Periodic or persistent back pain affects about 80% of the world's population. The problem occurs more often in women. The symptom is called lumbodynia. It is so common due to the constant high stress on the lumbar spine. It experiences a pressure of 50 kg (supine) to 220 kg if the person is sitting slumped. The problem indicates lifestyle bias or serious illness. With age, it gets worse and can lead to disability of the patient.
<1_img_centerxx>Physiological causes of pain
Discomfort in the form of pain is the body's defensive reaction. It therefore reacts to various "abnormal" processes inside, which doctors call pathologies. The body hurts in an awkward position and after physical exertion, indicating to the brain that it is difficult for it to perform tasks.
An uncomfortable position
Lower back pain accompanies prolonged discomfort. Drivers and office workers are worried about the problem, as they spend a lot of time sitting down, when the lower back is under maximum stress. A person has back pain due to fatigue. If he does something for a long time in a bent position.
The back hurts after sleeping if the sleeping place is poorly equipped. For example, the surface of the bed is too hard or soft to provide adequate spine support and quality muscle relaxation.
Increased loads
Muscles and ligaments can hurt in the back. They support the spine in a stable position and undergo stress with intense physical exertion. Conditions conducive to the appearance of pain occur with sudden movements, accompanied by muscle tension in the lumbar region. This happens if a person carries weights, pulls heavy objects, lifts them up and down (by leaning "in half").
Muscles can also get tired during sports. If a person exercises a lot, their ligaments need time to recover. If there is no good rest, they wear out or become inflamed, which is signaled by the nervous system as pain.
Back pain of women
The problem of lower back pain is very common among women, since the beautiful half of humanity suffers from it regularly under certain conditions. Menstrual abdominal pain is often accompanied by pulling discomfort in the lower back and sacral region. This is not associated with increased stress, but is a consequence of the production of prostaglandins (pain mediators). Before and during menstruation, the synthesis of mediators triggers hormonal changes
in the female body.
Girls' lower back hurts when carrying a child (in 95% of pregnant women). Not only is the spine under great stress outside of pregnancy. The pressure on the lower back increases several times as the woman's weight increases. Additional loads are created by the pregnant belly. It pulls the pregnant woman's body forward, changing the distribution of the axial load. As a result, the woman's gait changes, low back pain occurs, the intensity of which increases depending on the duration of the pregnancy. The loads increase in any position of the pregnant woman, therefore, good rest, lying on a quality mattress is extremely important to alleviate the condition of the woman.
Hypodynamia
Discomfort often occurs in people who do not exercise or do not lift heavy objects at all. The reason is the weakening of the muscular apparatus. The back muscles must be strong in order to properly support the spine and relieve stress. If this does not happen, bone and cartilage tissue will wear down faster, which is accompanied by pain.
Structural anomalies
The spine is formed by a skeleton of bone tissue - the vertebrae. Between them are soft "layers" of cartilage tissue - vertebral discs. The vertebrae provide strength and stability, the cartilage - the flexibility and elasticity of the spine. The main structural elements are hollow in the center. The canal is filled with the spinal cord. All components are surrounded by blood vessels, nerve fibers. Pathologies in any element of the lumbar spine provoke lumbodynia.
Osteochondrosis
The disease develops when the intervertebral cartilaginous discs wear down. Due to heavy loads, the lumbar discs are very often damaged. The most common causes of severe low back pain are protrusion (sagging) and herniation (damage and protrusion of the contents) of the discs, in which the nerve roots of the spine are pinched. Osteochondrosis affects people over 35 years old. The disease is particularly common in the elderly.
Trauma
The lumbar spine is considered the strongest because it is the main "axis" of the entire human body. However, with falls and sudden movements, the vertebrae in this section are most often injured. Most spine fractures and contusions are localized precisely in the lower back.
Vascular damage
The vessels supply all the tissues in the spine. If their lumen narrows or overlaps, the trophic processes in the spine drastically worsen. As a result, inflammation occurs, which always manifests itself in pain.
Nerve entrapment
Nerve fibers can be damaged due to any damage to cartilage and vertebrae, in cases of infectious diseases. Any pathology of the nerves is accompanied by sharp shots and sometimes unbearable back pain.
Bone disorders
Osteoporosis causes calcium leaching and bone fragility. If the spinal tissue is depleted, there is an increased risk of serious back injury. Additionally, osteoporosis can change the shape of the bones in the spine and increase pressure on nerve roots.
Another cause of pain is tumors of the vertebrae. The most common type is hemangioma. These benign neoplasms grow asymptomatically for a long time, but when the tumor becomes too large and extends beyond the vertebra, the patient experiences severe pain.
Inflammatory processes
Arthritis can affect any joint in the body. Inflammation leads to joint damage and pain. It can be caused by advanced and chronic infectious diseases. Another cause of arthritis is autoimmune connective tissue damage.
