Back pain is one of the most common medical problems, affecting 8 out of 10 people at some point during their lives. Back pain can range from a dull, constant ache to a sudden, sharp pain. Acute back pain comes on suddenly and usually lasts from a few days to a few weeks. Back pain is called chronic if it lasts for more than three months.
Types of Back Pain
Acute back pain - It is an injury or illness that comes and goes. Acute injuries come on quickly, have very definite symptoms which can be quite intense, and heal in a relatively brief period of time, usually around 6 weeks. Often, and unfortunately, acute injuries to the back or neck can be the precursor to chronic pain.
Chronic back pain typically persists longer than the expected healing time for the identified cause of the pain—such as low back surgery—or persists after the identified cause of the pain has been treated.
Radicular pain. In this case, the pain is described as deep and usually constant. It follows the nerve down the leg and is often accompanied by numbness or tingling and muscle weakness..
Referred Pain. Here, patients complain of having an achy, dull type of pain that seems to move around. The discomfort comes and goes and varies in intensity. This achy pain starts in the low back area and commonly spreads into the groin, buttocks and upper thighs.
Causes of Back pain
Spinal stenosis occurs as intervertebral discs lose moisture and volume with age, which decreases the disc spaces. Even minor trauma under these circumstances can cause inflammation and nerve root impingement, which can produce classic sciatica without disc rupture.
Fractures of the vertebrae caused by significant force, such as from an auto or bicycle accident, a direct blow to the spine, or compressing the spine by falling onto the buttocks or head.
Incidence Back pain is so very common that most of us can expect to suffer from it at some time. Systematic enquiry in older people reveals that almost everyone has it but most regard it as a normal accompaniment of ageing and so do not complain. Between the ages of 25 and 64 the annual incidence is said to be 4.7% with a 59% chance of a lifetime occurrence.
Treatment of Back pain
Chiropractic treatment
It is based on the concept that restricted movement in the spine may lead to pain and reduced function. Spinal adjustment (manipulation) is one form of therapy chiropractors use to treat restricted spinal mobility. The goal is to restore spinal movement and, as a result, improve function and decrease back pain.
Heat Application
Applications of heat packs help ease much of the discomfort associated with muscle spasm causing low back pain. Patients can use heating pad, hot water bottles, or even a hot bath to help ease the muscle discomfort that often causes low back pain.
Muscle Relaxers
Muscle relaxing medications can be very helpful in the treatment of some types of back pain. Muscle relaxers are sold under the trade names of Flexeril, Soma, Valium, and others. These medications help to relieve muscle spasm, but may also make patients quite drowsy.
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