Back Pain Could Be Pain In Butt
Pain Could Be Caused By Misalignment Of Tailbone
POSTED: 11:50 am CST January 21, 2003
Sprained muscles and ligaments, arthritis, osteoporosis and herniated discs can all cause back pain. Doctors have a lot of ways to treat back pain, including medications, physical therapy, chiropractic manipulation, injections and surgery.
Sometimes these treatments work, sometimes they don't. And sometimes, back pain is really a pain in the butt!Sandra Holden has had back pain for seven years."It's like knitting needles stabbing in the back," she said.The pain started when she was pregnant, and continued after she gave birth.Turns out, the pain was caused by a condition known as coccydynia."The part or the spine involved is the very, very tip of the tailbone called the coccyx, [which is a] little bone at the bottom," said Dr. Richard Gotlin.The tailbone is supposed to line up with the pelvis. But it bends forward when you sit down on a hard surface.Gotlin says coccydynia is the most common cause of back pain related to childbirth. So why have most people never heard of it?"The most common reason we don't see this often is because of misdiagnosis or under diagnosis, like many things in medicine we haven't discovered it or we don't know about it," he said.So most doctors assume it's typical back pain and prescribe treatments like anti-inflammatory medications and physical therapy.However, Gotlin suggests a different kind of therapy. He says the treatment for coccydynia is to put the tailbone back in the right place. Gotlin does that by going through the rectum and pulling the tailbone back. That relieves the pain.It doesn't sound pleasant, but, Holden says it works."Once you have been through it two or three times it's not uncomfortable at all," she said. "[The procedure] gets that tailbone and puts it into place and it's like immediate relief."Gotlin says the procedure works with about 60 to 80 percent of the patients he treats.
Sometimes these treatments work, sometimes they don't. And sometimes, back pain is really a pain in the butt!Sandra Holden has had back pain for seven years."It's like knitting needles stabbing in the back," she said.The pain started when she was pregnant, and continued after she gave birth.Turns out, the pain was caused by a condition known as coccydynia."The part or the spine involved is the very, very tip of the tailbone called the coccyx, [which is a] little bone at the bottom," said Dr. Richard Gotlin.The tailbone is supposed to line up with the pelvis. But it bends forward when you sit down on a hard surface.Gotlin says coccydynia is the most common cause of back pain related to childbirth. So why have most people never heard of it?"The most common reason we don't see this often is because of misdiagnosis or under diagnosis, like many things in medicine we haven't discovered it or we don't know about it," he said.So most doctors assume it's typical back pain and prescribe treatments like anti-inflammatory medications and physical therapy.However, Gotlin suggests a different kind of therapy. He says the treatment for coccydynia is to put the tailbone back in the right place. Gotlin does that by going through the rectum and pulling the tailbone back. That relieves the pain.It doesn't sound pleasant, but, Holden says it works."Once you have been through it two or three times it's not uncomfortable at all," she said. "[The procedure] gets that tailbone and puts it into place and it's like immediate relief."Gotlin says the procedure works with about 60 to 80 percent of the patients he treats.Distributed by Internet Broadcasting. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