Internal issues
The lower back can hurt not only because of pathologies of the spine. Painful sensations associated with pathologies of internal organs or some systemic diseases can be transmitted to the lumbar region.
Internal organs
Back pain is associated with kidney damage. Renal colic is accompanied by sharp, sharp pain on one or both sides of the back. Most often, it is felt just under the ribs on the back of the body.
Lumbar discomfort often occurs against the background of intestinal diseases, with inflammation of the pelvic organs (bladder, prostate - in men, ovaries and uterus - in women).
Systemic pathologies
Psoriasis and ankylosing spondylitis cause lower back pain. With these diseases, violations occur in the structure of connective tissue (cartilage). It loses its elasticity and therefore often becomes inflamed. Over time, significant disturbances in the functioning of the joints occur and the nerve endings are subjected to persistent (impaired) compression. With ankylosing spondylitis, the intervertebral spaces "harden".
Lower back pain can cause shingles. Rashes with this disease appear on the shoulder blades, ribs, but most often - on the lateral surfaces of the trunk in the lumbar region. The first pains appear before major changes in the skin. When a blistered rash appears, the discomfort intensifies, supplemented by itching. Even after the spots have completely disappeared, a person still feels severe pain along the inflamed nerves. They can bother the patient for several months.
Tumors
Malignant lesions of the spinal cord and bones do not initially change the patient's condition. As the tumor grows and the atypical cells spread throughout the structure of organs and tissues, changes occur in which the nerves are affected. This manifests as severe pain. Discomfort in the lower back is felt not only with lesions of the lumbar spine, but also if the tumor grows in the internal organs, which are innervated by the nerve ganglia of this department.
Nervous disorders
Low back pain can be phantom (that is, invented by the patient himself). It happens with psychoneurotic disorders. The psyche does not function properly against a background of shocks, stress, prolonged psycho-emotional stress. Discomfort can arise if a person instills the disease, suffers from overwork. Such signs first appear after depression or nervous breakdown and can bother the patient for many years.
How to get rid of lower back pain
If unpleasant sensations occur in the lower back, the patient should rest completely, reduce the intensity of the load. As a rule, after a good rest, the discomfort goes away or completely disappears. It is a typical symptom of pain caused by improper lifestyle, poor quality rest. If the pain persists, you need to think about a visit to the doctor.
The nature of back pain is diagnosed by traumatologists, vertebrologists, orthopedists. You can contact one of the specialists listed. At the first consultation, the doctor will question the patient, examine him, perform several tests (check the sensitivity of the nerves, the condition of the muscles). If a diagnosis cannot be made on the basis of the information received, an additional examination will be scheduled. To assess the condition of bone tissue, an x-ray is prescribed. The structure of cartilage, nerves, condition of blood vessels and spinal cord can be assessed by MRI. If the doctor suspects a systemic disease, the patient is prescribed a laboratory diagnosis (general and biochemical blood and urine tests). It is only after making the correct diagnosis that the specialist will prescribe the treatment.
Drug therapy
The list of drugs depends entirely on the diagnosis. To quickly eliminate the symptoms, the patient will be prescribed a short course of pain relievers (usually from the NSAID group). With strong inflammatory and autoimmune changes, glucocorticoid drugs are prescribed. For diseases of the cartilage tissue, chondroprotectors are recommended in injections or tablets. If the problem is with the muscles, muscle relaxants are recommended. To restore the work of nerve endings, B vitamins are prescribed.
The main treatment is directed at the cause of the pain. If it is caused by diseases of the internal organs, drug therapy will correct the disturbances in the functioning of the kidneys, gastrointestinal tract and genitals. The symptoms will go away as the underlying disease is ruled out. With unbearable pain, a nerve blockage is performed (pain relievers are injected directly into the areas of the nerve roots).
To enhance the action of injections or tablets, external pain relievers (patches, ointments, gels) may be prescribed. Such drugs can be used independently, with recurrent lower back pain against the background of increased tension or stress. To relieve the disease, you can use pepper or menthol plaster. They are also allowed to be used without a medical prescription.
Procedures
For low back pain, a specialist may recommend special treatments. These include acupuncture, physiotherapy with electric currents, ultrasound, therapeutic ultraviolet rays. In some cases, physiotherapy exercises and massage are indicated. If the vertebrae are displaced, help from a chiropractor may be needed to put the bone back in place. Any procedure should be selected with a doctor. It is forbidden to undergo treatment in which they act directly on the spine, without diagnosing the disease. In this case, the procedures may not only be unnecessary, but also harm the patient.
To prevent back pain, you need to monitor the health of your spine from an early age. It is important to exercise the loads correctly on the back (to lift crouching, not bent objects, push heavy objects, and not pull them towards you). You need to do moderate physical activity and choose exercises with a trainer. It is also important to treat infectious diseases in a timely manner, to avoid stress, to take any medication in a reasonable manner and as prescribed by a doctor.