About 1% of people over the age of 60, especially women, suffer from spinal canal stenosis. This disease is caused by a narrowing of the spinal canal, which is a cavity lined with meninges and protects the spinal cord and its exiting nerve roots. The constriction is usually age-related, so that complaints occur from the 5th decade of life onwards. Only in rare cases is spinal canal stenosis congenital and already from the 2nd decade of life on, it restricts the quality of life of those affected by pain, restricted movement and muscle tension.
Exercises from the physiotherapy for home
- Cervical spine – “Protraction”
- Cervical spine – “double chin
- HWS – “shoulder circles
- BWS – “Float
- BWS – “Supported spine” – German
- Lumbar spine – “Stretched back
- Lumbar spine – “horse kick”
- Lumbar spine – “pelvic lift
Treatment/Contents
The treatment of spinal stenosis depends on the extent and localization of the symptoms. The overriding goal is to relieve the spinal column in order to achieve decompression of the nerves. In the acute stage, it helps those affected to adopt a relieving posture for a short time, i.e. to bend forward, use a rollator or ride a bicycle.
Also the positioning in the stepped bed can lead to relief. However, this does not eliminate the causes of spinal stenosis. For long-term relief, physiotherapy can help. In this case, the learned relieving posture is gradually reduced by moving the back
What makes the symptoms worse, what helps?
The compression of nerve fibers does not happen suddenly, but is a gradual process. Affected people can walk less and less long distances and have to take breaks because their legs feel heavy, painful and numb. If a hollow back is formed, e.g. when walking downhill, the spinal canal is additionally constricted and the symptoms get worse.
In contrast, no problems occur when walking uphill or cycling, as the spinal canal is widened by the deflowering dosage. If the cervical spine is affected by spinal canal stenosis, those affected complain of increasing clumsiness in both hands. Objects fall out of the hand, the writing becomes unclear and fine motor tasks, such as buttoning up shirts, become insoluble tasks.
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