Question
i am 45 y/o female. I have no remarkable problems other than history of scoliosis. I do group aerobic fitness 4 X week, moderate strength train upper body and core, and stretch daily.Two weeks ago I stopped everything because i had bronchitis. during an acute coughing spell I injured my back. Severe low back incapacitating spasms. After 4 days of NSAID's and Flexeril I went to chiro. He feels I have facet joint injury (no disc sx)  and feels it will heal. I am doing all conservative treatment. (heat, mild stretching) Question: How does this happen to a health and fitness conscious person? And how long will the inflammation take to go away? Will I ever be able to resume my exercise routine? Or is this the start of something chronic?

Answer
Dear Lisa,

It sounds like you are making a lot of good choices regarding your health and wellness. Congratulations!  The good news is that since you have been trying to be so healthy and fit, you are less likely generally to have  back problems, and when you do have them, they typically respond better to care and you heal more quickly.

Regarding your first question... "How does this happen to a health and fitness conscious person?"

Exercising, eating right, and taking care of yourself is very important. All of these things help to Lower your Odds of injury, but they do not eliminate the potential for injury.  Injuries occur in even the most fit of athletes.  Time also takes its toll on our bodies, so the older we get, the more likely we are to experience injury and disease. (I am in NO WAY saying that you are older... :)    It is a fact that as time progresses, our body loses the ability to heal and increases the tendency of injury and disease. Exercise is important in minimizing the affects of age and injury.  A great example is the late/great Jack LaLanne, He is best known as a Fitness guru, but he was also a Doctor of Chiropractic.  He did an awesome job of staying fit and healthy, yet he passed away recently at the age of 96.  I am sure that he had his fair share of injuries along the way as well.

Second Question: "How long will the inflammation take to go away".  Inflammation and pain following injury will typically subside within 2-6 weeks, especially if there is no disc injury involved.  Muscle tissues require 4-6 weeks to heal, and then when they are done, the injured muscles are somewhat weakened. I know that your DC told you that this is a facet syndrome, but there could also be a muscular component, considering the nature of the injury (sudden muscular contraction during a cough).  Disc injuries are going to take months to recover from, and often the spine is never quite the same.

Third Question: "Will I ever be able to resume my exercise routine?"  Yes... and the sooner the better. Research shows that we heal more quickly when we can get back to our routines of work and exercise. Talk with your doctor when you feel that you are ready to get back to exercise.

Fourth:  "Is this the start of something chronic?"
Death begins at birth...  I know that nobody likes this answer, but yes, we are more likely to experience injury if: 1) we have had past injuries, and 2) We are getting older.  That being said, however, you are already doing much of the right things. Keep doing your exercises, eat right. Once this condition is better, and you feel 100% again, keep doing your stretching and strengthening exercises even when you feel good.  You should also continue to be adjusted one time per month or so, even when you don't have pain. This helps to prevent re-injury being retaining proper motion in joints of the spine, like the facet joints.

I am sorry that you have been hurt, but your prognosis is excellent, from what I can tell. Be persistent. Make sure that your chiropractor reviews/teaches back exercises, and make sure that you sign up to be seen once per month once you feel good.

Sincerely,

Keith Biggs, DC
http://www.eastmesachiropractor.com