Spondylolisthesis is a spinal condition where a vertebra slides forward over the vertebra below it. It usually happens in the lower spine, and sometimes it can lead to your spinal cord or nerve roots being squeezed. That causes back pain and numbness or weakness in one or both legs, and every once in a blue moon, it can cause bladder or bowel control issues. Sometimes there are no symptoms at all at first and then a few years later they show up.
Spondylolisthesis explained
Another way to explain spondylolisthesis is that your spine is made up of bones that come together at lots of small joints. Those joints keep the bones lined up while still allowing them to move.
Spondylolisthesis happens when one or more of these small joints move out of line keeping the bones, vertebrae, from moving correctly. It’s caused by a few different things. It could be because of a defective joint, joint damage from an accident, infection or arthritis, or if you have a vertebra that has a stress fracture from overuse of a joint. No one is immune, even children or teens. But adults are the typical victims because of wear and tear on the back.
Symptoms can include back or buttock pain
pain that runs from the lower back down one or both legs; numbness or weakness in one or both legs; difficulty walking; leg, back, or buttock pain that gets worse when you bend over or twist; loss of bladder or bowel control, in rare cases. Or there can be no symptoms at all.
All hope is not lost because it can be treated
Not doing the activities that caused the injury is a good start. Anti-inflammatory drugs for pain. Physical Therapy is another great treatment. It will help strengthen the surrounding muscles, and if surgery is necessary, physical therapy will be required in your rehabilitation.
It has been found that only 10-15% of these patients go on to have spinal surgery and that most improve with non-operative treatment. Typical non operative treatment includes physical therapy combined with rest, NSAIDS and possibly an epidural steroid injection.
Clinical significant improvements have been found with interventions that included lumbar flexion exercises and walking, but even more substantial improvement was found with the addition of manual therapy (joint mobilization and manual stretching) when performed to the lumbar spine and lower extremities. Exercise with an emphasis on spinal stabilization has been shown to provide pain relief and decreased re-occurrence of symptoms.
Contacting a physical therapist that specializes in the treatment of the lumbar spine is highly recommended in order to get both the manual therapy and a spine specialized home exercise program.
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