How does this relate to Back Bracing?
There are multiple reasons clinics are incorporating LSO back
braces into care plans for patients with low back problems:
One major reason is to assist a patient with managing their pain at
home during the duration of care-- and to decrease the
dependence on Tylenol or Advil.
Patients who are given an effective tool for pain management by
their doctor are less likely to seek out a harmful solution to
provide them with relief.
More than 191 million opioid prescriptions were dispensed to
American patients in 2017. 66% of these prescriptions were for
conditions often associated with pain (most commonly, back
pain).
A study conducted in 2015 showed that the #1 source for misused
pain relievers was obtainment from a friend or relative. The vast
majority of which were provided to the user for free, or taken
without permission.
57% of these individuals using pain killers without a prescription
were first time users.
Providing a low back pain patient with an LSO brace in many
cases will curb the patient's pain enough to steer them clear of
pain relievers while you work to correct the underlying issue.
How does a back brace relieve pain so effectively?
The pulley system included within an LSO back brace creates a
resistive force on low back load to decrease such load, allowing
the muscles to relax and the trunk to be supported.
While it is of top priority to identify and correct the
underlying issue causing a patient's pain, it cannot
be overlooked that the demand for pain relief in today's
society is higher than ever. When a patient comes
into an office for help with their pain, this is an
opportunity to not only fix them-- but to steer them
away from possibly dangerous medications in the meantime.