Question:
Lower back pain in teenager
My 15 year old daughter has chronic lower back pain around her L5 joint - it started getting sore over the summer and gradually got worse and worse til now she cannot bend back or twist to the sides without sharp pain. She is a ballet dancer and is now really limited in her movements. She has had x-rays and an MRI and there is no fracture or problem that can be found. She rested it for a month and nothing changed and now is working with her posture (it used to be pretty bad - slumping etc a lot while at the computer)and some trigger point therapy she is doing herself. She is in a boarding school program so I have to help her from afar. Does anyone have any ideas of exercises that might help? She cannot do things like sit-ups because of the pain.
Thanks so much.
Asked by Hatherly - 6 answers - 2 years 18 weeks ago
have you tried taking her to an osteopath? they are around £30 pounds for an half an hour but it is worth the money as they could find out the reason for her pain and sort it out.
Submitted 2 years 18 weeks ago by paigeI would definitely take her to a chiropractor and a physical therapist. Sounds like a combination of structural trouble which a chiropractor can help and a core strength issue that a physical therapist will address. Long term having a strong core will be important so make sure she is given a good home exercise program by the PT. Good to have the MRI already to rule out any fractures in the lumbar spine. Pars fractures in younger female athletes are less common then males but still occur and typically consist of intratrabecular fractures. If she does both of the above treatment options I would bet she will start improving quickly.
Submitted 2 years 17 weeks ago by sportsdocThanks for these responses. She did go to a chiropracter every day for 5 weeks with no change whatsoever. She is now seeing a physical therapist at school but still seeing no changes. it is very frustrating for her.
Submitted 2 years 17 weeks ago by HatherlyI will look into an osteopath, although they are a lot more expensive here and after the expense of the chiropracter and MRI we are getting tapped out!
You and your daughter might find this article helpful. I showed it to my physical therapist who thought it was excellent and confirmed it was based on sound and current science. My PT is on staff at one of the top Sports Physical Therapy clinics in the US. They treat a couple of the top American professional teams. (I mention this to suggest that he has professional credibility.) He follows these protocols when working with patients with back pain. He said he has seen even extremely fit athletes who have some weakness in this area. Thus, he starts his patients building core strength and re-training motor control from the inside out, ie. starting with re-training the transversus abdominis, before getting into the core strengthening exercises which work the external abdominal muscle groups (rectus abdominis / obliques). This protocol really helped me a lot. It takes patience and determination, but I'd guess your ballet-dancing daughter already has that!
Halston
Submitted 2 years 16 weeks ago by Halston401You should take her to a doctor, a chiropractor maybe, California chiropractors could help, you should check with them online and see what advise they have for you. I hope that helped!
Submitted 2 years 3 weeks ago by dannaYou should seriously get her evaluated for Spondylolysis and/or spondylolisthesis. It's the number one cause of back pain in ballet dancers and gymnasts. A bone scan is the definitive test to diagnose (my son had two x-rays and two CT's before a bone scan finally revealed his L4 was fractured bilaterally). Rest, a back brace and bone stimulator for up to 6 months is the only treatment that worked for us (we've been through it three times). Chiropractic is great, but it can make it worse since the spine is 'fractured' and unstable. You really should see a pediatric orthopedist.
Submitted 1 year 41 weeks ago by zack06