Low Back Pain Generator

Low back pain is one of the most common complaints in our health care system. The first step to properly treating is is to make sure we are looking at the correct area. Just because you have pain over your Sacroiliac joint (SIJ) does not automatically make that the problem. Pain can radiate or be referred from other structures. We don’t want to chase pain, we want to find the root cause for sports recovery. So if you feel like you are not making progress I can understand your frustration.

 In the low back the most common culprits are the lumbar spine, the hip and the SIJ. Each of those structures can have different problems but we want to make sure we are on the right area to begin with. 

The lumbar spine is the most common problem due to the variability in the discs and the amount it can move. The hip is the next most common due to how it contributes to so many movements and is weight bearing. The hip has a lot of muscle support around it that can pull the joint in different directions. 

The most commonly accused but the least likely problem is the SIJ. The SIJ only moves about 4 mm so it is rare for it to be the pain generator due to how stable it is. It happens, but not as often as you would think. 

So if you have pain over your SIJ and are not having any sustained improvement it may be because the pain is being referred to that joint by one of the other areas mentioned. Make sure you are working on the right things and that involves a full assessment with great communication prior to treatment. You are welcome to reach out if you have been getting frustrated and let’s see what we can change!