How PT can help with lower, mid, and upper back pain

Back pain can have a huge effect on your body whether it’s pain in your upper, middle, or lower back. Many times, upper back pain is caused by muscle strain, which usually comes from poor posture. Going to a physical therapist can help address the main causes of your back pain, and the therapist will work with you to restore pain-free movement to help your body heal. A physical therapist can teach you how to minimize or avoid future upper back pain as well.

People that suffer from middle back pain have problems in their thoracic spine. This spine is located in the middle region of the spine along the rib cage which attaches into this part of the spine and wraps around to the front of the chest. The thoracic spine is a large part of the spine and has many joints and muscles in the area, all which can lead to pain. Middle back pain is influenced by everyday postural habits, and with physical therapy, it can be lessened.

Lower back pain is experienced by most people at some point in their life. Patients that suffer from lower back pain usually are referred to physical therapy for four weeks as a non-surgical treatment option before considering more involved treatments such as surgery. The goal of physical therapy is to decrease the back pain, increase the ability of the back, and to inform the patient about how to prevent future back issues. Some common forms of physical therapy that are used are passive and active treatments. Passive physical therapy includes things such as heat application, icing, and electrical stimulation. Active physical therapy focuses more on specific exercises and stretching that can be done for the pain.

Physical therapy will allow you to get healthy as soon as possible and teach you how to avoid future pain as well. United Rehab Physical Therapy has four Long Island locations in Ronkonkoma, Shirley, Farmingville, and Hauppauge and has the tools to help with your lower back pain. All of our physical therapists will take the time to evaluate you and find out where the pain started and what they can do to make you better as quickly as possible.