Back pain: causes, diagnosis, treatment and prevention

According to statistics, 80% of people already know about back pain.More than a third of all sick leaves are related to this problem.The reason can be considered the weakness of fragile muscles and their rapid growth.In addition to visual examination, hardware diagnostics (X-ray, myography, CT, etc.) and laboratory blood tests are performed to determine the problem.Treatment is prescribed only after diagnosis.

Why does my back hurt?

Pain in the spine can occur after direct injuries, pathologies of the vertebrae, ligaments and discs, or damage to soft tissues.It depends on the position of the body, the level of physical activity, and at the same time, it can be reflected, for example, in diseases of the internal organs.To some extent, the shovel itself is sensitive due to its structure.

Its basis is the spine, which provides support, protection, motor and shock-absorbing functions.This is due to the cartilage of the intervertebral discs, muscles and ligaments, which tend to wear out over time with the wrong lifestyle and cause degenerative diseases of the musculoskeletal system.

Inside the spinal column is the spinal cord, whose paired roots innervate almost all organs and tissues.Any disturbance in this complex system can cause pain.Cervical and lumbar regions suffer the most due to load and mobility.

What to do if you have back pain?

A doctor's examination is required to determine the cause, especially if the pain occurs frequently.Only a specialist can make a correct diagnosis and prescribe treatment.You cannot diagnose yourself.

First, you can contact a therapist, who will identify a number of symptoms and refer you to the right specialist.If the cause is known and clear, you can continue the prescribed therapy.Neurologists, orthopedists and vertebrologists treat back problems.

Causes of back pain

Back pain is a non-specific symptom that can arise from various causes.

Physiological (common) reasons:

• increased weight;
• recent birth or pregnancy;
• hypodynamic work - in the office, at the computer, driving a car;
• permanent work - hairdressers, waiters and salesmen, street advertisers, surgeons, teachers;
• heavy physical activity with sudden turns of the body;
• overload during exercise;
• postmenopausal prone to osteoporosis.

Pathological causes:

• diseases of the spine (osteochondrosis, spondylosis, ankylosing spondylitis, tumors, arthritis, osteomyelitis, Reiter's syndrome) and spinal cord;
• growth disorders - scoliosis and kyphosis;
• infectious lesions of the spine;
• osteoporosis, osteomalacia;
• diseases of internal organs - kidneys, pancreas, stomach, spleen, liver;
• atherosclerosis of the abdominal aorta.

Acute pain can occur with disc protrusion, spondyloarthritis, spinal cord epiduritis, osteochondrosis, intervertebral hernias, atypical appendicitis and intestinal obstruction, kidney stones, fractures and sprains, spinal cord strokes, prostate cancer in women and men.

Types of diseases based on the nature of back pain

Causes of aching pain:

• hypothermia;
• muscle tension;
• myositis;
• uncomfortable posture for a long time during sleep or work;
• lumbago (due to labor);
• osteochondrosis;
• intervertebral hernia or displacement of intervertebral discs as a result of sudden lifting of weights or sudden turning of the body;
• kidney diseases - causes back pain due to the location of the kidneys near the lower back;
• stomach diseases.

Causes of shooting pains:

• intervertebral hernia - the condition with them worsens with any physical stress;
• radiculitis - this type of back pain often occurs on one side, spreads to the thigh or hip, causes numbness in the legs and also depends on physical effort;
• osteochondrosis - the patient may feel nagging pains that spread to the leg and intensify when coughing, sneezing, straining, walking, bending.

Etiology of impact pain:

• osteochondrosis;
• intervertebral hernia;
• lumbago;
• spondylosis - acute and cannot be relieved by analgesics.

Back pain:

• ischemia;
• heart attack;
• TELE;
• inflammation of the gallbladder;
• sharp increase in pressure;
• atherosclerosis.

Why does my back hurt after sleep?

