WHAT IS BACK PAIN?

Backpain can be caused by many things, sometimes by a serious medical condition, more often by a simple mechanical problem. The mechanical function of the back has never properly been understood until recently. Now at last an engineer has worked out not only why things go wrong but also a means of putting them right. In short, for the spine to work efficiently it must retain suppleness throughout its length. Life conspires against this. We all have falls, car accidents, sports injuries, work with a bad posture, or simply grow older. All of these can compromise the suppleness of the spine.

What has gone wrong?

For many people, the vertebrae in the middle of the back have become fixed, particularly in a "whiplash" accident where the body is taken completely by surprise. It is quite probable that nothing will be noticed to begin with. But the spine is now very probably fixed in the middle, and there will have to be more movement at the top and bottom to compensate. This will lead to increased wear and tear in the neck and lower back, and is the start of the road to back pain.

Where is it all leading to?

Typically after about ten years, this extra strain on the upper and lower back will finally be noticed. It will cause pain in the neck or lower back, and the body will naturally adopt a slightly twisted posture to protect the back from this pain. This is referred to as a protective posture. If nothing is done, things can only get worse. The nerve supply to other parts of the body can be compromised causing tingling in the arms and legs, or more painfully sciatica. Further complications might occur. One of the cushion pads between the vertebrae may herniate, producing what is wrongly known as a "slipped disc".

Help!

The practitioners hope to be able to help before things have become so serious. They can unfix the fixed joints by counter-rotating adjacent vertebrae using a method called power-assisted micro-manipulation or P.A.M. for short. Once the fixed vertebrae are unfixed, they describe the spine as being "mobilised". The immediate effect is to take a lot of the strain off the lower and upper back, reducing the associated pain. They then have to stimulate the stretch reflexes that control the movement of the spine to adapt to its new mobilised state, and with the aid of a few simple posture exercises, the body should soon be able to sort itself out.

Introduce me to PAM!

In order to generate the thrust to counter-rotate the fixed vertebrae, the power of human hands alone is not enough. The inventor has produced a "bionic" hand with four independent pistons driven by compressed air and controlled by clever software that can deliver the force required exactly where it is needed.

Can anything else help?

There are a lot of other things that can be done to help the back, for instance Alexander Technique, Yoga, and Tai-Chi. Proponents of P.A.M. would argue that once the back is mobilised and its suppleness restored, this sort of exercise is excellent, but before the spine is mobilised, you would be putting the neck and lower back areas under a lot more strain than they need to be.

How immediate is the effect?

The spine will not necessarily respond immediately, and it can take three or four treatments before the spine starts to regain its lost movement.

What does it feel like after the treatment?

Commonly you will feel slightly giddy, and about an inch taller, accompanied by a general feeling of well being. The spine may well feel sore or uncomfortable for a while as it comes to terms with the changes.

Can anyone do it?

Although the process of micro-manipulation is straightforward enough, a skilled, qualified practitioner is needed to get the best results, and one who is trained to recognise situations where there may be medical complications. If there is any doubt, you would be referred back to your GP for preliminary investigation.