Pelvic misalignment can lead to many serious conditions. Because the pelvis is so intimately associated with so many different types of body movement, a problem with the alignment of the pelvis can have far reaching and serious consequences. As is true throughout the body, when a critical part gets out of alignment, changes occur in other parts of the structure to compensate. The compensation process ultimately leads to much of the pain and discomfort associated with back, neck, hip and leg pain.

The effects of misalignment in general hold just as true for a misaligned pelvis as well. When the pelvis is misaligned, a pull will be created on the surrounding muscles, causing some to become overactive, while others become underactive. Overworked muscles will cause pain in the hip and butt and other areas around the pelvis. When these muscles do not functioning properly because of a misaligned pelvis, the hip cannot be stabilized. So, for example, when the body moves to take step, the knee will need to over-rotate to make up for the lack of stability. Without pelvic misalignment treatment, pain will ultimately develop on the inside of the knee.

Additional symptoms in the pelvic area will include: strained adductor muscles, overly tight hamstrings and hip flexors and a tight and painful lower back area. Chronic muscle tightness is another affect of a misaligned pelvis. This is classically witnessed by patients who cannot get muscles to relax or become more flexible, no matter how much stretching they do. This phenomenon occurs because attached to a misaligned joint, a muscle is called into extra service. This chronic tightening of the muscle has its own set of risks, as injury is more likely to occur when muscles are not allowed to relax.

sacroiliac joint dysfunction describes another condition located in this area of the body. The small but strong sacroiliac joint is responsible for absorbing shock and allocating forces from the upper body to the pelvis and hips. Sacroiliac joint syndrome occurs when the sacroiliac joint, which is formed by the sacrum and pelvis, functions sub-optimally, resulting in low back and leg pain. The precise causes of sacroiliac joint syndrome are elusive, as is diagnosis.

Generally speaking sacroiliac joint treatment is non invasive, and focuses on restoring flexibility to the joint, so that it can more effectively do its job. Treatment options range from injections, manipulations, water therapy and other forms of physical therapy. With an SI injection, the needle is guided to the joint using X-ray. A numbing agent is then injected into the spine as well as an anti-inflammatory as frequently as every four months. They are often used in conjunction with physical therapy and chiropractic manipulations.

Physical therapy and exercise are used to treat pain and lack of mobility that lasts for more than a month. If pain is severe, this course can be started sooner. The objective of the treatment is to provide the patient a platform for recovery by decreasing pain, increasingly the use of the joint, and educating the patient on the best steps to take to obtain and maintain recovery.

Physical therapy can take both passive or active forms. Passive therapies can include the application of heat or ice packs, and the delivery of steroids through the skin in a process call iontophoresis, which is used to treat cases of severe pain. In this process, after the delivery of the steroids to the skin, an electric current is applied, causing the steroid to move below the skin; in this process the steroid goes to work to reduce inflammation, and thus pain.

Devices called TENS machines are also used to help reduce pain. TENS devices connect with the skin via electrode, and then push currents on to the skin. Theses currents disrupt the pain signal from the source of pain to the brain. Put another way, a TENS device will override the process that ultimately indicates to the brain that a source of pain is present. Patients are usually first tested to see whether or not the TENS provides effective relief of pain, and if so, the patient takes a unit home to use for longer-term relief. Ultrasound can also be used to help reduce or manage the symptoms, especially acute pain.

More active modalities for physical therapy include strengthening exercises, stretching and low-impact aerobics.

Stretching is considered the “must have” of physical therapy for the treatment of back pain, and it should be done at least once or twice each day, even after symptoms are relieved. Patients should, at a minimum, stretch their hamstrings daily, even when no pain is present.

Strengthening exercises should be done for at least twenty minutes every day. These exercises are designed strengthen muscles in the lumbar and surrounding regions. Core muscles are often part of this routine, so exercises to develop stomach muscles are part of the routine as well. Low-impact aerobic exercises, such as swimming, biking or walking should be done a few times each week for about 30 minutes. High impact exercise should be eliminated in the recovery period and limited from that point forward.

back to articles