Most people often feel back pain in the morning after sleep, the reasons for this can be:

• if you lift weights and move sharply, overload the day before;
• weak back muscles;
• hypothermia;
• vertebral hernia or osteochondrosis;
• scoliosis - curvature of the spine causes uneven muscle contraction;
• pregnancy - when the center of the body changes;
• obesity - the load on the spine is also uneven.

Sleeping conditions are also important.The bed should not be too hard or too soft - in any case, a person is forced to take an uncomfortable, non-physiological position during sleep, which causes muscle overload and lack of rest at night.Posture is so important that even an orthopedic mattress cannot help.It is recommended to sleep on your back with your legs up.

Also, the causes of pain after sleep can be diseases of the spine and internal organs (urological, gastrointestinal tract, including oncological).

Diseases related to joints and spine

All pathologies that cause back pain have a common basis - an uneven load on the spine.These include:

1. Ankylosing spondylitis - persistent inflammation of the ligaments and joints causes chronic spasm of the surrounding muscles.The process is autoimmune;over time, the vertebrae begin to fuse together, which dramatically disrupts the function of the spine.
2. Spondylolisthesis - the vertebrae are in an abnormal position.They move and affect the brain or roots.
3. Osteochondrosis - the intervertebral discs become thinner, crack and are replaced by bone tissue.Depreciation becomes impossible.
4. Rheumatoid arthritis is an autoimmune inflammation of the joints.It most often affects the cervical spine.
5. Osteomyelitis is an inflammation of the bone marrow and surrounding soft tissues.It causes severe pain.
6. Reiter's disease is a rheumatic simultaneous damage of the genitourinary tract, joints and conjunctiva of the eyes.The small muscles of the back are affected.More often, it is characteristic of young people, it develops gradually.The pain is severe in the morning and decreases in the evening.
7. Spinal canal stenosis - can be caused by a herniated disc or protrusion (protrusion into the spinal canal).More often, the process involves the lowest roots of the spinal cord, which innervate the legs.The pain is felt from the waist down to the feet, and it intensifies both at rest and when walking.
8. Facet syndrome is damage to the intervertebral (facet) joints.The pain may be localized or spread to the groin, tailbone, or thigh.Physically dependent.The condition worsens in the evening and improves after rest.It occurs more often in the elderly.

Diseases related to muscles

Muscle tissue is affected secondarily against the background of bone tissue or joint pathology. Painful spasms and contractions appear in the muscles, mobility is impaired:

1. Fibromyalgia is a pain syndrome from the neck to the lower back.Neurological symptoms may occur: increased sensitivity when pressing certain points on the back, stiffness and stiffness.
2. Polymyositis - occurs as a result of hypothermia, injury, sprain or heavy physical exertion.Muscle weakness appears, turning sideways is also painful and problematic.
3. Dermatomyositis is a chronic disease of muscles, organs and skin, often autoimmune in nature.
4. Charcot disease is an inflammation of the peripheral nerves that run along the spinal column.This causes changes in gait, muscle weakness and increased sensitivity of nerve roots.
5. Polymyalgia rheumatica is caused by environmental hypothermia, overload, restless posture, etc.being negative in form, causes spasms and the appearance of pain in individual muscles.So-called trigger points appear, when pressed, the muscle reacts with sharp pain.Neurologists know about this.Such pains can be relieved with warming ointments and a needle applicator.

Spinal cord pathologies

These include disorders of the spinal cord with 31 paired branches, where each nerve is responsible for the innervation of its own area. This situation occurs in the following cases:

• injuries (fracture of the spine);
• tumors;
• osteochondrosis or disc herniation;
• inflammation as a result of an abscess, hematoma;
• cerebral hemorrhage;
• myositis;
• lack of minerals and vitamins;
• Complications of HIV or neurosyphilis;
• sclerosis.

Back pain due to psychosomatics

In recent years, back pain has started to appear due to psychosomatics.If there are complaints of back pain at this time, the examination does not reveal any pathology.This condition is caused by chronic stress, depression and lack of libido.The result is not only pain, but also changes in gait, aggravation of lumbago and sensory disturbances.

