What is Back Pain?

Acute or short-term low back pain generally lasts from a few days to a few weeks. Most acute back pain is the result of trauma to the lower back or a disorder such as arthritis. Pain from trauma may be caused by a sports injury, work around the house or in the garden, or a sudden jolt such as a car accident or other stress on spinal bones and tissues. Symptoms may range from muscle ache to shooting or stabbing pain, limited flexibility and range of motion, or an inability to stand straight. Chronic back pain is pain that persists for more than 3 months. It is often progressive and the cause can be difficult to determine.

Currently, researchers are examining the use of different drugs to effectively treat back pain, in particular, chronic pain that has lasted at least 6 months. Other studies are comparing different health care approaches to the management of acute low back pain (standard care versus chiropractic, acupuncture, or massage therapy). These studies are measuring symptom relief, restoration of function, and patient satisfaction.

Back Pain Myths

To better understand back pain we need to better understand its causes. There are so many old wives tales and silly assumptions that many people don't truly understand what the problem with their back is became of the nonsense they hear about back pain and its causes. At some point sorting out the myths of back pain reality can be very helpful to the sufferer.

For example, you've heard that lifting heavy things will always give you back pain. This isn't true. First, lifting anything, heavy or not, the right way, won't hurt your back. Second, if lifting something does cause back pain its likely that the underlying cause was already there just waiting for one more thing to happen before it began to hurt.

Do not let anyone tell you that if your back hurts you should go to bed and stay there until it feels better. This is completely wrong. While a few days of lesser activity and some bed rest is good for a sore back complete bed rest does not heal. It actually hinders healing because the back needs activity, though not excessively so, to heal right. The stretching of muscles, and walking are a good place to start. Otherwise a person's mobility and flexibility will be affected. Research has shown that resting for four days has no more benefit to a person's back health than if they rested for only two days.

Most back pain originates with injury. This too is flame. Although an injury certainly can be responsible for a person's back pain more often back pain originates with those who do not do enough physical exercise. These are people with office jobs who do little more than sit at a desk all day. These people are more likely to experience back pain. Interestingly most people, about eighty five percent, do not recall what they did that brought on their back pain, it just happened.

Many people fear back pain because they believe that if you have back pain you are destined to wind up disabled by it, This is not true at all. Most people, ninety percent, who suffer from back pain will see that it go away in no more then six weeks. Even those who suffer longer frequently still recover, just slower. The percentage of those who are unable to return to work because of their back pain is very tiny. Never let anyone try to convince you that if your health care provider cannot find the exact source of your back pain that it is all in your mind. Back pain is often unique to the person suffering from it and the fact that there is not structural damage does not mean that a person is not in pain.

At some time in their lives most Americans will suffer from back pain. This is not a myth, it is very true and so you should take care of your back by a gentle exercise program, good posture and common sense.

Written by: Scott Parat