If you’re anywhere on the East Coast, you are probably currently being affected by the ‘Bomb Cyclone’, which has brought bitter cold, wind and a lot of snow. At StemCell ARTS, we see an uptake in back injuries during the winter due to snow shoveling, and the occasional hip pain due to slipping on ice. While we can’t make it sunnier, we do have some tips to make things easier for your back to hopefully avoid a trip to the doctor’s office.

1. Stretch before shoveling! While this may seem silly, the cold tightens muscles and makes them work much harder. This can result in pulled or sore muscles the next day.
2. Push the snow, rather than picking it up- if possible. Your back and shoulders will thank you.
3. Avoid twisting in unnatural positions by tossing snow off to the side or over your shoulders. The sudden twisting motion is dangerous for your back; if you must move snow to the side, make sure your feet are facing the same the snow must go.
4. Start slow and don’t exhaust yourself. Shovel in intervals so you won’t be moving a lot of heavy snow all at once.

However, even when we are trying to be safe, injuries can happen. We have several treatments that are available for lower back pain. Prolotherapy is a dextrose solution typically injected to the supporting lumbar ligaments to help tighten and strengthen them. Platelet Rich Plasma consists of a blood draw and an injection of your concentrated platelets. The platelets contain natural healing components which cause inflammation in order to help your body send repair cells to the damaged/painful area. Platelet Lysate works much like a steroid epidural injection, in that it works very quickly to provide patients with relief.

Each of these different procedures are performed in the office, with your platelet samples being hand processed in a state-of-the-art laboratory. These injections are done on an out-patient basis, and typically, patients are able to return to work and activities within a few days. So if you’ve gone a little shovel crazy, this winter, make sure to contact one of our offices to see what we can do for you!