|
| General Causes of Back Pain | Back Pain Causes
As a rule back pain is a symptom, as overall pain arising from other organs may be felt in the back. This condition is normally called referred pain. Lots of intra-abdominal disorders for example appendicitis, kidney diseases, aneurysms, bladder infections, pelvic infections and ovarian disorders can cause pain referred to the back. Your physician will have this in mind when estimating your pain.
• Nerve root syndromes are those that produce symptoms of nerve impingement, when a nerve is touched, often because of a herniation or bulging of the disc between the lower back bones. Sciatica is a model of nerve root impingement. Impingement pain tends to be sharp, in one spot, and related to numbness in the area of the leg that the affected nerve supplies.
o Herniated discs are produced as the spinal discs deprave or grow thinner. The jellylike central portion of the disc bulges out of the central cavity and pushes against a nerve root. By the third decade of life intervertebral discs begin to degenerate. Herniated discs are found in a third of adults older than 20. However, only 3% of these produce symptoms of nerve impingement.
o Spinal stenosis happens as intervertebral discs lose moisture and volume with age, which decreases the disc spaces. Even minor trauma in such cases can cause inflammation and nerve root impingement, which can produce classic sciatica without disc crack.
o Spinal degeneration is caused by alterations in the disc that progress to relapse. This together with disease in joints of the low back causes spinal canal narrowing. Such changes in the disc and the joints produce symptoms and can be seen on an x-ray. A person with spinal degeneration may have morning stiffness or pain while standing for a long time or walking even short distances.
o Cauda equina syndrome is a medical emergency. The material of disk expands into the spinal canal, which compresses the nerves. Under such circumstances a person would experience pain, possible loss of sensation and bowel or bladder dysfunction. This could take in lack of ability to control urination causing incontinence or the incapacity to begin urination.
• Musculoskeletal pain syndromes that produce low back pain comprise myofascial pain syndromes and fibromyalgia.
o Myofascial pain is characterized by pain and tenderness over restricted areas, loss of range of motion in the involved muscle groups and pain radiating in a characteristic distribution but restricted to a peripheral nerve. Pain relief is often reported when the involved muscle group is stretched.
o Fibromyalgia results in pain and tenderness on 11 of 18 trigger points when touched, one of which is the low back area, as classified by the American College of Rheumatology. General stiffness, fatigue, and muscle ache are reported.
• Other skeletal causes of low back pain include osteomyelitis or sacroiliitis (infections of the bones of the spine). This pain is usually worse at night and is worse when sitting or standing for a long time.
• Tumors, possibly cancerous, can be a source of skeletal pain.
|
|
