It’s common to see older adults with slumped posture. There are lots of possible reasons, but the most common cause is a condition called spinal stenosis.
The Mayo Clinic says that spinal stenosis can arise from wear-and-tear that narrows the spinal disks. The narrowing can place pressure on the nerve roots as they leave the spinal column prior to traveling into the legs. The symptoms can consist of pain, numbness/tingling, and weakness. It generally begins slowly and tends to get worse over time. A patient with back stenosis may feel more comfortable leaning or flexing forward. By doing this, their posture opens the holes in the spine (the foramen), taking pressure off the nerves.
Patients with a history of spinal/disk injury, heavy labor, poor nutrition, or obesity are at higher risk for spinal stenosis.
The bright side is that patients with spinal stenosis can benefit from non-surgical approaches!
A 2019 randomized trial involving 259 seniors with spinal stenosis compared the efficiency of 3 techniques: standard medical care plus epidural steroid injections, group-based exercise, or manual therapy (back mobilization carried out by a chiropractor) with individualized workouts (stretches and strength training).
In all three categories –pain, function, and walking capability– the chiropractic approach did the BEST! If you suffer from spinal stenosis and its associated signs and walking limitations, PLEASE think about chiropractic not only as a choice, but possibly as this study points out, the best option!
