Better Back Health For Life » Primary Causes of Lower Back Pain

Sciatica Nerve

owner — Sun, 09 Aug 2009 20:24:04 +0000

The spinal cord carries nerves that extend from the neck down the spine into various parts of the body. The nerves can be affected when a disc (the cushioning material between the vertebrae) bulges out and presses against a nerve. This pressure can cause a tingling and or pain in the back of your buttocks down the back of your legs and even into your feet. This pain is usually associated with the sciatica nerve (also called the sciatic nerve). I suffered with this pain for many years. The best way I can describe it is the sensation of someone holding a red hot iron against the back of my leg for 24 hours per day. It is the most excruciating pain I have ever felt in my entire life.

Lower Back Spasms

owner — Fri, 07 Aug 2009 01:30:08 +0000

Have you ever had a leg cramp in the middle of the night or while on your early morning run? Leg muscle cramps are very painful and usually can be worked out in a matter of minutes. But imagine having a muscle cramp or muscle spasm in the muscles of your back–muscles that are much bigger than leg muscles!

Lower back spasms can cause excruciating pain. A doctor explained it to me this way–When a muscle spasm starts in your back, the natural reaction of your muscles is to tighten to protect your spine. This tightening can cause more spams which cause more pain and the cycle repeats itself.

Once a cycle of back muscle spasms starts, it is difficult to break that cycle. To stop the cycle will usually involve muscle relaxants and bed rest for a few days.

Neck Nerve Injury

owner — Tue, 04 Aug 2009 02:06:41 +0000

The spinal column is a very complex structure made up of vertebrae, discs, joints, ligaments, nerves and muscles. This structure is very intricately interconnected so it should not be a surprise that an injury to one portion of this complex structure can cause pain in another part of the structure. Therefore, injuries or problems with the neck can definitely be a contributing factor to back pain. A pinched nerve or a pulled muscle in the neck area can extend down into the back and cause back pain.

Lower Back Injuries

owner — Tue, 04 Aug 2009 00:08:00 +0000

Lower back injuries are a common reason for back pain. Back injury can result from a fall, an accident, improper lifting of an object or even twisting or turning the body in an awkward position. The back is composed of many parts–vertabrae, ligaments, discs and joints to name a few–so there are many parts that are susceptible to injury. The injury can range from a pulled or stretched muscle to a bulging disc pressing against a nerve in the back.

The pain from a back injury is unmistakable. It can be unbelievably sharp and intense or dull and throbbing. If you’ve never experienced back pain first-hand, it’s often difficult to understand what others are feeling.

A back injury is typically more serious than a back muscle strain. If you suffer a fall or accident that results in what you think is a back injury, you should probably get medical treatment. This treatment may involve tests such as x-rays, cat scans or MRI’s, but these tests may be necessary for the doctor to pinpoint the injury and determine the proper treatment for that injury.

Chronic Lumbar Strain

owner — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 01:53:16 +0000

One of the most common causes of back pain is straining of the back muscles. All it takes is for one to bend or twist or turn suddenly or in an awkward position and then, before you know it, you have strained your back muscles. Chronic lumbar strains are common among people who work at a desk all week long–who are not accustomed to physical labor. After working at a desk all week, they then attempt some physical activity over the weekend and cause a strain or injury to the back. Many of these back muscle strains are minor in nature and can be treated with bed rest and over-the-counter medication. One way to prevent back strain is to adopt a regular exercise program–exercise during the week and get your muscles accustomed to regular workouts, rather than only having physical activity over the weekend. It will not only benefit your back, but will also be great for your cardiovascular system and your overall health!

Primary Causes of Lower Back Pain

owner — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 01:47:18 +0000

What are the primary causes of lower back pain? There are many causes or reasons for back pain–some of them physical and some of them can be mental or psychological. Back pain can be the result of a single sudden action or it can be the result of repetitive actions over a long period of time. By determining the causes of back pain, we can sometimes take action to avoid the incident or actions that caused the back pain in the first place. Knowing what caused your back pain can also help the doctor, chiropractor or physical therapist who is treating the back pain and trying to give you some relief.

Back pain can also be caused by injuries to other parts of the body, such as a neck injury. The back is a very complex structure of skeletal bones, tissue and muscle. There are hundreds of parts that can go out of whack and cause unbelievable pain in the back area. Believe it or not, back pain can also be caused by something as simple as poor posture.

Within this website, we are going to explore some of the reasons for back pain. By knowing and understanding the causes of back pain, hopefully you will become more aware and focused on how to treat your back and what you can (or shouldn’t) do to result in painful injury to your back.