Saturday, December 15, 2001
Five Major Causes of Back Pain
by Linda Hobart
Most of you may know exactly what you did to cause your back pain, I do! I fell off a chair hanging curtains and herniated a disc. Believe me, that chair looked fine to me at the time! My colleague, Nancy experienced her first serious bout with back pain while pregnant with her second child those kids!
Do you know what causes your back pain? Not to worry, if you don’t, this does not mean, however, that you cannot be treated successfully. Quite the contrary! If you are one of these
people, you will probably be shocked to learn that more than half of the millions of people who suffer from back pain never find out exactly what's wrong.
Over the past few years, health care professionals have realized that, when it comes to treating back pain, it's almost always enough to know the category - or categories - into which the problem falls. Narrowing the problem down further doesn't usually make a whole lot of difference since the conservative treatment for each category is more or less the same.
There are basically five main causes of pain- ready?
Here they are. I suspect you can place yourself in one of there categories.
1 - Strains and/or sprains of the back’s muscles, ligaments and tendons cause the majority of back pain. Because so many of us lead inactive lives, our muscles become lax and lose their ability to support the spine properly. After a time, the ligaments and tendons can also lose their ability to function properly. If you've ever doubted how much pain muscle strain can cause, try holding a very heavy dictionary in your outstretched arm for five minutes!
The weekend athletes are included in this category. I have a friend that sits at a computer 5 days a week, 8 hours a day. On Saturday and Sunday she and her equally un-fit friends think they are mountain climbers…not hikers, mind you, they actually think they can climb 2, 14,000 footers each weekend. Needless to say, when Monday rolls around they find themselves unable to get out of bed, much less walk around. Being fit is one of the best preventive measures one can take against strains and sprains and might help with the Zena complex.
2 - “Stand up straight”. “Sit up straight.”
Okay, I know it is difficult to give her the credit, but Mom wasn’t just trying to throw a guilt trip on you, your posture IS important. Poor posture over many years, especially for those of us who spend a lot of time sitting, puts enormous strain on the spine.
In some cases, a person bends over to pick something up and the sudden exertion sends the muscles into spasm. But just as often, back pain creeps up slowly. You may suffer from backache after strenuous activity, or in the morning, or after sitting, or standing in one position for an hour or more. (Gosh, so many situations to choose from!)
In these cases, poor posture is generally as much to blame as an inactive lifestyle. I know, only the 2nd cause and already I am sounding like a fitness freak! A simple walk a few times a week and gaining flexibility can go a long way in getting fit. Just remember, start slowly, particularly if you have be sedentary (the 3rd description in Webster’s is “permanently attached” --to the chair, couch, etc!). It is recommended that one always checks with their doctor before starting a new exercise program, and particularly if you have back pain.
3 - The discs between the vertebrae can also be involved in back pain. Two things can happen. Most commonly, the disc's outer vasing, called the annulus, weakens. When this
appends, the disc bulges, irritating a nearby nerve. Less often, the center portion of the disc actually bursts, or herniates, through a tear in the annulus and pinches a nearby nerve. This may cause severe leg pain if the herniation occurs in the lower portion of the spine. This is often called sciatica. In fact, patients with herniated discs are far more likely to complain of leg pain than back pain. Most people who suffer from a herniated disc are under the age of 40. I am sure that is because after the age of 40 we have gained enough wisdom to NOT jump out of the barn door onto hay bales.
4 - As we age, the discs begin to dry out slightly and become thinner. This natural process is sometimes called disc degeneration. When this occurs, other problems sometimes arise: the space in the vertebrae through which the nerves exit can become narrow, causing the nerves to be irritated. This condition is called spinal stenosis. Most people with spinal stenosis are over the age of 40. I hate this magic number 40!
5 - As we age, our facet joints may also become slightly misaligned, especially if our posture has been poor for many
years. (There it is again!) When this happens, they can eventually become worn. This condition is known as facet joint syndrome. As the wearing process described above continues, our bodies try to compensate to make our spines more stable once again. For instance, where a disc is attached to the vertebra above and below it, osteophytes - little growths of bone - begin to form. Similarly, osteophytes often appear around the facets joints.
When this happens, the condition is called osteoarthritis, which is very different from other, more severe types of arthritis that sometimes leave people crippled. In fact, by the time we reach middle age, most of us have mild osteoarthritis that causes some backache from time to time. Eventually, however, osteophytes make the spine more stable, although less flexible, and the pain tends to subside. Keeping flexible and fit are probably the most important areas we can concentrate on to help alleviate the aggravation of the aging process.
Stretching? Join a beginner’s yoga class, or order one of our videos. Yoga and stretching can keep you as fit as running. To make the picture even more complicated, a combination of these problems may be causing your problem; a bulging disc, a misaligned joint with, or without, some amount of stenosis or steoarthritis, as well as muscle and ligament strain. Once you understand this, you will begin to see why it is sometimes so difficult for your family physician to make an exact diagnosis. That's not to say, however, that finding a way to cope with your back pain is impossible. Quite the contrary. You may not get to the point where you are totally pain-free every day of your life. But you can certainly expect to figure out how to cope with your back effectively.
Article from The Back Rub News
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