will have an episode of back pain at some point in their life. Although some forms of back pain are caused from trauma, most back pain is caused by normal wear and tear on our body. The collective amount of sitting, bending, walking, twisting, and lifting activities over the course of the day can cause wear and tear on our spines.

 

The good news is that our Doctor of Physical Therapy is credentialed in McKenzie Therapy and can help you improve your pain within 1-2 visits with full pain free function typically achieved within 6 to 8 weeks. Another benefit is that with the McKenzie Method, there is significant focus on patient education. By the end of your physical therapy with ActiveFit, you will have the confidence to maintain your full reduction of symptoms, learn the warning signs of a future flare up, and learn how to prevent a future flare up from getting out of control. 

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Regardless of the medical diagnosis of your back pain, there are 3 classifications for back pain in McKenzie Method. These classifications help guide your treatment plan to achieve quick results. If you have back pain and choose to ignore it, be aware that it may prolong how much physical therapy you may need in the future, see dysfunction below.

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Derangement

Derangement is the most common form of back pain, whether muscle strain, disc herniation, or “I woke up with back pain one morning." Pain can be constant, intermittent, radiate down your leg, or remain only in your back. You may or may not have tingling. You most likely have a derangement if you say your pain switches from side to side. Over 90% of clients we see at ActiveFit have this classification.

 

Dysfunction

Dysfunctions can occur when you had a derangement in the past and avoided it for so long that your body actually developed scar tissue, limiting function. Pain is only intermittent at the very end of one direction of movement. Some dysfunctions are nerve related where you only experience tingling or pain at the very stretched position of that nerve. Only 5 to 10% of new clients we see at ActiveFit have this classification.

 

Postural

We rarely see a client for postural back pain. This type of back pain is only felt when sitting or standing in a poor postural position for a long duration. Once you get out of that position, your pain subsides.
 

Not sure which classification you fit into? Give us a call 847-920-7110 and set up a FREE consultation with our Doctor of Physical Therapy who is credentialed in McKenzie Therapy.