A spinal injection to treat back pain that is linked to more than two dozen deaths in the recent meningitis outbreak — due to contamination of the drug with a fungus — has focused the spotlight on an oft-used steroid treatment that’s only modestly effective at reducing pain in most patients. This raises the question: Is there a better treatment for the 10 percent of Americans affected by low back pain?
No doubt, spinal injections that block inflammation, over-the-counter and prescription pain relievers, and physical therapy can bring considerable short-term relief, and often back pain heals on its own. But for those with lingering symptoms, back pain cures remain elusive.
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Long-standing habits of holding and carrying oneself with excess tension are often contributing factors to back pain, if not the underlying cause. Learning how to stand, sit, bend and move without compressing the spine can enable long-term relief. There’s a method that teaches principles of proper movement proven to relieve back pain for the long-term called the Alexander Technique. It’s been taught worldwide for over 100 years to performers, athletes and people with chronic pain of all ages. Results of one recent study published in the British Medical Journal showed long term benefits of lessons in the AT for patients with chronic back pain (http://www.bmj.com/content/337/bmj.a884). More information can be found on the website of The American Society for the Alexander Technique (www.AmSATonline.org), a nationwide organization of certified teachers of the Alexander Technique.