You can resolve most back pain problems without surgery or narcotic pain medications. In the Sutter Health network, we offer a wide range of non-invasive services and therapies that relieve pain and improve mobility.

Physical Therapy

Your doctor may recommend physical therapy for low back pain before considering other treatments. Physical therapy can reduce pain and increase function in many people with back pain. How? The muscles in your abdomen and lower back support your spine. When these muscles are strong, less stress is placed on the discs and joints in your spine. Physical therapy for back pain typically includes exercises to strengthen these muscles, as well as ice packs to soothe the muscles, or heating pads to warm the muscles before exercise. 

Spinal Injections and Nerve Blocks

An epidural steroid injection delivers strong anti-inflammatory medication into the epidural space near your spinal cord. In a nerve block, a numbing medication is injected into the area around a nerve, delivering short-term pain relief. Anti-inflammatory medicine can also be added to provide longer-term relief. A rhizotomy injection can also provide lasting pain relief by disabling the sensory nerve that goes to a joint.