First, let’s understand some key questions:

What is low back stenosis?

Stenosis is a narrowing of the space in the spine. It can effect the nerves that run out of the spine. In some people, this can cause pain, numbness, cramping, and/or weakness in the legs and feet. There are different causes of lumbar stenosis. In this blog, we are going to be referring to the overgrowth of bone causing stenosis. This is under an umbrella diagnosis of osteoarthritis. Not all people with low back osteoarthritis have stenosis, though.

Who gets stenosis?

Everyone experiences changes in the space in the spine throughout life, however, the amount of the change varies between people. Not all people with stenosis have symptoms. Stenosis increases after the age of 50 years. That is usually when symptoms, if they will be present in life, can start to develop.

What is prevention?

Prevention includes steps that can be taken throughout life to attempt to prevent the development of symptoms or worsening of a condition. If you are over 50 years old, you can still work on prevention. If you are 80 years old with a diagnosis of stenosis and symptoms down the legs, you can still prevent the symptoms from getting worse.

Remember, there is no sure way of preventing spinal stenosis. If you have stenosis already and continue reading these steps and say to yourself, “but… I did all of those!”, know that stenosis can still occur because of other factors.

STAY ACTIVE: People who are more active tend to have a lesser likelihood of developing severe spinal stenosis and back pain in general, actually. Why? Because their joints, muscles, ligaments, etc. experience a wide range of loads and movements. When we sit for long periods of time, the spine can get really stiff. The spine then can’t tolerate the standing position as well. After years of this, stenosis can develop more easily and/or worsen.
WORK ON MOBILITY/FLEXIBILITY: Most importantly, the mobility of your spine into EXTENSION (bending backwards). This can be done by stretching lying face down and pushing up through your arms, stretching your stomach. Google “prone press up” to see a picture. Hip, leg, and even upper back (“thoracic spine”) mobility are important to help stenosis.
TRY TO MAINTAIN A HEALTHY WEIGHT: Have you gone to the doctor for joint pain only to be told “you should try losing weight"? It’s like a slap in the face, right? Not all joint pain is related to weight, but stenosis can be. A larger stomach can add stress to the spine over life. This isn't to say that thinner people don’t get stenosis! Stenosis is from many other factors than weight alone.
OBTAIN A FAMILY HISTORY: More research is saying that stenosis does have a genetic component. Do you have a family history of it? When asking close family members, ask them if they have symptoms down their legs. If multiple people in your family have stenosis, you might want to consider increasing your efforts on stenosis-specific prevention.
CHECK IN WITH PHYSICAL THERAPISTS THROUGHOUT YOUR LIFE: Oh, you knew this was coming. This is a physical therapy blog! BUT - seriously - you should consider checking in with PT’s once/year even if you don't have “problems”. If you are concerned about developing stenosis because of something like a family history, you should talk to a PT.

There are your 5! There are many more ways to help with the prevention of stenosis, but this is a start with some of our top recommendations. It’s interesting, right?! Do you have any more questions about stenosis? Contact us