Dr. Surendra Rathore

Most of us, experience back pain due to incorrect posture or longer duration of sitting.

Sometimes you may experience back pain because of exertion - you spent the entire day doing the same kind of job or maybe you bent in a wrong manner while picking up your child. However, the actual cause of your spinal agony may not be very clear, but it pays to be aware of the possible reasons that can cause backache. It is good to consult a doctor if your back pain is consistent and recurrent.

Here are few of the causes:

1. The position of your pelvis

The pelvis consists of three bones that can shift depending on which muscles become weak or stiff. This brings about a pull in the muscle of the lower back, resulting in severe strain to this area. You should consult a physiotherapist for suggestions regarding the best exercises for strengthening your pelvic area.

2. Weak abdominal muscles

A cause of your back pain can be weak stomach muscles. Abdominal muscles play an important role in balancing out the constant bending that your back muscles perform. When you've weak abdominal muscles, your spine is not able to maintain proper balance, resulting in severe stress on the spinal column.

3. Disc injuries

Located between the bones of your spine, discs perform the function of a shock absorber. Physical injury to these padded cushions can cause them to break open, leading to a condition known as herniated disc. This can then bring about pain in the back area.

Few precautions that can be taken for a hurting back. Despite the causes, there are certain precautions that you can take, which are:

• Avoid sitting in a bad posture, that is, keep your back straight as much as you can. Pull and stretch your body in continual intervals to keep it relaxed.
• Consult the right physician instead of doing exercise that can aggravate your pain.
• Take a break from work and go for short walks, every couple of hours.

Lumbago or Lower back pain is a condition that is characterized by mild to serious pain or uneasiness in the lower back region. Lower back pain is more prevalent among the youth whose work includes physical exertion or sitting for long hours and is also common in individuals belonging to the 'retirement age' because of their sedentary lifestyles. The pain might be acute (sudden and extreme) or chronic if it has been endured over a span of three months. 

The most common causes of lower back pain are: 

1. Overuse of the muscles and includes strains or sprains of soft tissues such as muscles, ligaments and vertebral compression fractures. 
2. Pressure on the roots of nerves due to conditions such as spinal canal stenosis (narrowing down of the spaces within the spine) or herniated disc (a condition of the rubbery disc present between the spine bones (vertebrae)). 
3. Osteoarthritis is a condition wherein the shock absorbers, found in the joints, progressively break down. 

When it affects the spine, the condition causes back pain by stiffening the spinal joints. Symptoms of Lumbago (Low back pain) include: 

1. Stiff back 
2. Numbness in the legs 
3. Loss of weight 
4. Difficulty in urinating 
5. Sciatica, which is the pain running down the lower back to hips, legs and thighs. This occurs due to a compression by an intervertebral disc in the back, which leads to a pinched nerve. 

How to diagnose lower back pain or a slip disc?

Some methods that can be utilized for diagnosing back include Xray, CT Scans, Myelogram and MRI scans. 

Treatment options available -
Exercises along with correction of bad posture for relieving back pain are a common component of any treatment plan. Factors such as type and severity of the pain as well as the patient?s history can help in determining the type of treatment that can be administered. In most cases, the recovery time is usually six weeks without surgery. Typical treatment of back pain includes use of muscle relaxants, painkillers and physiotherapy. Surgery is suggested in severe cases. Some other treatments are discussed below: 

1. Rest: A period of rest and inactivity would help the injured tissues to recuperate and relieve back pain. However, extended periods of rest lead to weakening of muscles and hence might prolong the existing back pain. 
2. Heat and ice packs: Both heat and ice therapies are used according to the patient's preference to reduce inflammation. 
3. Medications: A large variety of prescription and over-the-counter medicines are available. Some reduce back pain caused by inflammation and others prevent the pain signals from travelling to the brain. Examples would include acetaminophen, celecoxib and diclofenac.