Extension of the spine: It is valuable. It is harmful.
So what’s with spinal extension?
Both are accurate: It’s beneficial. It’s harmful. It’s the job of your Colorado Springs chiropractor to help you establish the role of extension in your Colorado Springs
back pain relief plan and Colorado Springs back pain control plan in the future.
Your Colorado Springs chiropractor at The Chiropractic TRUhealthDR is well versed
in the effects – good and bad – of spinal extension and respects its role in spinal
health and mobility.
SPINAL CURVES
Two of the spine’s most noticeable curves –
the cervical and lumbar curves – are lordotic curves meaning they curve concavely.
Flexion flattens these curves. Extension magnifies them. When a disc herniates
or bulges, it does so into the concavity of the curve and potentially presses
on the spinal nerves causing pain. Flexion usually
allows the disc bulge to get away from the
nerve. Extension often permits the disc bulge to compress
the nerves more. The Chiropractic TRUhealthDR sets out to help decrease
painful situations like this!
SPINAL MOTION
75% of the flexion and extension movement in the low back occurs
at the L5-S1 level of the lumbar spine. 20% occurs at the
L4-L5 level. Therefore, 95% of flexion and extension of the lumbar spine happens
at these two lower disc levels. Here, degenerative disc disease (minor and more
advanced) occurs most. In the cervical spine, C5-C6 is the spinal
level where most of the flexion occurs, and C4-C5 is where
most of the extension takes place. Colorado Springs chiropractic
patients need healthy extension!
SPINAL EXTENSION
The Chiropractic TRUhealthDR respects extension and understands
how it may help and harm. The extensor muscles in the
back weaken and degenerate just as discs degenerate. (1)
Extension helps strengthen these muscles to support the spine. Extension is essential
for this when the spine is healthy enough to do extension. Extension to a painful spine may be
harmful. Why? In the cervical spine, flexion reduced disc
protrusion and enlarges the sagittal diameter of the vertebral
canal while extension increased the disc protrusion and narrowed the vertebral canal causing
stenosis. (2) In a degenerative lumbar spine with spinal stenosis, flexion opened
the vertebral canal and reduced pain while extension worsened
the stenosis and caused pain. (3) The Chiropractic TRUhealthDR understands
the key to getting the benefits of extension is in recognizing
when to apply extension.
Colorado Springs CHIROPRACTIC USE OF EXTENSION
Colorado Springs chiropractic treatment incorporates
extension into the Colorado Springs chiropractic treatment plan for its benefits.
Cox® Technic used with the cervical spine dropped
intradiscal pressures to as low as 502 mmHg (4) and to as low as -192 mmHg in
the lumbar spine. (5) Extension escalated pressures in the lumbar
spine to 1250 mmHg (the highest amount the transducer could measure).
(4) Dropping intradiscal pressures and back pain is what
The Chiropractic TRUhealthDR does for its Colorado Springs back pain
patients.
CONTACT The Chiropractic TRUhealthDR
Listen to this PODCAST with Dr. David Atiyeh on the Back
Doctor’s Podcast with Dr. Michael Johnson. He shares how he cared for
a patient whose back pain persists after multiple back
surgeries with flexion distraction which relieves her pain
as the table is flexed not extended.
Schedule your Colorado Springs chiropractic appointment
with The Chiropractic TRUhealthDR today. Let us explore
the role extension might have in your back pain recovery and future
back pain control plan.