Ten reasons someone will die for going to physio before seeing a GP.

This new approach will save a lot of money for the Government. Will this approach save patients? Or will this approach kill some of the patients?

Physiotherapists are professionals in treating various musculoskeletal problems. They treat sprains, rehabilitate after injuries, strengthen muscles and deal with many other health issues. However, physiotherapists are not trained in diagnosing conditions unrelated to bones, muscles and ligaments.

Let’s say a person is having low back pain. The Australian Government says: “Why not see a physio? GPs are very busy. They cost us a lot of money”.

The question is, are physios trained to diagnose ALL possible causes for low back pain?

What are the possible causes of low back pain? The following conditions may cause low back pain.

• Strains and sprains.
• Disc problems.
• Fractures.
• Spinal stenosis.
• Arthritis.
• Spondylolisthesis.
• Spine tumours.
• Ankylosing spondylitis.
• Abdominal aortic aneurysm. (The wall of the main blood vessel in the abdomen is weakened and bulging. The aneurysm may rupture, causing immediate death.)
• Kidney stones.
• Multiple myeloma. (This is a form of cancer)
• Lymphoma. (This is also a form of cancer)
• Melanoma. (This and other cancers below often metastasise in the bones of the low back. Metastasis means that cancer spreads around the body. Some cancers also cause elevated levels of calcium in the body. This may result in bone pain.)
• Lung cancer.
• Breast cancer.
• Testicular cancer.
• Prostate cancer.
• Colon cancer.