LOW BACK PAIN (LUMBAGO) THIS REPORT IS THE RESULT OF SUCCESSFUL RESOLVING OF LOW BACK PAIN AND SCIATICA (AND NOT ONLY) FOR TEN YEARS AT THE CYPRUS SHIATSU CENTRE, WHILE ALSO INVESTIGATING THOROUGHLY VARIOUS FIELDS OF WESTERN MEDICINE SUCH AS NEUROLOGY, NEUROSURGERY, ORTHOPAEDIC SURGERY, REUMATOLOGY, IMMUNOLOGY, etc. DID YOU KNOW THAT THE DIAGNOSIS AND TREATMENT OF LOW BACK PAIN AND SCIATICA STILL REMAINS A CONTROVERSIAL AND CHALLENGING ISSUE FOR WESTERN MEDICINE AND ESPECIALLY EVEN MORE FOR SPINE SURGERY? UNLIKE WESTERN MEDICINE, IN SHIATSU THE DIAGNOSIS AND TREATMENT OF LOW BACK PAIN AND SCIATICA IS AN UTTERLY STRAIGHTFORWARD PROCESS!!! PRIMARY LOW BACK PAIN IN THIS TOPIC WE MAKE REFERENCE TO THE VARIOUS CAUSES OF PRIMARY LOW BACK PAIN. HERE, WE DO PINPOINT THE EXACT NATURE OF EACH TYPE OF PRIMARY LOW BACK PAIN. Primary Low Back Pain involves two types: (a) the non inflammatory type which is the most prevalent one. (b) the inflammatory type which is less common Primary Low Back Pain non-inflammatory type is caused from the alteration of the temperature and space of the normal blood flow that occurs within the minute blood vessels of the nerves that innervate the low back muscles/fasciae and/or the spine. By that, we mean the circulation of blood that supplies the involved nerve(s), both outside the nerve, as well as inside the nerve(s), in other words, within the epineurium, the perineurium, and especially within the endoneurium that basically envelopes and supplies with blood (provides with nutrients actually) each nerve fibre. The alteration that occurs to the temperature and space of the normal blood flow within the nerves is caused either from focal decreased blood supply—that may be or not coupled with the tightening of the muscular/neural fascia. The decreased blood supply in the nerve fibres results in the focal and/or general drop in temperature of the nerve fibres , and is caused and/or aggravated by different factors, such as: (a) exposure to cold, draught of air, i.e. invasion of cold (b) overstrain and or sprain of the low back from lifting/carrying weights/objects (c) wrong/repetitive movements and or physical exercises (d) lack of body movement (e) abrupt change in body temperature, from hot to cold (f) tightening of the low back muscles' fascia. (g) trauma (h) standing still and or remaining still in a stooped position. As was already mentioned above, Primary Low Back Pain non-inflammatory type is the most prevalent form of Low Back Pain. It is due to this very type that most people in the world are suffering from. There are indeed many patients that have the problem for years (even decades in rare cases) despite the various treatments they received. Specifically, most people do realise this problem as a muscular one. However, other more serious problems do appear as muscular too, and so, we do use the term Primary Low Back Pain non-inflammatory type to exclude any serious disorders. This type of pain is usually alleviated by applying heat (hot packs or other) to the painful area, but the amelioration of pain lasts only as long as the heat is applied. The reason why the pain does not subside but on the other hand it gets worse soon after the application of heat, is simply because the neuromuscular fascia do remain constricted and therefore do not allow the right amount of blood to circulate within the nerves. This is the main reason why the various drugs prescribed by doctors are not effective as well as the great number of exercises that are employed either by western medicine physiotherapy or by other alternative medicine techniques. Unless you have an unwinding of the various fascial layers, you can then expect to have an effective treatment. It is under this as well as other principles that we focus during Internal Self-Shiatsu in order to stop not just Low Back Pain but other musculoskeletal disorders too, eg Neck Pain, Shoulder Pain, Neurogenic Thoracic Outlet Syndrome (Shoulder and Arm Pain/Weakness) Tennis/Golfer's Elbow, Carpal Tunnel Syndrome, etc. At this point we must make reference to one term employed by western medicine: ‘Mechanical' Low Back Pain. Despite the fact that the term Mechanical Low Back Pain can partly fit into the Primary Low Back Pain category, still what is implied as Mechanical Low Back Pain can also be caused from a compressing spinal tumour or any other vertebral fracture, etc. Therefore the term ‘mechanical' does not entirely fulfil our criteria to be included in the Primary Low Back Pain category. Primary Low Back Pain inflammatory type is caused by focal or general inflammation within the nerves that innervate the low back muscles/fasciae and/ or the spine. No infection is involved in this type of pain. Primary Low Back Pain inflammatory type also exhibits some of the features that are found in the non-inflammatory Primary Low Back Pain type, however the predominant symptom is inflammation. The inflammation within the nerve fibres results in the focal and/or general rise in temperature of the nerve fibres, and is caused and/or aggravated by different factors such as: (a) psychological factors/Sciatica (b) exposure to strong sunlight or warm/hot environment such as hot bath or shower, warm pools, jacuzzi, sauna, hot packs/heat therapy (c) trauma, abrupt injury (d) excessive movement (e) standing still and/or remaining still in a stooped position. Despite the fact that Sciatic Pain is a distinct disorder from Low Back Pain, still we do include it also in this type of Primary Low Back Pain, because part of the sciatic pain is located in the low back area. Excluding Sciatica from this category of Primary Low Back Pain inflammatory type, the rest of the cases do involve a more general feeling of pain in the whole lower back or even pain that is felt centrally within the spine. The injury of the zygapophysial joints (capsular tear) and/or the intervertebral discs (internal disc disruption or even complete disruption of the annulus fibrosus) that may occur as a result of abrupt injury, will in both cases produce inflammatory pain of short duration. Normal degenerative conditions of the aging process such as degenerated disc, spondylosis (osteophytes), and osteoarthritis of the zygapophysial joints do not cause any spinal pain at all as these conditions are also found in a great number of asymptomatic individuals. PLEASE NOTE!!! In no way, it is implied that the aforementioned factors will necessarily cause a disorder, simply because each organism is different! Further, an individual might be presenting a combination of inflammation and decreased blood supply, where in such case, we treat the stronger symptom first, and after the weaker one. DISCOVER INTERNAL SELF-SHIATSU!!!
4 . SECONDARY LOW BACK PAIN AND/OR SCIATICA 5. SYNOPSIS FOR LOW BACK PAIN AND SCIATICA
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