If a person has pain in the spine, the symptoms indicate irritation of the nerve endings. Degenerative-dystrophic lesions often develop between the vertebrae, which compress muscles, blood vessels, and fibers of the NS. If a patient has back pain in the lumbar region, a neuropathologist, vertebrologist, and chiropractor will help determine the causes and treatment.
There are several main factors that influence the appearance of discomfort in the lower back. These include:
- Any kind of curvature of the spine;
- Hypothermia of the back, legs;
- Overloading of muscle tissue (weight lifting, working in the same position);
- Insufficient fitness of the musculoskeletal system;
- Lack of vitamins, malnutrition;
- Overweight;
- Smoking, alcohol abuse and other bad habits.
Low back pain is the most common complaint of patients requiring medical attention. According to statistics, about 70% of all people who have reached the age of 30 already face these problems. Since the lumbar region is located below the chest and above the sacral, the central area of the spine assumes the maximum load.
The pain can be of a different nature. It depends on the reason for the appearance. Painful sensations are described as aching, burning, cutting, cutting, blurry. Sometimes the pain spreads to other parts of the back and even to the lower limbs. It occurs gradually or suddenly. There are unbearable pains, but often it also depends on the psycho-emotional state and age-related changes.
There are the following types of low back pain:
- Low back pain- characterized as acute low back pain (appears as a result of hypothermia or physical overload);
- Lombodynia- characterized by aching pains of a chronic nature (people often suffer from sedentary activity);
- Lumboischialgia- is caused by the spread of pain in the legs (often a sign of a hernia).
CT or MRI is used to diagnose the cause of spinal discomfort. Sometimes it is enough to take an x-ray of the affected area of inflammation. In addition, doctors make a diagnosis based on complaints and an external examination of the patient's body.
Causes of back pain in the lumbar region: common pathologies
Basically, the sensations of discomfort arise due to pathologies of the lumbar spine. If they appear, you should definitely see a specialist and not allow the disease to progress. Osteochondrosis, hernia, protrusion often become the cause of pain. All of them are characterized by an increase in symptoms during movements, torso bends, bends.
Much less often, the causes of back pain in the lumbar region are more serious and even life-threatening. For example, there are disorders of the lumbar spine due to metastases of cancerous growths, infections of the vertebrae, internal organs, metabolic disorders in the bones and muscle tissues, and fractures.
Studies have shown that 90% of lower back pain is associated with myofascial disorders, ie stiffening or overloading of the muscles surrounding the vertebrae. And only 10% are pathologies caused by true vertebrogenic changes. It has been shown that the formation of osteochondrosis is associated with the early displacement of the vertebrae.
The most common causes of pain are:
- Injuries;
- Stretching of muscles, ligaments;
- Displacement of the vertebrae;
- Compression of nerve endings due to hernia, osteochondrosis, stenosis;
- Fractures, deformity of the spine;
- Pregnancy.
Much less often pain occurs after an infectious lesion, spondylitis, deformational changes, diseases of the abdominal organs.
If the pain persists for more than three days, consult a doctor. Since most often discomfort is felt against the background of overload of the spinal muscles, the problem can be corrected in a short time with the right choice of treatment methods.
Back pain in the left lumbar region: what's behind it?
If a person has discomfort or severe pain in the lower lumbar region, then, most likely, the cause of this phenomenon is irritation of the nerve fibers, tense muscles or the irradiation of a symptom of the affected internal organ. But basically, back pain in the left lumbar region develops through disturbances in the functions of the musculoskeletal system.
In terms of frequency, pain on both sides of the spine occurs in approximately the same percentage. But patients usually turn to a specialist even when the diseases are neglected and require long-term treatment.
If the pain radiates to the left side, as a rule it is provoked by inflammation of the internal organs. The lower back of the left side projects diseases of the kidneys, intestines, stomach, pancreas and ovaries. If the disease is acute, then it is accompanied not only by the spread of pain to the left side of the lumbosacral region, but also by fever, discomfort in the abdominal cavity, disorders of defecation or urination, and menstrual irregularities.
Women who complain of lower back pain should be examined by a gynecologist. If the problem occurs in men, then to the urologist. It is imperative that you be examined by a therapist, perform an ultrasound of the organs and do tests. If no abnormalities are found during the diagnosis, a spinal examination is prescribed. The most reliable method is MRI, which helps determine the cause of left back pain.
Through the diffusion of pain it is possible to determine which part of the lumbar spine is affected and what the consequences of the disease will be.
- If the painful sensations on the left side of the lower back pass to the lower limb or gluteal muscle, the nerve roots of the lower section are affected. Distant pains indicate a neglected disease affecting the entire root.
- When the pain radiates to the groin or abdomen, the pathology is in the upper part of the lumbar vertebrae.
- If distant pain affects the appearance of numbness in the limbs, over time such a violation can cause paralysis.
- If discomfort spreads to the leg while walking, there is a possibility that the sciatic nerve is inflamed.
An accurate diagnosis will be made by a specialist who will refer the patient to all necessary research methods.
How to treat low back pain? Effective methods
After diagnosis, doctors will prescribe drugs or physical procedures that will help eliminate the symptoms of the pathology caused by disorders in the lumbosacral region. The exact prescriptions depend on the true cause of the pain. Consider the most basic methods of treating the symptoms of various diseases or pathologies.
Ointments
This type of medicine is effective mainly because it can be used at home without the help of other people. The ointment relieves local inflammation caused by sprains or compression of the nerve roots. It also warms up the muscle tissue if pain occurs due to hypothermia of the back.
There are several types of ointments:
- Anti-inflammatory analgesicswhich relieve irritation, pain and have a cooling effect.
- Combination Funds,used for back injuries. They can have a healing, pain relieving, cooling and anti-inflammatory effect.
- Irritating drugsaimed at vasodilation in the affected area to improve blood flow.
- Chondroprotectorsare used to treat diseases of the cartilage tissue.
How to treat low back pain, only a doctor can tell. What kind of ointment should be used, the specialist will determine only after the diagnosis of the spine.
Injections
With the help of injections, pain in the lower back can be relieved in a very short time. Intramuscular or intravenous solutions are more effective than oral drugs, because they bypass the gastrointestinal tract and enter the bloodstream directly at the site of the inflammatory process. But giving yourself injections is not always convenient, so the patient will have to visit the clinic every day or call the medical staff at home. Almost all lumbar injections are available with a prescription.
Heating
This method of therapy is more related to folk recipes and is used only for non-inflammatory pain in the back. It is used for osteochondrosis, hernia, muscle fatigue, curvature of the spine. If the pain is caused by an infectious lesion, rewarming will only intensify the symptoms and worsen the patient's health. To achieve a positive effect, apply dry heating pads or hot compresses up to 10 times a day.
Physiotherapy exercises
It should be appointed by a physiotherapist who, having diagnosed the cause of low back pain, will be able to select optimal exercises. The goal of these exercises is to strengthen the back muscles to correct posture and reduce pain during physical activity.
Massage
Relieves lumbar pain well, but should only be done by an experienced specialist. With the help of effective massage movements, it is possible to improve blood circulation in the area of the affected area and make the muscles more elastic and flexible. The massage relieves acute pain, removes toxic substances from the cells and stimulates the nerve endings. It is good to combine massages with a visit to the sauna.