The American Back Center includes a full scope physical therapy clinic, in addition to providing VAX-D. The purpose of our physical therapy department is to provide services to our patients that allow them to restore and maintain maximum movement and functional ability throughout their life. After all, free movement and full function without disability are at the heart of what it means to be healthy.

Our Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation department is staffed by Board certified physical therapists (PT) and physical therapist assistants (PTA). Our senior PT, Shefali Shah, has a Master’s Degree in physical therapy from Northwestern University. She also has extensive post-graduate training in McKenzie Mechanical Diagnosis and Therapy, Pilates for Physical Therapy, Isernhagen Work Systems for which she has Functional Capacity Evaluation certification, and nearly ten years experience treating and supervising the treatment of patients.

Shefali and her staff have a very strong commitment to the one-on-one treatment of our patients. There are no “cookie-cutter” programs, and they work side-by-side with each patient to insure that her/his individual needs are met. In fact, our patients frequently comment on how much they appreciate the individualized attention they receive.

Our physical therapy team uses a combination of manual therapy techniques, exercises and specific physiotherapy “modalities” such as ultrasound, electric muscle stimulation and frequency specific micro-current to do whatever it takes to get our patients feeling and functioning better. The true heart of our program is “manual therapy,” which can include myofascial release (which is deep tissue treatments done by hand), stretching of restricted structures and soft tissue and joint mobilization.

Because our physical therapists are part of an interdisciplinary team, they work with our doctors on a daily basis to design and upgrade each patient’s physical therapy program.

Working with our physical therapy team is a three step process. It begins with an evaluation to identify the cause of each patient’s physical problems. Following this evaluation and often in collaboration with clinic physicians, the physical therapist creates a customized program of manual therapy, modalities, strengthening and flexibility exercises. The goal is to quickly get each patient pain free while correcting the imbalances that created the problem in the first place.

The third step of our physical therapy process is education. Low back and other injuries frequently occur because people lack the know-how to protect their musculo skeletal system from injury, so we believe that education in prevention is critical. We also provide each patient with a home exercise program to reduce the risk of re-injury and enhance function. Again these detailed exercise programs center on the specific needs of each patient at the end of his/her care. We find that this extra step keeps most of our patients from returning over and over again with the same problems.

Physical Therapy & VAX-D

Although our physical therapy staff treats patients with a wide variety of musculo-skeletal conditions, they spend a good deal of their time carefully monitoring and supervising the treatment of each and every one of our VAX-D patients. They are in close communication with the physicians in the clinic and, if needed, discuss any changes that should be made in your treatment protocol.


This can make all of the difference in your care. After treating over 2000 cases, the most important lesson we have learned is that each patient is unique, and treatment programs must be tailored to meet the needs of each patient. During the course of VAX-D therapy many clinical decisions have to be made, and a Board certified physical therapist has the scope of knowledge and training needed to insure that the best decisions are made.

Beyond VAX-D - The Role of Physical Therapy

Once they have completed their VAX-D treatments, we encourage all of our patients to complete a physical therapy rehab program.

We know that VAX-D is remarkably effective at treating lower back pain and improving disc function, but in and of itself, it does not increase the strength of important supporting muscles, like your abdominals, or improve the flexibility of other muscles, like your hamstrings.

VAX D is very effective at getting you out of pain, but our goals for you go beyond pain relief: We want you to avoid re-injury, and we also want you to return to your previous level of activity safely.
Most VAX-D patients have significant problems with their muscles as well as with their lumbar discs. Muscular imbalances often caused the disc problem in the first place. Conversely, disc injuries always lead to tight muscles. When muscles tighten, they lose flexibility. Because these muscles attach to the lumbar vertebrae and the pelvis, they can alter your posture and interfere with the normal function of your spine, thus making you much more vulnerable to continuing pain or re-injury. The most commonly affected muscles are the trunk (back and abdominal muscles) frequently referred to as your “core muscles,” your hip muscles, and your leg muscles.

Once your have completed your VAX D therapy, our goal is to restore muscle flexibility and strength as well as spinal mobility. This is done through:

• Stretching and range of motion (ROM) exercises
• Strengthening exercises – with emphasis placed on strengthening the “core muscles.”
• Stabilization exercises, which train your muscles to work as a group or “unit,” just as they would normally do during daily activities such as lifting, squatting, playing sports, etc.
• Exercises to do at home, so that you can keep your discs, joints and muscles in great shape

By going through this program and faithfully following your home-exercise program, you will be able to protect your spine from further injury and safely return to activities your back problem forced you to avoid.