What to do if the lower back hurts is an urgent problem for many modern people. Most of them have serious problems with spinal health. Currently, osteochondrosis is no longer a disease of old age. Today, degenerative dystrophic changes in the cartilage tissue of the intervertebral discs develop at a relatively young age. They are found even in patients 20-25 years old. Lumbosacral osteochondrosis is the most common cause of back pain. But not only him.
It is imperative to consult an experienced doctor. Choose the right specialist. The first thing to note in this case: the local therapist does not treat lower back pain. By medical and economic standards, it eliminates the symptom only in the allotted number of days. His job is to get the patient back to work as quickly as possible. He does not pay attention to the fact that the disease will continue to develop intensively. As a result, many patients lose time in which to restore spinal health without surgery.
We recommend that you apply for a full course of treatment at the manual therapy clinic. They use completely different methods and approaches. They do not use symptomatic treatments. Doctors working in chiropractic clinics aim to restore the patient to full health and not to mask the existing symptoms.
To understand what to do if the lower back hurts badly, you need to know how this part of the body works and what can cause an unpleasant symptom. We offer you to familiarize yourself with some aspects of the anatomy and physiology of the lumbar region.
The heart of this body part is the lumbosacral spine. The adult sacrum is a single triangular bone composed of five fused vertebral bodies. The conditional center of gravity of the human body lies between the first sacrum and the fifth lumbar vertebra. This explains the main mechanical and abrasion loads from the lower extremities.
This is because the iliac-sacral joints are located on the lateral surfaces of the sacrum. With their help, the pelvic ring is attached to the spine. The hip joints are located in the lower lateral part of the pelvic ring. Thus, all of the load from the lower extremities is transferred through the hip and sacroiliac joints to the L5-S1 disc.
Due to these anatomical peculiarities, the L5-S1 intervertebral disc and the iliac-sacral joints are already destroyed at a relatively early age in modern people due to their sedentary lifestyle. And this is a serious reason for the appearance of acute pain in the lumbar region.
The lumbar spine consists of individual vertebral bodies and intervertebral discs. They're pretty massive. The segments of the spinal cord of the same name are located in the lumbar and sacrum sections of the spine. Paired radicular nerves depart from them, forming the lumbosacral nerve plexus and large nerves. At the lower end of the sacrum, the end threads of the spinal cord emerge, which form another large nerve plexus - the "ponytail".
Long anterior and posterior ligaments run along the length of the spine. They begin in the tailbone area and end in the occipital bone area. There are also short transverse and interspinous ligaments. They are located between adjacent vertebral bodies. The paravertebral muscles along the spine diffusely supply nutrients to the cartilage tissue of the intervertebral discs. If they do not work properly, osteochondrosis and its complications develop.
It is difficult to independently determine which tissues are being destroyed. The help of an experienced doctor is required. An experienced doctor will conduct an examination and make a preliminary diagnosis. Develop a personalized treatment plan.
Reasons why lower back hurts
The first thing to do when your lower back hurts is to find out the causes of this pathological condition. It is necessary to exclude the possibility of renal pathology. Very often urolithiasis, pyelonephritis, glomerulonephritis and polycystic kidney disease are manifested by a characteristic pain syndrome in the upper part of the lower back. Other urological symptoms may also be present. These are spasms during urination, a change in the color and transparency of urine, an increase in body temperature, general malaise, intoxication and edematous nephrotic syndrome, an increase in blood pressure, etc.
If you have these symptoms, we recommend that you see a nephrologist or therapist as soon as possible. You will receive professional medical care.
If on the eve of the appearance of the pain syndrome you fell, injured yourself, had an accident, you need to contact a traumatologist to make an appointment. The cause of pain can be a tear or fracture of the vertebral body or its process, the lower costal arch. With a traumatic effect, damage to the kidney tissue is also possible.
