Sarcopenia visits many of us some day
if we live long enough! Muscle degeneration accompanies aging. Many of us will not avoid it. It’s
the degenerative loss of skeletal muscle mass, quality
and strength that goes with aging. But back pain awfulness
is more associated with degenerated back muscles than sarcopenia. The more back muscle degeneration, the more
back pain is felt. (1) Johnson Chiropractic takes
care of older Richmond back pain patients to handle their back pain and control its impact on
their lives as they age gracefully.
MUSCLE DEGENERATION AND LIFE EXPERIENCE
Aging and life influence muscle strength. A recent
report states that after having
had a back surgery, post-surgical back pain patients’ MRIs revealed
muscle degeneration in all of them. Type 2 fatty degeneration
was most frequently seen over other types of changes like inflammation
and scarring. (2) Muscle degeneration contributes to
patients’ experiences of back pain.
Listen to this PODCAST
with Dr. James Cox on The Back Doctors Podcast with Dr.
Michael Johnson who shares how Cox® Technic helps patients
who have undergone back surgery work their back muscles and
spine back into shape, no matter their age.
BACK PAIN AND MUSCLE DEGENERATION IN OLDER FOLKS
Chronic changes in back muscles are seen
throughout the spine in the long run. Acute changes right
after injury are seen within the few days following surgery.
Researchers set out to figure out if these changes came
before or after the injury. They found that the multifidus
muscle decreased quickly after lumbar injury at the level of
injury. (3) In the latest study of patients over 65
years of age, 40% of chronic low back pain patients had
sarcopenia. 26.6% of the control group (those who didn’t have
chronic low back pain) had sarcopenia. The skeletal
muscle mass was smaller and body fat ratio was much higher
in the chronic low back pain patients. Lumbar multifidis and
erector spine muscles were much reduced in the chronic low back
pain group, too. (4) Richmond chiropractic patients with sarcopenia experience back pain and other issues that chiropractic treats.
SARCOPENIA PAIN AND OTHER ISSUES’ EFFECTS
Johnson Chiropractic sees males and females with sarcopenia
and other spinal problems in its Richmond
chiropractic practice. Sarcopenia in
patients with lumbar spinal stenosis was much more common in
females than males over 70 years of age. In another study,
13.9% of patients had sarcopenia which was accompanied
by dyslipidemia and cardiovascular disease. They also had decreased
body weight, body mass, grip strength, and walking distance. These patients felt
pain more deeply. (5) Your Richmond chiropractor understands
this and gently manages their experience of pain and its source
with gentle chiropractic treatment and exercise.
CONTACT Johnson Chiropractic
Schedule a Richmond chiropractic
visit with Johnson Chiropractic for back pain issues related to sarcopenia and back muscle
degeneration. Aging, back pain and degeneration will
not have to prevent you from enjoying your life!