“How long does it take for physical therapy to show impact in someone suffering from facet hypertrophy?”
I am a 29 year old woman and I have continuous lower back pain due to facet hypertrophy. I am on medication and also undertaking physical therapy. How long will it take for the therapy to start showing its impact?
8 Answers
The time it takes for physical therapy to show impact in someone suffering from facet hypertrophy can vary depending on several factors like the severity of the condition, the individual response, and your adherence to the treatment plan.
That sounds painful! A standard course of PT treatment for pow back pain, regardless of diagnosis, is in the 6-8 week range with pain reduction noted after 2-3 weeks. Your facet hypertrophy is likely a result of a lack of joint stability over time and your body is trying to overcome it by thickening your facet capsule. Stabilization exercises, along with improving your hip mobility, should be cornerstones of your recovery process. Hang in there!
You may begin to notice an impact within 4-6 visits, but depending on the severity of your symptoms, it may take longer. Core strengthening, mobilization techniques, and soft tissue work can also complement treatment.
Your prognosis depends on the severity of your diagnosis and symptoms. For example do you have any nerve related pain or symptoms? That would indicate a higher severity. Additionally, your core strength and compliance with your given home exercise program. For my patients, if I don’t see any changes within 8-10 visits at a rate of 2-3 times per week I’ll refer them back to their physician based on their presentation. Based on your age, no change at 4 visits with good compliance with the prescribed home program I will typically alter a few aspects of my treatment plan and discuss it/ explain the reasoning with you.
Your progress depends on what modalities the therapist is using for fixing your facet hypertrophy. While taking treatment, try to take more turmeric pills to help with decreasing inflammation. It might help you get better soon.
Best wishes for your speedy recovery.
Dr. Ramky Kavaserry, DPT
Best wishes for your speedy recovery.
Dr. Ramky Kavaserry, DPT
It depends on so many factors. Your physical therapist should be able to advice you about your goals and expectations.
It's possible that you may achieve some pain relief on the same day as your treatment. However, it usually takes 2-4 weeks before you can make a quality decision about the overall effectiveness of your PT treatments.
It depends on the type of physical therapy that you are experiencing. As a manual based therapist, it is imperative to me that my patients walk out of my office with some improvement in pain that same day.
