Webinar Episode 6. August 2023

Welcome to the sixth live webinar with Joel Proskewitz.

The questions addressed and their respective time stamps were as follows:

01:10 - My own journey and an uplifting event. Two years out from fusion surgery. My experience with an old school Rollercoaster ride.

06:05 - Patience in rehabilitation is key. You can’t rush nature. Keep positive and keep doing your basics.

08:50 - Why such a huge spread of rehab times when speaking to differing clinicians. Remember most surgeons and rehab specialists haven’t had spine surgery themselves. Fundamentally, your spine requires respect and intelligent behaviour post any procedure. Also, patients all differ.

14:40 - The pro’s and cons of the Jefferson curl exercise for lower back pain patients. The ‘do not fear flexion’ premise. The genetic component of disc degeneration. Understanding and managing of a condition if the diagnosis is correct and the right treatment is given. We will revisit in a future webinar. 

20:50 - Facet joint pain and a patient presentation. Joel explains the facet joint role in the spinal structure. The most potent mechanism of disc herniation is flexion and rotation.

23:18 - Does facet joint pain present differently to disc pain? It’s usually a secondary presentation with the patient having some kind of disc generation (e.g. a reduction in disc height). Joel describes how facet joint pain can refer.

26:40 - Facet joints as the primary source of pain can often originate from a traumatic event.

28:10 - How does facet joint pain present and is it increasing in younger patients?

30:00 - Cauda Equina Syndrome - what is it? How does it present? Bowel and bladder is the primary presentation. It’s a compression of the lumbar canal. What can cause it?

36:25 - A Cauda Equina MRI presentation. A visual break down of what Cauda Equina looks like anatomically. 

42:55 - What is a ‘red flag’ symptom indicating Cauda Equina syndrome. It is treated as a medical emergency and requires a surgical intervention. Compressed nerves and what this can mean for the patient. An emergency MRI is essential as soon as possible.

53:25 - Soft and hard disc protrusion differences between the Cervical and Lumbar spine.

56:30 - Get your Vitamin D checked out and it’s importance to bone and spine health.