Pelvis & Back Conditions

If one of your legs is longer than the other, pain can be caused anywhere from your feet to your neck.

When the lower limbs are of uneven length, you have Leg Length Discrepancy.

The causes of Leg Length Discrepancy (LLD) include a congenital condition; one side of the body growing quicker than the other; a consequence of disease or tumour, or the result of a leg fracture. If, for example, somebody is involved in a car accident and suffers serious injuries to their legs, it is possible that the healing process will leave one leg shorter than the other. Functional leg length discrepancy occurs when the legs are of equal length, but asymmetrical movement, for example having one flat foot, results in an apparent LLD.

Leg Length Discrepancy affects your gait and your lower body biomechanics causing symptoms of knee, hip and back pain and postural changes such as scoliosis. Treatment for LLD is primarily orthotics (insoles); when placed in your shoes they will redress the leg length difference and alleviate the stress it places on your joints.

Our backs are complex structures, and many of us suffer from lower back pain (lumbago) every day.

The causes of back pain are equally complex. Poor gait (your walk) can put constant, and repeated stress on your lower back, and the way your feet move under your pelvis can twist and damage your back. Medical complexities such as slipped discs and sciatica, and daily activities that stress the back (like bending or twisting or carrying) all contribute to back pain. Minor accidents like falling off a ladder or slipping over on ice, and Sporting injuries are all common causes of lower back pain.
Symptoms include sharp or dull pain, stiffness and loss of flexibility, difficulty moving and pain at certain trigger points.

Stretches and exercises are recommended for strengthening and maintaining flexibility, while orthotics will provide a remedy for the pressure on the back, bringing pain relief.

Your sciatic nerve runs all the way from your lower back to your feet. Stress or irritation anywhere along its length can cause pain

The Sciatic nerve is the longest in the body. Sciatica occurs when the nerve is irritated or constricted. The pressure on the nerve causes symptoms of pain, numbness and a tingling sensation anywhere from the buttocks through to the foot. It is this pain, which radiates along the entire length of your leg that distinguishes sciatica from regular lower back pain.

A slipped disc that pushes on the nerves and degenerative disk disease are common causes of sciatica. If you have poor biomechanics, such as flat feet (pronation) or Leg Length Discrepancy your sciatic pain may be as a consequence of the way you walk (your gait).

At BxClinic, our treatment includes tailored stretches and strengthening exercises to provide pain relief from sciatica and when we feel it is appropriate, orthotics too.

A curvature of the spine that can be genetic or functional arising from the way muscles cause your spine to move.

Scoliosis is a visible sideways curvature of the spine. Causes are divided into two: structural and functional. Structural Scoliosis further divides into congenital scoliosis, which is the result of abnormal development of the vertebra, and idiopathic scoliosis, which means the cause is unknown, this type accounts for most cases. Typical symptoms include a lump to one side of the back, one shoulder higher than the other and one hip more prominent than the other.

Idiopathic scoliosis is common in children particularly between the ages of 10-18. Often they grow out of it, but if they do not, further medical treatment will be required. In adults, idiopathic scoliosis is frequently age-related, as discs and joints degenerate. When another part of the body causes scoliosis, such as Leg Length Discrepancy – it is known as functional scoliosis.

Orthotics are extremely beneficial in relieving the pain and stress of structural scoliosis on the back posture and helping correct the cause of some functional scolioses. Stretches and exercises can help straighten functional scoliosis.