El Paso Functional Medicine
I hope you have enjoyed our blog posts on various health, nutritional and injury related topics. Please don't hesitate in calling us or myself if you have questions when the need to seek care arises. Call the office or myself. Office 915-850-0900 - Cell 915-540-8444 Great Regards. Dr. J

Gentle Chiropractic Therapy After Spine Surgery Or Spinal Fusion

742
Individuals that have undergone spine surgery or spinal fusion for extreme low back pain caused by degeneration, herniated disks, sciatica, and other injuries could benefit from gentle chiropractic therapy post-surgery. Spinal fusion surgery is one of the last options after non-invasive treatment/s aren’t providing relief like:
  • Massage
  • Physical therapy
  • Chiropractic
  • Medications
However, many patients still experience pain/discomfort after the surgery and wonder which rehabilitation treatment options are available to them. Is chiropractic care still an option after major spinal surgery? Doctors will warn patients about the risks of receiving chiropractic treatment after surgery. This is true with high-velocity low-amplitude spinal adjustments/manipulation.  
11860 Vista Del Sol, Ste. 128 Gentle Chiropractic Therapy After Spine Surgery Or Spinal Fusion
 
But incorporating gentle chiropractic therapy could benefit individuals still experiencing back pain after surgery. However, an individual needs to be adequately healed prior to beginning treatment. At Injury Medical Chiropractic and Functional Wellness Clinic, we regularly consult with patients post-surgery about the effectiveness of spinal rehabilitation therapy.  

After surgery wait time

Spinal fusion surgery removes the discs between two or more vertebrae and fuses the bones together with screws and plates. The objective is to correct conditions like herniated discs and degenerative disc disease by immobilizing the spine in that area. It can take three months for the vertebrae to fuse together and create a complete immobilized graft. Once the graft is complete, physical therapy is brought in to strengthen the muscles around the graft. Patients are told to avoid any twisting and bending motions, or the graft could break.  
 

How gentle chiropractic therapy can help

Spinal fusion surgery is not guaranteed to cure the problem causing an individual’s back pain. Gentle chiropractic therapy can help by therapeutically massaging the area/s keeping the muscles loose and flexible. Gentle manipulations are utilized to adjust or realign bones in the spine and other areas of the body. Because chiropractic treatment can involve intricate spinal manipulations, many individuals that have undergone back surgery can be hesitant to consider chiropractic treatment.  
11860 Vista Del Sol, Ste. 128 Gentle Chiropractic Therapy After Spine Surgery Or Spinal Fusion
 
Discuss the possibility of receiving chiropractic therapy with a physician to determine whether the surgical graft is strong enough to withstand gentle spinal manipulations. A patient post-surgery is at greater risk of injury if they are not healed correctly before receiving chiropractic treatment. If the graft is adequately healed and a physician feels that the body is strong enough to endure mild spinal manipulations, reach out to a chiropractor to discuss treatment options.

Body Composition Clinic


 

Benefits of a cheat day

Cheat days can be a highly useful tool to help motivate sticking to a diet plan. Cheat days can help build a positive relationship with food. The goal is to see one’s favorite dessert/comfort food as a reward and not a coping mechanism. However, cheat days not a license to binge eat. Binge eating can lead to eating-related issues and hurt an individual’s ability to self-regulate. Binge eating does not boost the body’s metabolism, but it can have the opposite effect. After a binge, the body’s system is overloaded with a rush of calories, sugar, and fat. In addition to causing hormone and energy levels to fluctuate, the excess of calories promotes:
  • Fat storage
  • Inflammation
  • Digestive discomfort
  • Bloating
  • Constipation

Cheat day frequency

Ultimately, cheat days depend on how well an individual self-regulates and what their short and long-term goals are. However, it can become very easy for a cheat day to become a cheat weekend, to a cheat week, and so on. Next thing an individual is back to old unhealthy eating habits. The objective is to understand what helps maintain motivation and develop a sustainable, long-term plan.  