The following diseases and conditions can be possible causes of low back pain:
- traumatic violation of the integrity of the ligamentous, tendon and muscular apparatus (stretching, microscopic fractures, defibration, scar deformation, etc. );
- degenerative dystrophic process in the cartilage tissue of the intervertebral discs, leading to the development of osteochondrosis and dorsopathy;
- bulging (decrease in height and increase in occupied area) of the intervertebral discs;
- Extrusion (rupture) of the fibrous ring and the exit of the intervertebral hernia;
- unstable position of the vertebral bodies and their periodic displacement relative to each other by the nature of laterolisthesis, antelisthesis and retrolisthesis;
- Destruction and inflammation of targeted intervertebral joints;
- curvature of the spine and distortion of the pelvic bones;
- deforming osteoarthritis of the iliac-sacral joints;
- stenosis of the spinal canal;
- pinching of the radicular nerves and their branches (sciatica, sciatica, radiculopathy);
- cauda equina syndrome, piriformis muscle;
- Plexitis of the lumbosacral nerve plexus and many others.
It is very difficult to independently determine the real reason for the pain in the lower back. To do this, you need extensive practical experience and specific knowledge. Therefore, you should not engage in self-diagnosis and treatment. It is better to consult an experienced doctor in time and undergo a full course of treatment.
Very sore lower back - what to do at home
If your lower back hurts badly, the first thing to do is get complete physical rest. It is necessary to lie on your back on a hard, flat surface and try to relax your back muscles. If the pain syndrome does not decrease within 30 - 40 minutes, it is necessary to call an ambulance. This can be a condition that requires immediate surgical treatment.
The next thing to do at home if your lower back hurts is to rule out all possible risk factors. They include the following aspects:
- Excess weight - each extra kilogram repeatedly increases the pressure on the cartilaginous discs and provokes their premature destruction;
- Violation of posture (round or bent back, withers, etc. ) - there is a violation of the processes of distribution of the devaluation load, displacement of the vertebral bodies and intervertebral discs is possible;
- heavy physical labor associated with lifting and carrying heavy loads;
- domestic, sports, and work injuries in the lower back;
- improper organization of the sleeping and working place;
- sedentary work associated with prolonged static tension of the muscular framework of the body;
- choice of inferior clothing and shoes;
- foot deformity when walking and running (flatfoot or clubfoot);
- smoking and drinking alcoholic beverages (it leads to a decrease in the intensity of the process of microcirculation of lymphatic fluid and blood, which is fraught with the development of ischemia and dystrophy of the tissues of the spine);
- Malnutrition and insufficient intake of clean water.
If your lower back hurts badly and you don't know what to do, see a doctor right away. Only a specialist can find a possible cause, eliminate it and develop an individual treatment plan.
Lower back pain - how to treat with manual therapy methods
So what to do if the lower back hurts - there are currently several treatment options. The first is to request an appointment with a local therapist at a city clinic. In this case, symptomatic treatment is carried out. All unpleasant symptoms are eliminated, but the process of destruction of the tissues of the spine continues. And it can even increase because the doctor completely overrides the human body's natural defense mechanisms with symptomatic remedies to treat pain.
For example, with a herniated disc, the pain syndrome in most cases is associated with the fact that the paravertebral muscles compensate, take on the devaluation load. This is accompanied by severe muscle fiber tension and pain. However, when muscle relaxants are used, the muscles become paralyzed and all of the depreciation and mechanical stress begins to be fully applied to the already damaged discs. In some cases, this leads to a rupture of the fibrous ring and the occurrence of an intervertebral hernia.
You can also see a manual therapist. This specialist practices a completely different approach to treatment. He will try to identify all risk factors and give the patient individual recommendations for their elimination. He then develops an individual course of treatment. It is based on the principle of full restoration of the disrupted process of diffuse nutrition of the cartilaginous tissue of the intervertebral discs.
To restore the normal shape of the disc, multiple sessions of manual spinal traction are performed. During this procedure, the doctor increases the degree of elasticity of the soft tissues surrounding the spine. Then he spreads the adjacent vertebral bodies to a normal distance. The discs have room to fully expand. After 2-3 procedures, the acute pain syndrome completely disappears.
In the future, a full course of treatment is carried out. It can include osteopathy, therapeutic exercises, kinesitherapy, laser exposure, physical therapy and much more.