Many people are afflicted with spine problems. Physicians at the Emory Spine care center understand the challenges patients spinal problems bring to a person's life. Some people may have trouble just managing simple daily activities because of spinal problems. Spinal problems do not only occur after an specific injury to a patient's spine; some suffer spinal problems due to everyday wear and tear on the body.

As a national leader, the Emory Orthopaedics & Spine Center has reinvented orthopaedic and spine health care by bringing all aspects of diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation together in one location. Services range from treating simple conditions such as herniated discs and low back or neck pain, to more complex problems such as spinal tumors, scoliosis, and spine fractures.

Low back pain is the most common type of back pain and affects millions of people a year. The Emory Orthopaedic and Spine Center says the good news is the vast majorities of patients with low back pain never require formal treatment and do get better. While there are many causes of back pain, many are due to low back strain of the muscles in the back which help to support the spine. Often rest, ice and later heat can be helpful. Modification of activities and proper body mechanics along with weight reduction are the mainstays of treatment. If these life style changes do not work, anti inflammatory drugs can be helpful for both pain and inflammation.

A more serious cause of back pain may be a result of cervical disc disease. As human beings our cranium and cervical spine produce motion capability that allows humans to have the ability to view the world from many angles. While adaptive, a problem is that a large structure, the head, is placed on our cervical spine, a very small structure. Car accidents and normal aging causes degeneration of the cervical discs in that there is a normal loss of height and water volume.

As the cervical disc becomes less supportive the cervical spinal canal may impinge on the cord itself or nerve roots. An individual may lose extremity motor function, become extremely weak, lose fine motor ability, and have difficulty walking without stumbling. If you think you suffer from this a visit to the Emory Orthopaedics & Spine Center might be useful.

Another more severe cause of back pain is Scoliosis. This condition can affect both young and old people and is caused by a deviation or curvature of the spine. Generally the cause in most cases is unknown. Curvature may be mild to severe and treatment is varied depending on severity and response to conservative means. If the patient is young, wearing a brace might be helpful in controlling progression. Not all cases are candidates for bracing as this depends on the type and severity of curve. Bracing is used once a patient has severe spine curvature or shows rapid progression in skeletally immature individuals and can make a big difference. While back pain can be caused by many factors, the Emory Spine Center can help you find the reason behind yours.