Antibiotics could “Cure 40% of Chronic Low Back Pain”.

Up to half a million patients with chronic low back pain may be suffering from an infection that can be treated with antibiotics.

If proved true, the revolutionary theory about the cause of one of the commonest and most debilitating ailments should win its discoverer the Nobel Prize, one surgeon said today.

However, the paper describing the research based on just 162 patients was turned down by the leading medical journals such as the Lancet and BMJ. It was published today in the European Spine Journal.

Researchers claim the treatment could be suitable for up to 40% of patients with severe, long term pain for whom the only alternative is surgery.

However, it is not as simple as replacing the painkillers with antibiotics. The treatment requires an MRI scan to detect distinctive “Modic” changes in the spinal column – named after the doctor who first observed them in the late 1980s – which are indicative of bacterial infection.

Can Twisting cause the Agony of Back Pain?

THE first comprehensive model of the human spine is challenging our assumptions about the causes of back pain. Contrary to the idea that spinal injuries are caused by a combination of compression, bending, tension and shear forces, the 3D animated model suggests many injuries are the result of quick twists of the vertebrae, making the joints between them rotate.

Nick Beagley and Vladimir Ivancevic of the Defence Science and Technology Organisation in Edinburgh, South Australia, have spent the past 18 months developing their mathematical model, called the Full Spine Simulator (FSS). Existing models of the spine evaluate forces placed on a single joint, or a simple series of joints, and allow each just a few degrees of freedom. But the FSS represents all 25 movable joints of the spine, and gives each its full six degrees of freedom.

Yoga shown to effective for Back Pain

Doing Yoga is a more effective way for people with lower back pain to become more mobile than the treatments currently offered by GPs, according to new research.

The study found that back pain sufferers recorded greater improvements in everyday physical tasks such as walking, bending down and getting dressed if they did weekly yoga sessions.

Participants who had practised yoga reported enhanced function compared with those receiving standard care, even nine months after the yoga classes had finished.

Neck & Back Pain.

Neck & Back Pain

Patient: Woman 29 years
Occupation: Nurse
Pain: Can reach 6/10

Complaint: Back and Neck Pain can often occur simultaneously. This Woman works as a Nurse, and has developed left sided Neck & Back Pain over the few months. She recalls hurting her low back about 6 months ago, while lifting a heavy patient. She is unsure how neck pain has developed.

Treatment: This Woman responded well to Spinal Manipulation of her back and neck. The range of movement in her neck and low back was initially poor, but quickly improved with treatment.

She visited weekly for 4 treatments, and was pain free by this stage.

Prognosis: This Woman visits me if and when she feels the need.

She now goes to Pilates classes twice per week, and feels much stronger and able to cope with the demands of her job.