According to medical statistics, acute back pain is the second most common cause of disability. At least 80% of people have suffered from it at least once. They can occur sporadically or be observed during exacerbations of spinal diseases. But in any case, acute and chronic back pain requires competent treatment and targeted action on the causes of their occurrence.
Acute back pain: causes
Acute pain is pain that persists for less than 6 weeks. For the most part, it disappears within 2 weeks. Although initially it is impossible to predict how long it will last. However, in nearly half of the cases, similar or more severe attacks recur later and become chronic pain.
Acute pain can be of different intensity, dull, burning, etc. Sometimes it radiates to the arms, legs, buttocks. So-called back pain often occurs after hypothermia, excessive physical exertion and as a result of sprains. It can take several days between the impact of the traumatic factor and the direct manifestation of the pain syndrome, and it will manifest itself under the influence of a slight physical exertion, for example, an inclination.
They can also be the result of a back injury or the first manifestation of spinal diseases, including:
- osteochondrosis;
- intervertebral hernia;
- spondyloarthrosis;
- Spinal stenosis, etc.
Increases the likelihood of back problems:
- frequent stress;
- regular increase in physical activity;
- overweight;
- frequent and prolonged standing.
In addition to severe back discomfort, headaches, burning sensation in the legs and dizziness can occur. All these symptoms should be reported to the doctor at the appointment.
Regardless of which anatomical structure was damaged first, this involves a whole chain of subsequent modifications that increase discomfort. Initially, inflammation factors form in the lesion, causing swelling and irritation of the nerve fibers. In response to this, muscle spasm often occurs, which further aggravates the situation and causes circulatory disturbances in the affected area. This leads to a decrease in the amount of nutrients and oxygen entering the lesion center, as well as to the retention of metabolic products contained in it.
Treatment of acute back pain
To relieve pain, lie on your back on a hard surface. This will allow the back muscles to relax and relieve the stress on the spine. To enhance the effect, orthopedic pillows can be placed under the knees and under the head, but it is important to avoid sagging in the lower back. With severe pain, short-term intake of drugs from the NSAID group is allowed. In the future, you should definitely contact a neurologist or spinal surgeon to determine the cause of the pain syndrome.
As soon as possible, it is necessary to visit a doctor if there is no improvement within a week, a recurrence of an attack or irradiation of pain in the feet or knees, a violation of urination and defecation. To diagnose existing ailments, patients are shown:
- MRI;
- CT;
- x-rays;
- biochemical blood test;
- UAC.
Based on the research results and the characteristics of the symptoms, the doctor makes a diagnosis and develops treatment tactics. In case of acute pain that deprives a person of the ability to work, they may be offered to perform a spinal block, which relieves the pain syndrome in minutes.
After the discomfort has passed, it is important not to linger in bed. Moderate physical activity, supplemented by special exercises of medical gymnastics, is the best prevention of the recurrence of such attacks in the future.
When you go to the hospital, you will surely receive high quality treatment for the pain syndrome and its causes. Specialists will be able to develop the most effective treatment tactics and quickly relieve pain with the help of a well-made and affordable block.
Chronic back pain: causes
People suffer from chronic back pain just as often. They can aggravate and turn into a sharp pain attack, which completely shuts down a person from the normal rhythm. Most often they are the result of:
- A sedentary lifestyle, which leads to a weakening of the muscular corset. This causes an increase in the load on the spine and compression of the vertebrae. The result is osteochondrosis, protrusion of the intervertebral discs and herniated intervertebral discs, spondyloarthrosis.
- Posture disorders. Long-term preservation of any position of the body, in which the natural curves of the spine are disrupted, causes its curvature and the development of scoliosis or kyphosis. This involves degenerative changes in the intervertebral discs, redistribution of the load on the muscles and pinching of the nerve roots.
- Weakening of the abdominal muscles. Since they serve as support for the internal organs and partially relieve the spine, when they are weak the load on the lower back increases, which increases lordosis and causes chronic pain. In addition to a sedentary lifestyle, weakening of the abdominal muscles can be a consequence of pregnancy or obesity.
- Age changes. Over the years, the intervertebral discs are gradually dehydrated, which causes a decrease in their elasticity, strength and size. The fibrous ring surrounding the gelatinous nucleus dries up and becomes more fragile. Loads provoke the formation of cracks in it, which leads to the formation of protrusions and hernias. The resulting protrusion can squeeze nearby blood vessels, nerve roots, spinal cord, provoking the appearance of pain syndrome.
