Extension of the spine: It’s valuable. It is harmful.
So what is up with extension for the spine?
Both are accurate: It is valuable. It is harmful. It’s the job of your Sitka chiropractor to help you establish the role of extension in your Sitka
back pain relief plan and Sitka back pain control plan in the future.
Your Sitka chiropractor at Arctic Chiropractic, Sitka is well versed
in the effects – good and bad – of spinal extension and respects its role in spinal
health and motion.
SPINAL CURVES
Two of the spine’s most prominent curves –
the cervical and lumbar curves – are lordotic curves meaning they curve inwardly.
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 causing pain. Flexion usually
permits the disc bulge to get away from the
nerve. Extension often allows the disc bulge to compress
the nerves more. Arctic Chiropractic, Sitka intends to help decrease
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) happens 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. Sitka chiropractic
patients need healthy extension!
SPINAL EXTENSION
Arctic Chiropractic, Sitka respects extension and understands
how it may help and hurt. The extensor muscles in the
back weaken and degenerate just like discs do. (1)
Extension helps strengthen these muscles to support the spine. Extension is necessary
for this when the spine is healthy enough to perform extension. Extension to a painful spine may hurt. Why? In the cervical spine, flexion decreased disc
protrusion and maximizes 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 widened
the vertebral canal and relieved pain while extension worsened
the stenosis and produced pain. (3) Arctic Chiropractic, Sitka knows
the key to eliciting the benefits of extension is in recognizing
when to use extension.
Sitka CHIROPRACTIC USE OF EXTENSION
Sitka chiropractic treatment incorporates
extension into the Sitka chiropractic treatment plan for its advantages.
Cox® Technic used with the cervical spine reduced
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 highest amount the transducer could measure).
(4) Reducing intradiscal pressures and back pain is what
Arctic Chiropractic, Sitka aims to do for its Sitka back pain
patients.
CONTACT Arctic Chiropractic, Sitka
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 continues after multiple back
surgeries with flexion distraction which relieves her pain
as the table is flexed not extended.
Schedule your Sitka chiropractic appointment
with Arctic Chiropractic, Sitka today. Let’s discover
the role extension might play in your back pain recovery and future
back pain control strategy.