In recent months we seem to have found ‘The’ solution for many of those patients with lower back pain that wouldn’t seem to go away. It’s hypertonicity or tightness of the Psoas muscle. This muscle originates on the front of the lower thoracic and upper lumbar vertebrae. It travels down the back of the abdomen and inserts on the upper, inner thigh. When it is activated, it lifts the thigh (flexion) and if it ever stays in a tightened state, will cause the spine to pull forward. This often causes an increased lordosis or swayback and lower back pain that may also appear in the upper front of the thigh.
It is a difficult muscle to stretch or massage, but it can be done. The main thing is to find out if it is the problem. Then, some active stretching can be done effectively at the Chiropractor’s office. It is imperative to adjust any of the related joints near the muscle to ensure there is no nerve irritation. Finally, patients go home with some good stretching exercises to do a few times per day.
We have had some great success particularly with those lower back patients that don’t respond quickly to Chiropractic adjustments.