Back Pain Surgery

This spine wellness blog entry will answer a question from a reader.

Question:  “I am looking at exercise equipment, which would you recommend – a treadmill or elliptical machine for back health?”

Answer:  The bottom-line answer is that one piece of equipment is not necessarily better than the other – it all depends on the individual’s needs and preferences. The following highlights considerations for each:

Elliptical Machines:  Elliptical machines provide exercise with little or no impact. This is a very good option for people with knee or back pain. When shopping for an elliptical machine, it is important to purchase one that allows you to adjust the stride length. If the stride length is too long, it can cause you to hyper-extend your lower back. (This is similar to taking to very big steps).

Treadmills: Walking is a great exercise for your back, and no equipment is needed for this! Walking helps increase blood flow, which brings nutrient-rich blood to the spine.  Additionally, it promotes strength and flexibility. HOWEVER, for individuals with spinal stenosis or spondyloslisthesis walking can increase the stress on the spine.

Recumbent Bikes:  These can be an excellent option for individuals with spinal stenosis or spondyloslithesis. When using recumbent bikes, you are sitting and your spine is in a more flexed posture, this decreases stress and pressure on the spine. 

This spine wellness blog entry was answered by Adam Ebbert, PT.  Adam is the physical therapy coordinator with Indiana Spine Group.

Spine Wellness Tip #8 – Relax!

This spine wellness tip for a healthy back is easier said than done – relax! Prolonged stress can become chronic, and lead to muscle tension that causes neck or back pain. Common ways to help manage stress include exercise, yoga, meditation, hobbies, massage therapy, counseling – and learning to say “no”.

This spine wellness tip is something you have probably heard time and time again – drink plenty of fluids. Not only does drinking liquids help to keep you body hydrated, but it also flushes out the toxins that can create inflammation in your body. And a great deal of back pain is caused by inflammation. The general rule is a minimum of 64 ounces of water per day. This Mayo Clinic link, addresses how much water you should drink a day – using a simple calculation.

Spine Wellness Tip # 7 – Stay Hydrated

Fall is a great time of the year! Cooler temperatures, football, changing leaves and . . .  It is also the time of the year, you begin thinking of cleaning up outside, raking leaves , putting away planters and lawn furniture. A list of chores,  if not done properly can lead to back injury or back pain.

This spine wellness blog entry, will provide a few suggestions for avoiding back pain as you tackle your “outside” chore list. 

·     Stretch first! Few the work as exercise, and stretch as you would prior to beginning to exercise.

·         Use proper body mechanics when lifting.

·         Use your legs to move from side to side, rather than your arms – step side to side.

For a complete spine wellness tip sheet for preventing back pain /injuries while working out side, visit this link.

• Select a backpack with two wide - padded straps that go over both shoulders.
• Try to carry heavier items closer to the body - and bulkier items away from the body.
• When picking up the back pack, bend at the knees and use both hands. (Use leg muscles not your back to pick up the backpack). 
• If your child arches their back or leans forward, the backpack is most likely too heavy.  

On September 10 and 11, Indiana Spine Group hosted their fourth annual spine symposium, Back Talk | Comprehensive Concepts in Spinal Disorders and Abnormalities.  This conference addressed an ongoing major medical issue – back pain.  Recent studies conducted indicates that one out of three Americans suffer from back pain nearly every day, and back pain continues to be one of the main reasons patients seek medical care.

This continuing medical education conference brought together experts in spine care, including interventional spine, spine surgery, physical medicine and rehabilitation, rheumatology, chiropractic and more.  Attendees learned the latest on spinal diagnosis, and the treatment of spinal disorders and abnormalities.

If you did not receive information about the 2010 Back Talk symposium, and would like to be added to our mailing list for future continuing medical education conferences, please send your contact information to info@indianaspinegroup.com. 

EARLY BIRD REGISTRATION REMINDER

SIGN-UP TODAY & SAVE!

PLEASE JOIN US for Indiana Spine Group's 4th annual continuing medical education  symposium, Back Talk | Comprehensive Concepts in Spinal Disorders and Abnormalities.

Back pain continues to be one of the most common reasons patients seek medical care. According to the North American Spine Society, one out of three Americans suffers from back pain. This conference is ideal for physicians and health care practitioners to help them effectively care for their patients with back and neck pain and disorders.  

Back Talk will provide the latest information for the diagnosis and treatment of spinal disorders, injuries and abnormalities.

 

Early bird registration through July 30.

Register today and save $20!

