Extension of the spine: It is beneficial. It is harmful.
So what’s with spinal extension?
Both are true: It is valuable. It’s harmful. It’s the job of your Montreal chiropractor to help you figure
out the role of extension in your Montreal
back pain relief plan and Montreal back pain control plan moving
past the present episode of back pain.
Your Montreal chiropractor at Dr. Hoang's Chiropractic Clinic 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 prominent 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 pushes
on the spinal nerves resulting in pain. Flexion often
permits the disc bulge to move off of the
nerve. Extension often allows the disc bulge to press on
the nerves more. Dr. Hoang's Chiropractic Clinic sets out to help lessen
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% happens 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. Montreal chiropractic
patients need healthy extension!
SPINAL EXTENSION
Dr. Hoang's Chiropractic Clinic 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 made the disc herniation
larger and constricted the vertebral canal producing
stenosis. (2) In a degenerative lumbar spine with spinal stenosis, flexion opened
the vertebral canal and relieved pain while extension exacerbated
the stenosis and caused pain. (3) Dr. Hoang's Chiropractic Clinic understands
the key to getting the benefits of extension is in knowing
when to apply extension.
Montreal CHIROPRACTIC USE OF EXTENSION
Montreal chiropractic treatment incorporates
extension into the Montreal chiropractic treatment plan for its advantages.
Cox® Technic applied to 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 increased pressures in the lumbar
spine to 1250 mmHg (the most the transducer could measure).
(4) Reducing intradiscal pressures and back pain is what
Dr. Hoang's Chiropractic Clinic does for its Montreal back pain
patients.
CONTACT Dr. Hoang's Chiropractic Clinic
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 Montreal chiropractic appointment
with Dr. Hoang's Chiropractic Clinic today. Let’s explore
the role extension might play in your back pain recovery and future
back pain control strategy.