Columbus Regional Hospital - Health Matters

7 CRHEALTHCARE.ORG Mor a Hpita Help is Here In January, Columbus Regional Healthcare System opened the Physical Therapy Spine Clinic at the hospital. Clinic director Micah Merritt, DPT, is certified in the McKenzie Method ® of Mechanical Diagnosis and Therapy ® , a type of physical therapy focused on identifying and correcting improper musculoskeletal movement. "Most patients' pain is mechanical," Dr. Merritt says. "I teach patients repeated movements and positional exercises to help the joints regain mobility. The majority of patients are symptom-free by their last day of therapy. Just as importantly, they leave with a lot of education." Live life on your terms, not back or neck pain's. Ask your provider for a referral to the Spine Clinic. SOME OF THE THINGS THAT CAN LEAD TO LOW BACK PAIN MAY SURPRISE YOU. It's no secret that unleashing a particularly intense sneeze, forgetting to lift a heavy bag of groceries with your legs or twisting to hit a shot during a game of golf can leave you with a sore back for a day or two. When it comes to persistent back pain, however, the cause is often less apparent, and the effect is cumulative. Over time, factors such as poor posture, a sedentary lifestyle and age-related loss of flexibility can lead to back pain that won't go away, according to Micah Merritt, DPT, Cert. MDT, director of the Columbus Regional Healthcare System Physical Therapy Spine Clinic. "Sitting is one of the biggest lesser-known causes of low back pain," Dr. Merritt says. "Often, discomfort develops because people sit too long in the wrong type of chair— particularly recliners. These tend to be terrible for the back. A chair that's too hard won't have enough shock absorption and will cause too much compression in the low back. If a chair is too soft, however, you'll sink into it too much." A variety of other factors, including an abnormal gait, stress, obesity and depression, have been known to trigger back pain. "I advise people to avoid using riding lawn mowers if they are experiencing or have recently had an episode of significant back pain because they force individuals to bend forward, and the vibration can shift disc material in the back and lead to bulging discs," Dr. Merritt says. "Long car rides are bad for the back, too. I see back problems more often in commercial truck drivers than in individuals of any other profession. On a road trip, you need to stop, get out and move around every hour." In many cases, back pain will self-correct after a few days. If it lingers or worsens, however, don't delay seeing your provider. The earlier you seek medical help, the easier back pain is to treat. To learn more about the Physical Therapy Spine Clinic at CRHS, call 910-642-1789. SNEAK UP ON YOU DON'T LET BACK PAIN MICAH MERRITT, DPT

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