Causes of back pain by location

Pain can occur in different parts of the back.Then they talk about its localization.

Pain on the right side

The right side of the back may hurt due to curvature of the spine, kyphosis, lordosis, myositis, displacement of the intervertebral disc and obesity.

Somatic pathologies can also cause pain in this area:

• formation of stones in the organs of the urinary system;
• inflammation of the vermiform appendix of the cecum (appendix);
• inflammation of the gallbladder;
• nephritis;
• inflammation of the ovaries;
• salpingitis.

Pain on the left side

This area of the back can hurt in the following cases:

• spleen;
• ICD;
• root pinch;
• duodenitis;
• oophoritis.

Localized pain in the upper back can be associated with inflammation of the serous membranes surrounding the lungs, damage to the bronchi, intercostal neuralgia and ischemia.

Pain in the lumbar region

The lower back often suffers because it carries a large load.This part becomes inflamed when nerve roots are damaged, osteochondrosis or hernia protrusion.In less cases, the cause may be spinal tuberculosis, arthritis, lumboischialgia, a decrease in density and a violation of the structure of bone tissue, Reiter's syndrome - a combination of urethritis and prostatitis.

Back pain is usually chronic.

In the right lumbar region

Pain in the lumbar region occurs with scoliosis, tuberculosis, myositis, neuralgia, tumor, osteomyelitis, spondylitis.An acute attack can cause urolithiasis or pyelonephritis.

Shooting is characteristic of lower back diseases with frequent involvement of the spinal roots (radiculitis).Constant dull and monotonous pains are more characteristic of an organ like the liver.

Left lumbar region

Often the left side begins to hurt after physical activity.The condition improves after rest.Pain can also occur with diabetes or root pinching. If it does not pass during rest, the reasons may be:

• scoliosis;
• osteochondrosis (with a sedentary lifestyle or poor posture);
• vertebral infections;
• circulatory disorders.

A pinched nerve

Often the sciatic nerve is compressed - sciatica.Its myelin sheath is not damaged.This is usually the result of osteochondrosis.When compressed, a sharp and sharp pain occurs, spreading to the leg, sacrum and lower back.

With compression radiculopathy, the roots of the spinal nerves are also compressed due to a herniated disc or a decrease in its height and, as a result, the distance between the vertebral bodies.This type of pain is felt as "superficial", it is sharply intensified when coughing, straining or sneezing.

Intervertebral hernia

A herniated disc is a protrusion of the core of the intervertebral disc into the spinal canal.More often it is the result of untreated osteochondrosis.The central part protrudes towards the spinal cord, compressing it.In such cases, even a small load causes a decrease in cartilage height and further protrusion of the tear.The pain is sharp and sharp, spreading to the arm or leg.

In the area of shoulder blades

Symptoms of pain may indicate the diagnosis:

1. Stomach ulcer is a growing dull pain.It is eliminated by drugs.
2. Intercostal neuralgia is a disease characterized by sharp pain with any physical effort.
3. Osteochondrosis - dizziness, pressure changes, numbness of the hands.
4. Exacerbation of angina - the pain is localized in the region of the left shoulder blade, spreads to the chest and under the collarbone.

Pain along the spine and in the back

It occurs more often when nerve endings are compressed.Exacerbations are associated with curvature of the spine.If the pain is not pronounced, we can talk about protrusion.With increasing pain, you can think about osteochondrosis.Pain along the spine is characteristic of myositis, fractures, thinning and wear of intervertebral discs, spondyloarthritis.They are always sharp and stable.

Causes of lower back pain

Such pain is often associated with osteochondrosis and spondyloarthrosis. Less often, such feelings can appear in the following cases:

• diseases of genital organs in women (endometritis, adnexitis, vulvitis, cervicitis, oophoritis);
• pregnancy;
• menstruation;
• ulcerative colitis;
• appendicitis;
• diseases of the prostate or bladder - in men.

