Back pain can occur not only in people who live a sedentary lifestyle.This can happen with age or during heavy work that puts the spine under increased stress.If the pain occurs occasionally, no treatment is needed.But if the pain is regular, you should see a doctor.Therapy is selected taking into account the cause of the identified pathology - medical treatment, physiotherapy, and sometimes surgery are used.
Reasons
In order to determine the causes of back pain, it is necessary to analyze when and under what circumstances they occur:
- Morning pain.It usually happens after waking up.A person cannot change position, raise an arm or turn the neck without severe pain.Most often, it has nothing to do with the spine, but is caused by myositis - muscle inflammation caused by hypothermia, excessive stress, infectious diseases.In such cases, warming ointments are prescribed, as well as on the basis of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs.If the inflammation also affects the joints, the doctor prescribes chondroprotectors - tissue-restoring agents.
- Pain during physical exertion.They appear when walking, long walks or, conversely, lack of movement.Most often, the pain is dull, but quite strong, it passes only when the load is removed, but sometimes it becomes constant.In this case, you should consult a doctor.The specialist will be able to accurately determine the cause of the discomfort - spondylolisthesis, stenosis of the spinal canal or osteochondrosis.
- At the end of the working day, there is a pulling pain in the neck.They are accompanied by a cracking sound, and after a while they intensify - these are symptoms of osteochondrosis of the cervical spine.The disease cannot be completely cured.But the pain can be relieved.In the acute period, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs or, if it does not help, corticosteroids are prescribed.
Dystrophy of the intervertebral discs develops with age.This means they lose their ability to absorb cushioning, resulting in back pain.In such cases, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs and chondroprotectors are prescribed.Your doctor may recommend special therapeutic exercises to help strengthen your back muscles.Intervertebral disc dystrophy should not be confused with a herniated disc;the latter is characterized by vertebral protrusion.In severe cases, surgical treatment is prescribed.
Drug therapy and other conservative methods of hernia treatment allow the patient to maintain a high quality of life.However, in the most advanced cases, when it is impossible to relieve the pain with anti-inflammatory drugs or corticosteroids and the activity of the urogenital system is disturbed, the hernia is operated.The probability that the pain will remain even after surgery is no more than 1.5%.
Back pain can be caused by trauma.This is caused by sprains of the ligaments that support the spine, an injury that can occur during sports and heavy lifting.As a result of injuries to the vertebrae themselves, osteoporosis develops, a disease that causes the thinning of bone tissue.The pathology itself does not cause pain, but leads to fractures of the spinal vertebrae.
Depending on the location
It is important to determine the location of the pain - in the middle of the back or below.Sometimes it helps to understand in which part of the spine there is a problem and can indicate other pathologies that cause a similar symptom.Back pain in the middle is not only due to osteochondrosis, but also due to diseases of the stomach or pancreas.
Back pain localized on the right or left side is not necessarily related to spinal diseases.Sometimes it is a symptom of kidney pathology - an infectious disease or the appearance of stones in them.Ultrasound will help to make an accurate diagnosis.Further treatment depends on the cause of the pathology - the infection is fought with antibiotics, and the kidney stones are removed surgically.
Sometimes back pain can be caused by gynecological diseases, such as endometriosis - the growth of the endometrium outside the uterine cavity.However, there are cases when it affects even the abdominal organs, which causes compression of the nerve endings.In such cases, the stomach starts to hurt.If you have pain in the lower back, you should consult a gynecologist.Most often, it is necessary to treat endometriosis with conservative methods, but sometimes surgical intervention is also necessary.
Back pain occurs during pregnancy.Their appearance can be provoked by an increased load on the spine and hormonal changes that cause muscle relaxation.Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs are usually prohibited for expectant mothers, and in some cases even massage is excluded.Special therapeutic exercises for pregnant women can have a good effect.The best option is water aerobics and yoga for expectant mothers.It is important to remove increased stress from the back.
Joint problems can also cause pain.Most often, these are different types of arthritis.Often the disease is of an infectious nature, so antibiotics are needed.
Treatment and prevention
If the pain occurs due to physical overload or occurs against the background of hypothermia and infectious disease, it may pass by itself.Anti-inflammatory drugs may be used to speed recovery.Warming compresses and wool belts should not be worn.It is better to replace them with a special elastic corset.
Special bandages are made for expectant mothers, which help relieve stress from the back.But if the pain does not go away within three days, despite all the measures that have been taken, you should consult a doctor.
Do not self-medicate in any way, especially massage and heating procedures such as a bath or sauna - this only increases swelling and discomfort.
The treatment is comprehensive: anti-inflammatory non-steroidal drugs are used to relieve pain, while reducing the load on the spine.This is most applicable to overweight people;they need to follow a reduced energy diet.
In addition, doctors often prescribe various physiotherapy methods - magnetotherapy, massages.If the pain is caused by the destruction of joint tissues, then you need to additionally use chondroprotectors - drugs based on chondroitin sulfate and glucosamine, which restore joints and stimulate collagen production.
In order to prevent the disease, it is important to follow the following recommendations:
- You can't sit still for long.In this position, a large load is placed on the spine.
- Vertical loads on the spine should be avoided.
- The back muscles must be strengthened so that they provide additional support to the spine.
- If you experience severe, long-lasting pain, you should consult a specialist.