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“Back pain is a problem facing the workforce in the
world today. Eight out of ten people will have a problem
with back pain at sometime during their life-time.
Back pain is more likely to occur between the ages
of 30 and 50, the most productive period of most people's
lives. The back pain continues and causes problems
indefinitely. Low back pain is a common problem for
all, no matter what their job”.
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| What are the common
causes? |
Sprain and strain 
Low back pain can be caused by a number of factors,
from injuries to the effects of ageing. Sprain and
strain are the most common cause. The muscles of the
low back provide power and strength for activities
such as standing, walking and lifting. A strain of
the muscle can occur when the muscle is poorly conditioned
or overworked. A sprain of the low back can occur
when a sudden, forceful movement injures a ligament
that has become stiff or weak.
Pelvic infection
Next cause that has to be looked into is constipation
and pelvic infections. Most of the complaints by women
are associated with backache always. Leucorrhoea invariably
indicate the pelvic infections.
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Degeneration
The natural effects of normal ageing on the
body, in general, the factors may be osteoporosis
or decreased amount of bone, decrease in strength
and elasticity of muscles, decrease in elasticity
and strength of ligaments. "Wear and
tear" and inherited factors will cause
degenerative changes in the discs, and result
in degenerative disc disease and arthritic
changes in the small joints.
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Disc prolapse
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The disc is composed of a soft centre, which, in children
and young adults, is jelly-like. With normal ageing,
the disc becomes tougher. During middle age, fissures
or cracks may occur in the disc. These may be the
source of back pain. If the crack extends out of the
disc, material from the disc may push out or rupture.
This often is referred to as a herniated or slipped
disc, it may cause pain on movement. If the protruded
disc presses a nerve, it may cause weakness of a muscle,
usually in one leg and numbness or a tingling sensation.
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Sciatica
Practitioners diagnose this as "Sciatica
or Lumbo sacral syndrome", by which the
pain spreads down to one leg from the buttock
on one side. It originates in the lower back
where the “Electric cable sciatic nerve”
is pinched as it leaves the spine, and this
causes pain to be felt behind thigh, calf
muscles and all the way down the leg.
Ankylosing spondylitis
Ankylosing spondylitis usually presents with
low back pain. Back pain is generally very
common. A history of morning stiffness or
pain and stiffness at night is typical. The
pain may radiate down the back of the thigh,
but not beyond the knee, which sometimes results
in a mistaken diagnosis of sciatica. There
may be a family history of the condition or
related disorders such as psoriasis or inflammatory
bowel disease. It is important that the diagnosis
is made at an early stage to allow treatment
to prevent loss of mobility of the spine.
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How
is low back pain diagnosed?
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Most cases of low
back pain are not severe and respond to simple treatment.
We can accurately diagnose and effectively treat most
types of low back pain. For many episodes of low back
pain no expensive tests are needed for initial assessment
and treatment. If your pain is severe and not responding
to treatment or if you have significant leg pain,
some imaging tests may be required.
Plain X-rays will show
arthritis and bone diseases, but will not show soft
tissues such as the lumbar discs or nerves. For conditions
or injuries that involve these soft tissues, Computerized
Tomography (CT) scan, or Magnetic Resonance Imaging
(MRI) may be needed. Occasionally, a bone scan will
be needed to assess bone activity and electrical test
-- Electromyography(EMG) may be needed to determine
if the spine condition has caused nerve or muscle
damage.
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| How
to prevent? |
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| What
is the best treatment? |
Mostly low back
pain, whether acute or chronic, can always be treated
without surgery. Homoeopathic Medicines do miracles,
in Arthritis and Cervical spondylitis, and in the
treatment of disc lesions also. It makes everybody
surprise and ask, " How it is possible?"
I do envy with some patients! Homoeopathic medicines
work wonderfully on soft tissue lesions
I
had gone through many cases with excellent results.
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