Associated symptoms

Manifestations of spinal pain vary depending on the location.If the cervical spine is affected, migraines and dizziness, weakness and numbness in the hands, pressure increases, spots and burns in the eyes will be noted.When the chest area is affected, there is a burning sensation and stiffness in the chest, difficulty breathing, and pain in the shoulder blades.

Situations requiring emergency medical care

Urgent consultation with a doctor is required for back pain that occurs in the following cases:

• bruise;
• neurological symptoms in the form of tingling and numbness in the limbs;
• temperature combined with back pain;
• numbness, weakness and tingling in the arms and legs;
• altered gait or loss of legs;
• have a history of cancer;
• weight loss for no reason;
• urination and defecation are disturbed - a person cannot control these processes;
• back pain spreads to the chest, jaw and neck;
• confused consciousness and dizziness;
• numbness and weakness in the genitals, "woolly" in the legs;
• leg cramps;
• problems with conception or erection;
• problems of the gastrointestinal tract, for which treatment by a gastroenterologist does not help;
• pain in the coccyx and pelvis, intensifies with a change in body position;
• increased pain when sitting or standing for a long time.

Specialists will help to find out the cause of the pain.

Diagnostics

To determine the cause of back pain, the neurologist prescribes a comprehensive examination:

1. Blood tests.They help determine the presence of infection and inflammation in the form of leukocytosis and increased ESR.A decrease in hemoglobin will indicate anemia, which can have many causes, and one of the possible causes is oncology.
2. MRI. Visualizes the condition of all components of the spine.It helps distinguish the type and nature of the tumor, determines the distance between the vertebrae and the degree of compression of the roots.
3. CT. Detects fractures and allows finding the smallest fragments after injuries.All this in three dimensions.
4. Radiography.The cheapest way to determine back pain and determine the condition of bone tissue.It is prescribed for suspected fractures, arthritis, scoliosis, osteoporosis, spondyloarthrosis.
5. Electromyography (EMG).Determines indicators of bioelectrical activity of muscles and peripheral nerve endings.
6. Ultrasound of neck and brain vessels.In triplex or duplex mode, it is used to evaluate the patency of blood flow through arteries and veins.Their condition is checked - wall thickness, permeability, etc.

Back pain treatment

There are several ways to treat back pain.A neurologist will choose the optimal treatment for you, taking into account the patient's age, lifestyle, level of physical mobility and clinical manifestations.

NSAIDs, analgesics, muscle relaxants and B vitamins are usually used in the medical treatment of back pain.Physiotherapy, exercise therapy, IRT, massage, spinal stretching and muscle relaxation are also prescribed.

It is advisable to consult a doctor to ensure quality treatment for back pain.

Prevention

Preventive measures:

• learn to maintain posture and stand correctly;
• do not bend;
• keep your back straight while sitting, put a support under your feet;
• properly organize the sleeping area;
• do not stand up suddenly after waking up - lie down slowly, do simple exercises with your arms and legs;
• distribute the weights in both hands - do not carry everything on one hand, give up a bag on your shoulder - a backpack is better;
• do not carry the child in your arms bent backwards;
• lift weights by squatting;
• do not wash floors without a mop, bending forward or kneeling;
• balance your diet with a sufficient amount of minerals and vitamins;
• to give up smoking and alcohol;
• do not forget physical exercises - swimming, Nordic walking, yoga;
• take a contrast shower in the morning;
• take care of the liver, it produces collagen for spinal ligaments and vertebral organs;
• strengthen immunity;
• weight control;
• It is recommended to undergo a course of manual therapy every 6 months for 5-10 sessions (on the recommendation of a specialist);
• avoid stress;
• Do not forget to undergo a medical examination with a doctor.

If you have back pain, see a doctor for proper help.Remember that it is easier to treat any disease at the initial stage.