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Back Pain

by Peter Emerson

Statistics reveal that up to 85% of all people have back pain at any given time in their lives. Nearly 2% of all American workers get compensated for back-pain-related disabilities. Back pain can occur for several reasons like injury to the muscles on account of their overuse or otherwise, strains, or injury to the ligaments—the fine, fibrous mass that support them. Back pain may be less when in a resting position but greater when the back is subjected to any hard or soft activity as reaching, twisting, or lifting.

Since the spine is an amazing combination of bones, ligaments, tendons, large muscles, and highly sensitive nerves, any abnormality or dysfunction in any of these structures can trigger back pains of low or high intensity. For example, pain could occur on account of any irritability perceived by the large or small nerves that pass through or along with the spine. If these nerves are strained, again back pain can occur. The spaces created between the discs of the spinal column, which have to be otherwise suitably aligned, can be a very troublesome cause of back pain.

Depending on the severity of back pain, it can be classified into three categories. Back pains lasting not more than three months are termed as acute. When back pain occurs repeatedly, it is known as recurrent back pain. And back pain lasting more than three months and that doesn't improve within three to four weeks of medication, is considered as chronic back pain. More than 50 million Americans suffer from chronic pain. Such back pains are often traced to more serious underlying bone or joint problems or other pathophysiologies; these need a specialist's intervention to treat.

Any such suspicion is ruled out by conducting an array of medical laboratory and imaging tests, including a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), computed tomography (CT) scan, bone scan, and X-ray.

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