Physical Therapy Burnsville, MN

Back Pain Treatment Begins with Noninvasive Therapy

When there are no signs of neurological symptoms the accompany your back pain, our physicians routinely prescribe physical therapy (PT) and over-the-counter non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) medications. These are the most commonly recommended therapies for back pain lasting between 2 to 6 weeks. A typical PT program for back pain combines “active” and “passive” components designed to decrease pain and improve function.

Physical therapy is part of Inspired Spine’s recommended Conservative Treatment Path, in which we exhaust all noninvasive or minimally invasive treatment modalities before potentially resorting to spinal surgery.

For example, for the first 3 to 6 months of your Conservative Treatment Path, the therapies we recommend include:

Physical therapy, OTC pain medications, chiropractic care, yoga, and other alternative medicine. During this time, we may also recommend advanced diagnostic procedures to pinpoint the exact cause of your pain, such as an upright MNRI or discogram

Types of Physical Therapy: Passive & Active

Passive Physical Therapies are those that are performed on you by your physical therapist. The goal of passive PT is to reduce your pain and make it more manageable, until you can become more active. Examples of passive PT are heat/ice packs, ultrasound, and TENS Therapy.

Ultrasound Therapy uses sound waves to provide deep heating to muscles and soft tissue to reduce pain.

Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation (TENS) It aims to manage pain by delivering low voltage stimulation to painful muscles in the back.

Active physical therapy involves exercises you perform yourself while exerting physical effort with the goal of regaining movement and range of motion. These exercises are designed to stretch and strengthen the spine and back muscles. The goal of active PT is not only to improve immediate function, but also to provide a maintenance program to prevent future recurrences of back pain. Although active physical therapy takes effort and determination, it is worth the effort to restore your range of motion and decrease back pain.

Examples of active physical therapy include:

• Movement-based activities such as range-of-motion exercises
• Strengthening exercises
• Low-impact aerobic conditioning, such as recumbent cycling, ankle weights, and weight hand balls, among others

Are you interested in relieving your back pain and avoiding the need for surgery? Learn more about our Conservative Treatment Path by getting int ouch with Inspired Spine at (952) 225-5266 or reach out online.