Human beings are members of the Great Apes family, but unlike other primates or indeed any other animal, human beings are adapted naturally for bipedal, upright movement. Millions of years ago, our ancestors traded their tree-bound, vegetarian lifestyle for a life of running and hunting wild game, and that resulted in some adaptations. The human skeleton reflects this, with its S-shaped spine, upright pelvic bone, long legs, and relatively short arms. This made a hunter lifestyle possible, and humanity enjoyed many evolutionary advantages. But this upright posture comes with some costs, too, and even today, many millions of people around the world suffer from back pain and spinal distress.

Fortunately, many medical options exist to deal with back and spinal issues, and these range from manual muscle testing devices and other physical therapy tools in a hospital to chiropractic adjusting tools and yoga sessions. Serious spine problems call for surgery, but someone with lower back pain or chronic pain conditions may have chiropractor adjustment tools used on them. In a hospital, manual muscle testing devices and similar rehab tools track the patient’s recovery, for the hospital staff’s reference.

Americans and Back Pain

Millions of people around the world suffer from chronic back pain and joint issues, and in the United States in particular, many statistics are being kept to track this. The health industry is enormous, and a lot of statistics, surveys, and studies are done to track all of this information, including back issues. The numbers show that nearly half of all working Americans admit to getting back pain symptoms, at any given time, 31 million Americans suffer from chronic back pain. One in three women and one in four men suffer from this, and for various reasons. Experts have also predicted that around 80% of all Americans will experience back pain issues at some point in their lives.

What causes all this? Back pain may happen if someone suffers a sports injury, where their spine and back muscles are distressed and out of shape. This may be when manual muscle testing devices are used during recovery, along with range of motion testing. Many Americans also suffer back pain due to many years of hard manual labor, such as in construction jobs. Other times, women may experience back pain due to pregnancy, and many surveyed Americans blame back pain blame ongoing stress for their back issues. And simple old age may certainly cause back issues, since many decades of upright walking will wear out the spine. The spine may compress somewhat and bend out of shape, distressing the joints as well as straining muscles and pinching nerves. Fortunately, many non invasive methods can take care of all this.

Manual Muscle Testing Devices

A hospital patient might need physical therapy, such as after a sports injury, and this means using manual muscle testing devices and stretch tests. These devices can measure the patient’s strength and arcs of motion to show their recovery progress, and this data is entered into computers with advanced software. Thus, the hospital staff may know when a patient is ready for release. A patient may, at first, have limited arcs of movement in their knees, shoulders, back, or even neck, and they may suffer pain and their strength output may be limited. Proper therapy methods can restore a patient’s strength and flexibility, which will be carefully measured often.

Chiropractors and Yoga

Someone who suffers chronic pain may not need to visit a hospital in some cases. Instead, they will consult their private physician and explain their problem, and they may get referred to a local and trusted chiropractor’s office or yoga studio. Chiropractors are specialized doctors who use simple tools and even their bare hands to readjust a patient’s bones and muscles, and this can erase pain, relieve stress on bones and nerves, and restore flexibility, no surgery needed.

Something similar may be done at a yoga studio, and someone suffering from chronic pain may sign up for private sessions. The patient will stretch and bend their body in natural ways, which relieves pressure on joints, muscles, and nerves to restore arcs of motion and erase pain. This may be done over the course of several sessions.