Date:  September 10 and 11, 2010

Location:  The Westin Indianapolis | 50 S. Capitol Avenue | Indianapolis, IN  46204

For more information or to receive a conference brochure, call (317) 228-7000 or visit the links below:

• Registration Form
• Conference Brochure
• Accreditation

Saturday’s continuing medical education sessions will include three concurrent sessions with nine different topics for conference attendees to choose from.  This blog entry will highlight those sessions available in “Concurrent Sessions Three” that will be on Saturday morning (9/11/10). 

These sessions will include:

The Anatomy of the Exam - This is a clinical workshop that will be co-presented by minimally invasive spine specialist Kevin Macadaeg, MD, and nurse practitioner Alta Skelton, RN, MSN, NP-C.  This workshop will provide an in-depth look at the patient exam and will utilize a live-model to demonstrate the critical components of the physical exam.  What is normal and abnormal during the cervical and lumbar exam will be discussed, as well as a review of the neurological exam.  Additionally, this session will also discuss multiple problems that present as back or should/neck pain and will review clinical algorithms. 

Active and Injured | A Look at Sports Injuries – This session, presented by chiropractic physician Tony Origer, DC, ATC, will highlight common sports injuries related to popular recreational activities of adults, e.g. golf, tennis, weights/fitness training and running.  This continuing medical education session will review the anatomical and physiologic functional changes of the spine that result with aging, and the effects of sports on the spine.  Additionally, the patient assessment of patients that present with spinal pain and injuries from sports-related activities will be discussed, as well as appropriate levels of care and red-flags. 

(Tony Origer, DC, ATC, is a chiropractic physician with Performance Chiropractic and Sports Rehabilitation.)
 

The Workplace | Back Pain and Injuries |  This continuing medical education concurrent session will be presented by Marc Duerden, MD, FAAPM&R, CIME.  Dr. Duerden is a physical medicine and rehabilitation physician with Rehabilitation Associates of Indiana. 

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, it is projected that annually more than one million workers injure their back representing one out of five work place injuries.  During this session Dr. Duerden will review common workplace spinal injuries and their contributing factors to back pain.  Additionally, the short- and long-term effects on the worker’s status will be reviewed.  Spinal conditions and physical attributes that predispose an individual to back injuries will be discussed as well as the indications and treatment options for low back pain.  

For more information about Back Talk, or to register click here, or call (317) 228-7000.

The Nutritionally Healthy Spine – This continuing medical education session, presented by Lori Petrie, RD, will continue to focus on a healthy spine and the importance of nutrition in achieving and maintaining a healthy spine. This session will provide important nutritional recommendations for a healthy spine.  In addition to diet and lifestyle other factors that will be addressed for a healthy spine will include popular over-the-count medications, and a review of herbal, vitamin and nutritional supplements. Ms. Petrie is an outpatient nutritional counselor with St.Vincent Hospital.

Back Pain | Chronic and Failed – It is estimated that approximately 40% of individuals that undergo back surgery continue to have back pain.  Jonathan Gentile, MD, a minimally invasive spine specialist with Indiana Spine Group will address this ongoing issue.  In this educational session he will address both chronic back pain and failed back syndrome and will discuss the differentiation factors, and the diagnostic perils.  Additionally, Dr. Gentile will discuss the treatment options, indications and patient selection for various treatment options.  One treatment option that will be highlighted will included the spinal cord stimulator, used as an option for failed back syndrome. 

For more information about Back Talk, visit our web site, or call (317) 228-7000.

One general session that will be given at Back Talk, Indiana Spine Group’s continuing medical education symposium, is entitled Making the Diagnosis| Differential Factors in Spinal Diagnosis. This presentation will be given by neurosurgical spine surgeon Kenneth Renkens, MD, FACS.

During this presentation, Dr. Kenneth Renkens will discuss the differential diagnoses of lower back and extremity pain. The importance of identifying coexisting conditions affecting spinal pain and treatment will be reviewed. Additionally, Dr. Renkens will discuss spinal infections and inflammations that present as back pain neck pain.  

Recently Rick Sasso, M.D., a spine surgeon with Indiana Spine Group,
co-authored a book chapter for a medical textbook. This chapter was titled “Anterior Lumbar Interbody Fusion.”  Anterior lumbar interbody fusion, usually referred to as ALIF, is a spine surgical procedure commonly used to treat discogenic low back pain - when non-operative measures are ineffective.

