Low back pain: causes and treatment

Low back pain, also known as lumbago or low back pain due to its situation, can be due to several causes, from simple muscle tension to something more serious that affects our spine. It is advisable to treat it and see a doctor if the pain is acute and persistent, although it can be momentarily soothed with analgesics. The symptoms and the treatment will depend on the cause that has motivated this pain. Lumbago can also present, in addition to pain, stiffness in the whole back, and the person who suffers from it may feel pain when moving or inability to do so. However, it has a solution and a treatment. In this FastlyHealarticle, we will talk about the causes that cause low back pain and how to treat it.

Low back pain, why does it occur?

Back pain is widespread, and almost everyone in our life has suffered from one. Lumbago is a characteristic pain that occurs in the lower back and the lumbar area, and although it is also common, it should be taken into account. It may be a sudden pain due to some bad posture or an overload of weight, for example, when we lift something, but if it is constant, it may be due to a more significant cause such as some disease.

In addition, in the lower back, we have muscles, but some tendons and nerves go from the lower back to the legs and feet or joints. Any damage to one of these parts can cause low back pain.

We are going to see some other causes for which you can suffer low back pain, in addition to overload:

• An injury in the area: it is possible that if you have suffered an injury or a blow, you have hurt yourself and not only externally.
• Degenerated vertebrae: Over time, vertebrae can wear out. It can also occur if too much tension on the tendons and muscles that support them.
• Kidney infections or kidney stones: the kidneys are located in the lower back, and pain in this area could be due to these conditions, such as the well-known kidney stones. If this were the cause, there would also be a pain when urinating.
• A tumor: when there is a tumor that grows larger than usual, it can affect the spine and cause pain in the back.
• Obesity: Obesity and being overweight cause the intervertebral discs to degenerate. These discs are the tissue formations between vertebrae and distribute the weight between the upper and lower vertebrae and allow movement.
• Problems like arthritis: One of the most painful types of arthritis is osteoarthritis, which affects the hips, knees, and spine. It causes the cartilage between the joints to wear and disintegrate, causing the bones to rub against each other and causing inflammation and pain. Osteoarthritis can cause the inability to move in the person who has it.
• Having a herniated disc: The intervertebral discs rupture, and the substance inside them protrudes, creating a bulge or hernia. It is quite painful and needs to be treated.
• Spinal infection: several infections can affect the spine, such as osteomyelitis, discitis, spondylitis, or abscess. These infections must be treated as soon as possible.
• Some diseases that affect the female reproductive organs, such as endometriosis or ovarian cancer, can cause low back pain due to the area’s proximity.
• Sciatica: Sciatica is not a disease but a pain due to other causes. It is described as leg pain or numbness in the lower back.
• Curvatures of the spine: it is something that is detected in children, and there may be variations such as scoliosis (lateral deviation of the spine), kyphosis (the spine curves outwards), or lordosis (the spine arches inwards, causing an exaggerated curvature, usually in the buttock area). This will cause pain to the child or adult suffering but can be corrected.
• Problems related to pregnancy: during pregnancy, the lower back can hurt due to the baby’s weight.

To find out what is causing your lower back pain, it is best to visit your doctor and have a complete examination. This way, you will know if the pain is due to muscle tension or overuse or if there is some more serious underlying problem. Above all, it is essential to see your doctor if the pain is persistent and very acute.

Lower back pain symptoms

If you have low back pain in addition to pain, you may notice some of these symptoms:

• Difficulty performing some movements such as sitting, bending, or walking. Or even the inability to move.
• Tingling or numbness in the area.
• Burning sensation
• Very severe pain
• If the pain spreads to other areas such as the legs or the hips, you may even feel weakness in the size of ​​the legs or feet.
• Muscle spasms.
• Difficulty urinating.
• It is not usually expected, but sometimes you also have a fever.

If you have a fever, you notice numbness, dull ache, or you cannot move, in addition to the pain, you should see a doctor urgently.

How to get rid of lower back pain

As we have said before, the treatment will depend on its causes. However, you can take analgesics or non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs for the pain. Some pain reliever creams can help remove pain by massaging the area with them. Your doctor can also prescribe muscle relaxants. A soothing injection such as an epidural may even be given to the room when the pain is terrible. The doctor will only recommend this in some cases.

Typically, only pain treatment is administered, and surgery is not usually used in cases of chronic pain. Still, we will see below if it is due to any of the causes. Other treatments have failed; surgery can be applied to people with a herniated disc, degeneration of the discs, dislocation of one of the vertebrae, or fracture of one of them.

However, although it is thought that continuous rest is the best, it is not always like that. At first, it is recommended, but you have to reactivate the activity over time so that the area starts up again, adapts, and does not get stuck in the same position.

Other tips to relieve lower back pain

Some tips can be used to avoid this low back pain or relieve it when it has already occurred, such as:

• If you are going to gain weight, do it in the best possible way to not damage your back. This is bending your knees and squatting with your back straight. After grabbing the load, slowly get back up with a straight back.
• If you stay in the same position for a long time, for work, for example, change from time to time and take short walks.
• When there is pain, rest for two days and then begin to be active again. You do not have to force yourself or do exercises that require weight gain or anything very forced. He begins to walk, ride a bike, or swim little by little. Aerobic exercises work best on these occasions.
• The hot/cold technique is excellent for treating sore muscles. First, apply cold, for example, with ice and heat.

If the pain does not subside with the passing of the days or taking analgesics, go to the doctor so that he can prescribe some other more robust treatment such as a soothing injection.

This article is merely informative, at FastlyHeal .com we do not have the power to prescribe medical treatments or make any type of diagnosis. We invite you to see a doctor in the case of presenting any kind of condition or discomfort.

If you want to read more articles similar to Low back pain: causes and treatment, we recommend that you enter our category of Bones, Joints, and Muscles.

Alivia Nyhan

I am a Surgeon with a diploma in comprehensive ultrasound and surgical care residency, an area I am specializing in. During the exercise of my profession, I have realized the need for patients to know the diseases they suffer, and I can tell you that a large part of their complications is due to a lack of information. Being a health web writer allows me to transmit my experience, without borders, to all those readers eager for knowledge, educate them in the prevention of diseases and promote a healthy lifestyle.