Expert: Dr. Paul Newhart - 1/22/2008

Question
I have had some pretty immobilizing muscle spasms in my back (mostly noticed on my lower right) in the past - 1 in 2002, 1 in 2006, and this Christmas, I've had multiple smaller scale ones (but still pretty painful and immobilizing).  (Possibly unrelated, I also have a patch of numb skin on the lower left side of my left leg, above the knee).  My suspicion has been that my right leg is longer than my left and so I went to see a PT about it today.  He did a number of things (that he didn't explain well) and then in the end said something about a rotated pelvis and how we need to fix that before we can really know about the leg length issue.  He then talked about stretches (which he didn't explain well) and told me I would have to come back 3-4 times a week for at least 3 weeks to work on this.  This is going to be really expensive, even with my insurance, and I'm not feeling confident about it.  Can you help me understand if such treatment is necessary or if I should possibly do something different?  I would really appreciate any advice you can offer.
Thanks,
Becky Webb

Answer
The beauty of going to a PT is that he will exercise you to death!!! But, it may do nothing for rotation of the pelvis.  Find a good chiropractor, have xrays taken, and make sure that you have no serious issues that will hamper your recovery.  A good chiro. will also set you up on a rehab program that will strengthen your back in the area in question.