Potential Causes of Low Back Pain
Back pain is perhaps one of the most common types of pain and it can be due to a wide range of causes. If you’re experiencing persistent low back pain that keeps you from your daily activities, then you should seek medical help. Determining the cause of your low back pain may help you and your doctor find the right treatment.
Injuries
As you determine the cause of your low back pain, you should first determine if you’ve suffered any injuries recently. Some back pain can result from fractures in the spine. This may be caused by a car accident or other serious injury. You can also experience pain if you’ve strained or sprained your back. Typically, this is from sudden movement such as lifting a heavy object or even from twisting or bending over. It is even possible to strain your back from sneezing or coughing.
Muscle or Ligament Strain
In many cases, back pain is caused by consistent strain on the back. Repeated actions can wear down your back muscles and spine to the point of pain. This is especially common in people who are at higher risk. You are at higher risk for back pain as you grow older and put on more weight. If you don’t exercise regularly, your muscles can weaken and this too puts you at risk of becoming injured or developing back pain. Conditions such as depression can also put you at risk because stress causes muscle tension.
A Ruptured Disc
The spine is made up of stacked bones called vertebrae and in between each of these bones is a disc that provides a cushion between the vertebrae. In some cases, these discs can rupture or bulge which will put pressure on the nerves. This pinched nerve is often the root cause of the pain. You typically need a diagnosis from a doctor to know you have a disc issue. However, there are signs to look for. In addition to low back pain, you may also experience numbness or tingling in the lower extremities.
Chronic Conditions
Low back pain can often come from a variety of chronic conditions. For example, if you have arthritis, which is pain or inflammation of the joints, it can extend into the back. In fact, arthritis in the back can lead to spinal stenosis which is a condition in which the spinal canal narrows and pinches the spinal cord. You may also experience back pain if you have osteoporosis. Osteoporosis is when the bones weaken and become brittle or porous. As the bones in the spine weaken, it puts strain on your back and can cause severe pain.
You may experience back pain for a variety of reasons. There are a variety of treatments available for back pain, but your best option is to find a treatment that will address the root cause rather than just the symptoms. That is the priority of the Nerve and Disc Institute.
The Nerve and Disc Institute provides researched-backed treatment options. Click here to learn more.