ProRehab Delivers Physical Therapy to Help Patients with Back Pain From Sciatica

The spine experts at ProRehab deliver hands-on, manual physical therapy to help patients reduce or eliminate pain from sciatica and avoid surgery. A recent British Medical Journal study cites that patients who had spinal surgery to treat sciatica only had short term back pain relief. After six months, patients who had surgery for sciatica felt no different than patients who received physical therapy only.

Evansville, IN (Vocus/PRWEB) January 13, 2011

The spine experts at ProRehab deliver hands-on, manual physical therapy to help patients reduce or eliminate pain from sciatica and avoid surgery. A recent British Medical Journal study cites that patients who had spinal surgery to treat sciatica only had short term back pain relief. After six months, patients who had surgery for sciatica felt no different than patients who received physical therapy only.

The Mayo Clinic explains sciatica as pain that travels along the sciatic nerve that runs from the top of the back to the bottom of the leg. Sciatica usually ends quickly, but in some patients it remains. In the British Medical Journal study, patients had the option of early surgery or physical therapy. The patients who had surgery showed improvement for a short time following surgery. But, by six months, and up to two years following surgery, there was no difference between the groups having surgery and those that did not.

“Patients need to know that surgery is not their only option to treat pain associated with sciatica,” states Bethany Richerson, PT, DPT, OCS, a ProRehab physical therapist in Henderson, Kentucky. “This British Medical Journal study points out that patients have options to avoid surgery. Physical therapy can yield the same results if patients are able to make it through the first six months of pain.”

The study states that since the early benefits of surgery are gone by six months, well-informed sciatica patients, and not physicians, should decide if they have surgery. The results of this study suggest that expensive treatments for low back pain, such as surgery, may not be the best option for patients. Options like physical therapy at ProRehab often times are the best choice for patients with low back pain. A ProRehab patient comments on their therapy experience at ProRehab, ““Physical therapy has made the difference in relaxing sciatic pain I’ve experienced over the past years.”

“Multiple studies show that early treatments with physical therapists, such as exercise and hands-on therapy, offer great benefits to patients,” explains Richerson. “Patients see the best results from physical therapy for low back pain if they make sure to come see us early. The worst thing to do is wait until the back pain develops into leg pain and becomes a long term condition.”

When asked about the most memorable experience that took place during their therapy sessions at ProRehab, a recent Evansville, Indiana patient answered, “Going from not being able to walk, sit or stand without pain to getting my life all back.”

The spine experts at ProRehab can help reduce pain, reduce the use of medicines, and prevent painful and costly surgery. When physicians refer patients to physical therapy, patients have a choice regarding who they see. ProRehab invites patients to choose their physical therapists. To learn more about ProRehab visit ProRehab-pc.com.

About ProRehab:
ProRehab is a private physical therapy practice with locations in Evansville, southwest Indiana and western Kentucky. Known for teaching and training physical therapists throughout the region, ProRehab physical therapists are proud that patients ask their doctors to send them to ProRehab for orthopaedic care. They deliver hands-on physical and occupational therapy based on the newest research to achieve the best results for patients with bad backs, achy joints, wounded hands, and sports and work injuries. Along the way, the ProRehab family has fun and makes friends with their patients; patients are actually sad to leave after their treatment is over! Find ProRehab on Facebook, @ProRehab on Twitter, and FourSquare.

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