When a person has constant or acute low back pain in the lumbar region, it is very difficult to do anything. It is an exhausting, exhausting feeling that leads to irritability and anger. And there can be many causes of pain. They are not always associated with joint or bone pathologies, but may indicate abnormalities in the internal organs. Particular attention should be paid to such sensations in women, whose lower back pain is often associated with dangerous gynecological pathologies.
Causes and nature of pain
Despite the fact that there are root causes for every type of pain, the nature of the sensations may not always indicate 100% of a particular disease. Disorders in the human body can be masked by various signs.
Low back pain is characterized by the following characteristics:
- Acute discomfort. The patient has difficulty moving, the symptoms appear sharply, radiate to the lower extremities. Acute pain is typical of injuries, vertebral compression, and bone diseases such as tumors, Cushing's syndrome, and multiple myeloma. Vertebral displacement is also accompanied by sharp pain.
- It's a dull pain. It develops mainly in muscle spasms, spinal hernias, radiculitis and osteochondrosis. But it can occur in pathologies of the genitourinary system, kidneys, intestines and other organs. Radiculitis is divided into 2 diseases: lumbago with displacement of the vertebrae and sciatica, which affects the nerve endings and lumbago occurs. Very often painful pains appear with renal pathologies.
- Periodic pain of various natures. They occur mainly against the background of excessive physical activity, especially with prolonged inactivity and lack of warm-up before exercise. At the same time, recurrent pain can be reflected and emitted if it is related to organs.
- Constant pain. They are associated mainly with varicose veins and other vascular pathologies, muscular dystrophy, degenerative diseases of bone and cartilage, as well as inflammation in these elements. Getting rid of persistent symptoms is extremely difficult.
- Shooting pains. Sharp, sudden and very strong sensations, which are accompanied by prolonged and unpleasant pain after lumbago. They develop against the background of careless movements, excessive stress, as well as under the influence of factors such as hypothermia.
- Radiant pain. Related mainly to diseases of the kidneys, pelvic organs, genitourinary system. These can be colic, stones, as well as pathologies of the gastrointestinal tract, including diseases of the gallbladder, ulcers, tumors and pathologies of the pancreas. In men, it is often caused by diseases of the testicles and prostate, and in women - ectopic pregnancy, diseases of the uterus and ovaries, cysts.
In the situation of pain, mainly on the right, liver abnormalities may be suspected.
Other reasons why the lower back hurts
Among the pathologies that lead to lower back pain, there are diseases in which the symptoms are ambiguous, can be mild or acute, rare or permanent:
- osteochondrosis - refers to degenerative forms of the disease in which the intervertebral disc becomes inflamed, loosening of the bone surface and damage to nerve endings;
- protrusion and intervertebral hernia are diseases that become stages 2-3 of osteochondrosis;
- scoliosis - curvature of the spine to the left or right can cause many unpleasant sensations against the background of reduced muscle and skeletal function;
- ankylosing spondylitis - a chronic autoimmune change in the joints of the spine, which leads to loss of mobility;
- rheumatoid arthritis is a chronic inflammation of large and small joints, which has many causes;
- bone infections, including bone tuberculosis, as well as infectious processes inside the organs;
- pancreatitis, adhesions in the digestive tract after surgery, appendicitis, cholecystitis;
- pyelonephritis, kidney stones and colic;
- benign and malignant tumors of organs, tissues and bones that compress the nerve endings in the lumbar region.
Painful sensations can provoke muscle spasms, leading to symptoms of freezing, as well as sprains caused by injury or sudden movement.
Characteristics of the causes in women and men
Pulling and sometimes sharp painful sensations may develop in women during ovulation in the middle of the cycle. These symptoms disappear quickly and do not cause severe discomfort. In some women, the pain occurs after an abortion, which is recognized as very stressful for a woman's health. Lumbar pain can last a long time and is often associated with inflammatory processes in the pelvic organs. This occurs against the background of inaccurate procedure and severe trauma to the walls of the uterus.
In women, low back pain can be caused by inflammation of the appendages and ovaries, intensely growing uterine fibroids, large cysts, as well as ovarian bleeding, endometritis and endometriosis. Sometimes such discomfort occurs during menopause, which is associated with a sharp change in hormonal balance.
In men, in addition to prostate cancer and prostatitis, back pain can occur in epididymitis - inflammation of the epididymis, but the main symptoms are localized in the groin.
Diagnostic methods
Before undergoing diagnosis and treatment of lumbar spine lumbar spine, you should visit an experienced specialist - vertebrologist or orthopedist. But the vertebrologist deals with diseases of the spine and knows all about the effective therapy of these diseases.
After examination, palpation, collection of information about the patient, the doctor will prescribe several diagnostic methods:
- X-rays. With the help of X-rays, doctors identify the stage of osteochondrosis and other degenerative processes in the spine. The X-ray clearly shows the growth of osteophytes and allows you to measure the distance between the vertebrae.
- MRI of the spine. Detects pathological changes in the discs, vertebrae and joints, as well as in the surrounding soft tissues. MRI easily shows osteochondrosis and spondyloarthritis even in the early stages.
- myelography. A technique using a contrast agent that helps detect vascular pathologies, tumors, as well as narrowing of the spinal canal, abscesses and other similar changes.
Urine and blood are also prescribed to rule out diseases of the internal organs and to identify inflammatory processes. Sometimes a diagnosis of the gastrointestinal tract is needed, including enzymes from the liver, pancreas and gastric juice.
