“Seeing is believing.” Ever heard
that saying before? Back And Neck Care Center bets you have. Back And Neck Care Center knows
that Severna Park back pain patients often would
like to see the source of their pain. (They believe they have pain by now!) Currently, imaging doesn’t always satisfy a patient’s desire to see the source
if it is the result of an issue like chemical
irritation when disc material is on a nerve root, so imaging
can only go so far in meeting a patient’s desire to see the cause. But Severna Park back pain patients can believe that
their Severna Park chiropractor will thoroughly tell
them the cause of their pain…and set a treatment plan to alleviate
that pain.
THE GOOD OF IMAGING
Imaging recommendations today
seem to be all about reducing imaging exposure and
cost. The concern of radiation exposure is being dealt with by carefully examining low back pain patients for more specific findings,
decreasing radiation dose and doing more MRI
than CT. These efforts in turn decrease the cost of
imaging. (1) Recommendations today are to no do imaging for 6-8 weeks of conservative treatment. Back And Neck Care Center has followed the Cox Technic System of Spinal Pain Management which suggests holding off on imaging (in the absence of "red flags" which a thorough clinical examination finds) for a month during which time 50% improvement is sought. If 30 days goes by without such improvement, imaging is ordered. These are win-win scenarios for
Severna Park back pain patients and their healthcare providers like your
Severna Park chiropractor most of the time.
BACK PAIN SUFFERERS WANT TO “SEE”
Other times (and Back And Neck Care Center totally understands
this!) patients want to “see” their diagnosis. Words and descriptions and
drawings are one thing while imaging is much more personal.
When it comes to non-specific back pain, there is an extra
layer of curiosity as it is “non-specific” and does not
always have a glaring cause for the pain. The
public and patients believe imaging helps diagnose the back
pain condition. They are not alone as some healthcare professionals do, too. (2)
That’s likely why patients and their healthcare
providers like MRI and xrays.
MEDICINE AND SPINAL IMAGING
Interestingly, for years, medicine downplayed the idea
of imaging for spine problems. Today, medicine becomes more
and more interested in it. For cervical spine myelopathy, for instance,
treating physicians depend on imaging to determine its
severity. Particularly, a group
of researchers looked at the possibility of
how imaging helped see the relationship between lumbopelvic
alignment and cervical alignment and subsequent cervical spine
myelopathy severity. (3) Imaging has its good points. Your Severna Park
back pain specialist at Back And Neck Care Center wants to be sure imaging is positively
contributory to the treatment plan for our back pain patients’ ultimate
recovery and pain relief. We know that “seeing is believing” and
respect what imaging brings to the treatment plan when necessary.
CONTACT Back And Neck Care Center
Listen to this PODCAST
with Dr. Dan Clark on The Back
Doctors Podcast with Dr. Michael Johnson as he describes how
useful imaging can be for a patient’s treatment plan and final
outcome of care.
Schedule your Severna Park chiropractic appointment at
Back And Neck Care Center to understand your back pain and
its relieving treatment plan whether you can see the cause or
not because you certainly already believe you
have pain. Back And Neck Care Center believes in its relief. You can, too.