Expert: Dr. J. Shawn Leatherman - 11/3/2008

Question
Hi there, I am 20 years old and for the past 4 years have been having severe back and spinal problems. A few years ago i bent down to pick something off the floor when i felt like i pulled a muscle at the bottom of my back. i was so uncomfortable and that night was in severe pain from my back.
After this continued, i went to an osteopath, she said that something happened to my spine and worked on clicking and massaging. But this didnt really help in the long-term. I just stopped going there.
Ever since then, this problem has spread to other areas. It is not a problem that say i can feel when i walk, it only really hurts when it is touched. Like my back for eg, feels bruised all over and i can't even let somebody tap me on the back.
Now the tops of my arms, neck, bottom of skull,thighs, stomach, all of my back, shins, and even my ankles are experiencing the same bruised feeling!
I don't know whether i should go and see a doctor, osteopath or chiroprator? I don't even know if it can be fixed.
Sasha

Answer
Dear Sasha,

Your symptoms are so diffuse that they do not seem to be related to a specific physical trauma such as you described with forward bending.  However, pain syndromes can be promoted inside the central nervous system even after the original injury has healed.  Basically the brain and spinal cord learn to transmit pain signals that are independent of damaged tissue which can result in chronic pain syndromes...there are various names and differentiations for these syndromes in the clinical literature.

Another possibility is that you are experiencing systemic or body wide inflammation, which promotes pain transmission from the tissue with movement or pressure.  This can be tested for with simple blood tests to include an erythrocyte sedimentation rate, c-reactive protein level, and an arthritic profile.  

Fibromyalgia is also a possibility.  This can be established due to a trivial injury or trauma, and is a real diagnosis...the problem is that some doctors misdiagnose the condition when they can't figure out what is going on with the patient.  Primary Fibromyalgia (FM) is a common condition affecting mainly middle-aged women.  Of the etiologies previously proposed, chronic hypoxia (loss of oxygenation) seems the one best supported by recent biochemical and histological findings.  Proper diagnostic criteria is based upon the location of specific tender points on the body.  Current research indicates that the most effective treatment for this is supplementation of malic acid and magnesium with almost immediate pain decreases.  If you would like more information on this just write back and I will send it to you.

Bottom line here is that these are only a few of the possible diagnoses and you should be evaluated again. Not sure what the Osteopath diagnosed you with, but you should have been better educated about that, and been given documentation about the injury or diagnosis.  I wish I could give you a better opinion, but you need to get examined.  As a chiropractor, I know that we are better trained in musculoskeletal diagnosis than osteopaths or medical doctors because it is our specialty, not to mention that this has been documented in two previous investigations performed at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine and published in the clinical medical literature. (will send you the latest study if you wish) So I would suggest that you try a chiropractic physician, and have them order the blood tests as well as performing a comprehensive examination.

Please check the chiropractors credentials to make sure that they are not just concerned with adjusting the spine only.  Ask friends, family and co-workers about chiropractors they trust in the community, and check out their respective websites to get an understanding of their practices.  Feel free to follow-up with me if you wish.  Good Luck Sasha!

Respectfully,
Dr. J. Shawn Leatherman
www.suncoasthealthcare.net