Chronic diseases of back pain include:
- osteochondrosis;
- spondyloarthrosis;
- osteoporosis;
- intervertebral hernia;
- facet syndrome;
- ankylosing spondylitis;
- spondylolisthesis;
- rheumatoid arthritis;
- intercostal neuralgia;
- oncological diseases and others.
A common cause of chronic pain is the deterioration of the facet joints. The cartilages found in them are also prone to thinning with excessive stress on the spine. As a result, when they move, they cease to perform a shock-absorbing function, which causes friction of bone fragments and the development of inflammation.
Treatment of back pain
Treatment tactics are developed on the basis of which disorders were detected during diagnostic studies. When spinal diseases are detected, conservative therapy is initially prescribed, including:
- drug therapy;
- physiotherapy;
- massage;
- Physical therapy.
Conservative therapy
A holistic and personalized approach is important in the treatment of back pain. Depending on the cause of their occurrence, patients are prescribed a number of drugs, in particular:
- NSAIDs - drugs of this group have anti-inflammatory and analgesic effects, but with prolonged use negatively affect the state of the digestive tract;
- corticosteroids - drugs with pronounced anti-inflammatory properties, prescribed in moderate to severe cases;
- muscle relaxants - help to eliminate increased muscle tone and spasms;
- antidepressants: they help eliminate psychological discomfort, which often reduces the effectiveness of conservative therapy;
- topical agents: ointments or gels containing anti-inflammatory, warming or cooling components can help reduce the severity of pain and practically not cause side effects;
- chondroprotectors - preparations containing glucosamine and chondroitin have a beneficial effect on the condition of cartilage tissue, increase its elasticity and help restore normal thickness.
In mild cases, an oral medication is sufficient. But in more complex situations, patients may be prescribed intra-articular injections. In case of severe pain, it is recommended to perform the blocks once or in full, which can include up to 10 procedures.
To improve the effectiveness of drug therapy, patients are prescribed massage and physiotherapy sessions. The correct effect on the back muscles helps to activate blood and lymphatic flow, improve metabolic processes and eliminate muscle spasms. Manual therapy is very effective in spinal deformities, particularly in 1-2 degree scoliosis. Regular sessions help restore the normal position of the spine and relieve pressure on internal organs.
As part of physiotherapy, patients are assigned sessions:
- UHF;
- magnetic therapy;
- Bernard currents;
- laser therapy;
- electrophoresis;
- UFO;
- balneological treatment.
If the condition cannot be improved within six months or there is a risk of complications, patients may be offered surgical treatment of existing diseases.
Surgical treatment
Modern methods of surgical intervention are distinguished by a high level of efficiency and safety. They allow you to quickly eliminate the pathological cause of the development of pain syndrome and often do not require a hospital stay. But most of the minimally invasive and microsurgical methods can be applied only when patients turn to spinal surgeons in the early stages of the disease.
The indications for surgical treatment are:
- progressive herniated intervertebral discs;
- spinal stenosis;
- sequestered hernia;
- spinal fractures;
- grade 3-4 scoliosis;
- severe forms of spondyloarthrosis;
- compression of the spinal cord or its nerve roots;
- hemangiomas of the vertebral bodies;
- instability of individual segments of the spinal column;
- cauda equina syndrome.
The surgeon determines the type of surgery based on the severity of the patient's condition. With the same diagnosis, the surgical treatment can be performed in different ways, different for the degree of invasiveness, effectiveness, duration of rehabilitation and cost.
Recently, minimally invasive surgical treatment methods have been very popular. With their help, the treatment of intervertebral protrusions, hernias of the intervertebral discs, hemangiomas and a number of other diseases is carried out. Minimally invasive surgery takes no more than an hour, and upon completion, the patient can walk almost immediately and leave the clinic the same or the next day.
The great advantages of the method are a good cosmetic effect (in most cases, all necessary surgical instruments are inserted through soft tissue punctures), ease of rehabilitation and an affordable price. In the case of intervertebral hernias, only cold plasma nucleoplasty or hydroplasty (hydrodiscectomy) can be considered a more promising method.
In situations where microsurgical techniques cannot be applied, surgeons perform open operations. During these, it is possible to completely remove pathologically altered formations, level severe deformities of the spine, replace irrecoverable structures with implants and achieve normal functioning of the spine by mounting titanium metal structures.
Modern spinal surgery can tackle almost any back problem. All the latest methods of surgical treatment of diseases of the spine are available in many institutions. A team of doctors from different profiles will help you get rid of acute or excruciating chronic back pain as soon as possible.
Prevention of back pain
After the seizure is over and the pain is dull, it is recommended to avoid a second episode:
- does not lift too heavy objects;
- don't bend over;
- walk more;
- gives up heavy physical work;
- when sitting, take regular breaks to warm up.