Low Back Pain
Low back pain is typically a result of damage or irritation of lower back structures. It usually resolves itself within four weeks but often comes back.
Low back pain is categorized into acute and chronic back pain.
- Acute low back pain is abrupt and happens after a specific activity like lifting heavy objects or after a car accident.
- Chronic pain is expressed as pain in the back or down either or both legs occurring over six months.
Lower back pain is diagnosed during a physical exam an sometimes through the use of radiographic imaging, like X- ray, CT scanning, MRI, or bone scanning.
Boney structures, vertebral discs, ligaments and muscles, and other organs may be responsible for lower back pain.
Boney Structure Causes
- Facet joint osteoarthritis
- Spinal stenosis: spinal cord narrowing
- Vertebral body fractures
- Osteoporosis
- Spondylolisthesis: vertebrae slips forward
- Neoplasms
- Infections
Treatments of Structure Causes
- Facet injections
- Vertebroplasty
- SI joint injection
- Lysis of adhesions
- Spinal cord stimulation
Vertebral Disc Cause
- Degenerative disc disease
- Disc protrusion
- Disc herniation
- Disc extrusion
- Facet joint osteoarthritis
- Disc infection
Treatments of Vertebral Disc Causes
- Facet injection
- Facet denervation
- Epidural steroid injections
- Epidural infusions
Spinal Ligament and Muscle Cause
- Myofascial pain syndrome
- Muscular strain
- Torn muscle
- Ligament strain
- Ligament tear
Treatments of Spinal Ligament and Muscle Causes
- Trigger point injections
- Physical therapy
- Massage
- Exercise
Referred pain causes:
- Kidney, pancreas, spleen, and liver become damaged and send pain to spinal cord resulting in pain of the back instead of pain of the damaged organs