In this chapter, the historical background of anterior lumbar interbody fusion was reviewed. This spine surgery procedure was used as early as 1932 for the treatment of spondylolisthesis. Additionally, this chapter reviewed the biomechanics, patient selection, clinical studies, and imaging. To read this chapter, click here

Exercise is not only beneficial for cardiovascular health, or to stay in shape or lose weight, exercise is critical to your spine health. Research has shown that individuals who exercise routinely are less likely to have back pain. Additionally, those that exercise recover more quickly if they do injure their back. When selecting an exercise program it should contain three components: strengthening, stretching and cardiovascular activities. For a spine wellness tip sheet with exercises for your back, click here.

Spine Wellness Tip #3 – Get Moving – Exercise! 

Planning continues for Back Talk | Comprehensive Concepts in Spinal Diagnosis and Abnormalities, Indiana Spine Group’s 4^th annual spine symposium. For this year’s conference there will be two educational tracks. One track will provide more general information and one in-depth. These tracks will be held the morning of day one. 

The general track is entitled: Spinal Care Boot Camp | Diagnostics and Treatment. There will be a session on spinal anatomy, entitled Spinal Anatomy 101, presented by minimally invasive spine specialist Kevin Macadaeg, MD.  During this session, Dr. Macadaeg will discuss the functional anatomy of the spine, normal aging process, the spine’s degenerative cascading process and normal and abnormal spinal anatomy.

Another general session which will be presented by minimally invasive spine specialist John Arbuckle, MD, The ABCs of Spinal Diagnostics. In this session, the etiology of spinal pain and common spinal disorders that cause back pain will be reviewed. Additionally, Dr. Arbuckle will discuss the indications and applications of spinal testing, evidence-based guidelines for the diagnosis of lower back and neck pain, and he will highlight the red flags of spinal pain. 

Two other sessions in this track include Understanding Spinal Therapeutics and The Spine Surgery Patient. In the spinal therapeutics session, presented by minimally invasive spine specialist Jonathan Gentile, MD, he will discuss the pharmacological management of acute and chronic back pain, review common noninvasive and minimally invasive spinal therapies and their indications. Spine surgeon Paul Kraemer, MD, will discuss the spine surgery patient and will provide an overview of common spine surgery procedures, their indications and expected outcomes. Additionally, Dr. Kraemer will discuss the applications and limitations of spine surgery, and when referral to a spine surgeon is indicated. 

For a complete Back Talk agenda, link here. 

The next series of blog entries will focus on a few spine wellness tips.  Simple solutions that provide health benefits to your spine. 

One popular New Year’s resolution is to go on a diet and lose weight.  Losing weight provides many health and wellness benefits, including spine wellness.  Did you know that obesity is one contributing factor to back pain? 

Spine Wellness Tip #1: Drop Some Pounds 

The last few spine wellness blog entries have discussed the effects of smoking and the spine.  For example smoking can increase your risk for lower back pain, increasing healing time following spine surgery and increase your risk for osteoporosis. 

For a spine wellness fact sheet about smoking and your spine's wellness, click here.

A prior spine wellness blog entry highlighted the Great American Smokeout, held on November 19.  This spine wellness blog entry will address smoking and your spine.  Usually when you think about the health effects of smoking – you think about cancer and heart disease.  But smoking also affects your spine wellness and as a recent study indicated, can contribute to lower back pain.

Study results published on Spine-Health.com indicated that there is a link between smoking and lower back pain.  The study concluded that the development of lower back pain was linked to smoking history and hypertension.  Additionally, the development of lumbar spondylosis was also associated with smoking history and hypertension.

This spine wellness blog entry highlights, WebMD's tips for avoiding back pain: 

ü      Standing:  Keep your head and stomach pulled in.

ü      Sleeping:  Use a mattress with enough spine support.  If your mattress is too soft or too hard – it may result in back pain.

ü      Lifting:  Use proper lifting techniques.  Do not stoop over; lift with your knees and keep the object close to you. 

When an individual continues to have chronic back pain and/or leg pain following back surgery; it is referred to as failed back syndrome. A few treatments for this can include physical therapy or non-steroidal anti-inflammatory medications (NSAID). If medical management is ineffective another treatment option available is a spinal cord stimulator.

A spinal cord stimulator is an implantable device that uses an electrical current to provide a tingling sensation that helps to mask the chronic pain. Dr. Gentile describes it as “a kind of pacemaker for pain.”

In this video, Dr. Gentile describes the procedure for implanting a spinal cord stimulator. Dr. Jonathan Gentile is a minimally invasive spine specialist with Indiana Spine Group.

This procedure is available at Indiana Spine Group. For more information, call 317.228.7000 or toll-free 866.947.7463.