Dr. Alex Jimenez’s Blog Post Disclaimer

The scope of our information is limited to chiropractic, musculoskeletal, physical medicines, wellness, and sensitive health issues and/or functional medicine articles, topics, and discussions. We use functional health & wellness protocols to treat and support care for injuries or disorders of the musculoskeletal system. Our posts, topics, subjects, and insights cover clinical matters, issues, and topics that relate and support directly or indirectly our clinical scope of practice.* Our office has made a reasonable attempt to provide supportive citations and has identified the relevant research study or studies supporting our posts. We also make copies of supporting research studies available to the board and or the public upon request. We understand that we cover matters that require an additional explanation as to how it may assist in a particular care plan or treatment protocol; therefore, to further discuss the subject matter above, please feel free to ask Dr. Alex Jimenez or contact us at 915-850-0900. The provider(s) Licensed in Texas& New Mexico*  
References
Perrucci, Rachel M, and Christopher M Coulis. “Chiropractic management of post-spinal cord stimulator spine pain: a case report.” Chiropractic & manual therapies vol. 25 5. 6 Feb. 2017, doi:10.1186/s12998-017-0136-0 Fernandez, Matthew et al. “Surgery or physical activity in the management of sciatica: a systematic review and meta-analysis.” The European spine journal: official publication of the European Spine Society, the European Spinal Deformity Society, and the European Section of the Cervical Spine Research Society vol. 25,11 (2016): 3495-3512. doi:10.1007/s00586-015-4148-y O’Shaughnessy, Julie et al. “Chiropractic management of patients post-disc arthroplasty: eight case reports.” Chiropractic & osteopathy vol. 18 7. 21 Apr. 2010, doi:10.1186/1746-1340-18-7
Post Disclaimer

Professional Scope of Practice *

The information herein on "Gentle Chiropractic Therapy After Spine Surgery Or Spinal Fusion" is not intended to replace a one-on-one relationship with a qualified health care professional or licensed physician and is not medical advice. We encourage you to make healthcare decisions based on your research and partnership with a qualified healthcare professional.

Blog Information & Scope Discussions

Our information scope is limited to Chiropractic, musculoskeletal, physical medicines, wellness, contributing etiological viscerosomatic disturbances within clinical presentations, associated somatovisceral reflex clinical dynamics, subluxation complexes, sensitive health issues, and/or functional medicine articles, topics, and discussions.

We provide and present clinical collaboration with specialists from various disciplines. Each specialist is governed by their professional scope of practice and their jurisdiction of licensure. We use functional health & wellness protocols to treat and support care for the injuries or disorders of the musculoskeletal system.

Our videos, posts, topics, subjects, and insights cover clinical matters, issues, and topics that relate to and directly or indirectly support our clinical scope of practice.*

Our office has reasonably attempted to provide supportive citations and has identified the relevant research study or studies supporting our posts. We provide copies of supporting research studies available to regulatory boards and the public upon request.

We understand that we cover matters that require an additional explanation of how it may assist in a particular care plan or treatment protocol; therefore, to further discuss the subject matter above, please feel free to ask Dr. Alex Jimenez, DC, or contact us at 915-850-0900.

We are here to help you and your family.

Blessings

Dr. Alex Jimenez DC, MSACP, RN*, CCST, IFMCP*, CIFM*, ATN*

email: coach@elpasofunctionalmedicine.com

Licensed as a Doctor of Chiropractic (DC) in Texas & New Mexico*
Texas DC License # TX5807, New Mexico DC License # NM-DC2182

Licensed as a Registered Nurse (RN*) in Florida
Florida License RN License # RN9617241 (Control No. 3558029)
License Compact Status: Multi-State License: Authorized to Practice in 40 States*
Presently Matriculated: ICHS: MSN* FNP (Family Nurse Practitioner Program)

Dr. Alex Jimenez DC, MSACP, RN* CIFM*, IFMCP*, ATN*, CCST
My Digital Business Card