The diagnosis of back pain helps to distinguish some diseases from others and allows you to choose the right treatment tactics. At home, only by symptoms it is impossible to understand which disease causes pain.
How to relieve low back pain
Regardless of the cause of the pain, the patient will be prescribed drugs from the following groups to relieve the unpleasant symptoms (at the doctor's choice):
- Analgesics. They do not help all patients and act mainly on weak sources of pain.
- NSAIDs. Powerful painkillers that are taken in courses. They also have anti-inflammatory properties.
- Hormonal agents. Apply within 6-10 days, they include.
- Injections and blockages. Combination drugs are often used in combination with glucocorticosteroids and anesthetics.
- Muscle relaxants. They help with muscle spasms, as well as osteochondrosis and other disorders when there is muscle pain.
- Current products. Painkillers, warming creams, gels and patches should also be used only as directed.
In some cases, especially in severe stages of joint or bone pathology, several groups of drugs are used.
Your doctor should prescribe medicines, especially complex ones such as glucocorticosteroids or hormonal blockade. Only strict adherence to instructions and recommendations, systematic, strict application of drugs in the prescribed dose will help get rid of unpleasant sensations.
Characteristics of treatment depending on the type of pain
In order to effectively treat low back pain, it is important to consider its nature. For any disorder and disease, the pain can be of one nature or another.
Treatment of myofascial pain
This is the name of the pain associated with muscle strain or cramps. They develop against the background of excessive load, improper weight lifting, as well as the wrong approach to exercise. Myofascial pain can occur due to prolonged stay in an awkward position, when carrying bags in one hand or over the shoulder. Sometimes this symptom appears against the background of poor posture.
Spasms cause a violation of the spinal roots, so the symptoms are similar to sciatica: burning pain in the thighs, lower legs, tingling in the extremities.
You can treat such pain with analgesics and NSAIDs in the form of ointments, injections, tablets, patches. Among the ointments it is better to choose warming and irritating agents.
Sometimes myositis, which causes pain, is triggered by infections or worm toxins. Then you need to take antibiotics or anthelmintic drugs to overcome the cause of the pain. Compresses and warming ointments in this case are prohibited.
Diseases of the spine, including nerve endings
This category of diseases includes all disorders associated with dystrophic changes and injuries, be it osteochondrosis or spondylolisthesis. Requires the following treatments:
- bed rest during seizures - you should lie on a hard surface, placing a small roller under your knees;
- drug treatment - most often NSAIDs are used in the form of injections;
- irritating and dispersing ointments, as well as pepper plasters, mustard plasters and iodine nets;
- mud therapy and warming, as well as ozokerite are used during remission;
- spasms are relieved by vacuum massage and acupuncture.
In radicular syndrome, which is manifested by intense pain, novocaine blockade or weak opiates should be used, bed rest, dry or underwater pulling of the lumbar spine, stimulation by electrophoresis and microcurrents should be provided.
Treatment of degenerative-inflammatory diseases
To get rid of back and lower back pain in degenerative diseases (spondyloatrosis), rest in bed with folded legs in a frog position is prescribed. Non-steroidal drugs are also used, in case of severe pain they are injected. Muscle relaxants are used to relieve muscle tension. Very often patients suffer from chronic fatigue and depression caused by pain and need antidepressants.
Treatment of tumors
Benign and malignant tumors can be of very different nature: fatty lipomas, nerve neuromas, spinal cord hemangiomas, gliomas, osteosarcomas and chondrosarcomas. Tumor diseases require complex, long-term and complex treatment.
Prescribed anti-cancer devices are mandatory, sometimes patients are prescribed powerful opiates. They also provide treatment for the causes of tumors, for which hormonal drugs, chemotherapeutic toxins and targeted drugs can be used.
Therapy for tumors is one of the most difficult, requiring responsibility from the patient and doctors. The use of drugs for chemotherapy and radiation therapy can worsen the patient's condition for a long time. The main thing is not to give up at this time and remember that the detection of tumors up to stage 2 gives a very high chance of recovery. Even with stage 3 oncology, you can count on a successful fight against the disease.
Dangers and consequences of pain
Failure to treat and ignore low back pain or try to suppress it with NSAIDs and other painkillers can have dire consequences for the patient. Injuries are particularly dangerous in this regard, as damage to the vertebrae can lead to displacement, cracks and compression fractures. Other complications can also cause severe pain:
- the formation of chronic painful sensations, from which it is impossible to get rid of even when taking strong painkillers;
- diseases of the spinal cord and brain, extensive damage to the nervous system and paralysis;
- reduced sensitivity of the upper and lower limbs;
- severe restriction of mobility;
- complication from internal organs to paresis, fecal and urinary incontinence.
When the first symptoms of low back pain appear, it is important to undergo a diagnosis to identify the causes of discomfort.
Prevention of back pain
The following prevention rules will help you avoid certain diseases and discomfort:
- moderate physical activity, daily gymnastics to strengthen the muscular corset and improve blood circulation;
- the use of hard seating surfaces, the exclusion of permanent stay on upholstered furniture;
- if a person works for a long time in a sitting position, he should use the furniture recommended for this;
- proper diet and rejection of bad habits are needed to prevent many diseases;
- you need to transfer weights correctly, distribute the weight on both hands and carefully lift a large weight without shaking.
No one is immune to back pain. If the disease and pathological changes in the spine are detected in time, you can quickly and correctly get rid of them.