Back Pain Causes

What’s Creating Your Back Pain?

By Jarrett Kruse

To get the proper treatment for back pain, it’s important to find out just what’s causing the pain. The proper treatment can result in significant back pain reduction, so the more you know your back pain causes, the greater the chances your back pain treatment will work. The level of back pain severity may determine whether you need medication and which kind is appropriate, but when dealing with back problems it’s preferable to find a long-term solution that you can sustain without continued use of drugs. It’s impossible to name all the causes of back pain, but there are several that are common to many people.

Among the most frequent causes of back pain are:

Muscle strain. This can be cause by physical activity, particularly repetitive stress. While exercise is generally useful in combating back pain, using the same muscles over and over without exercising the rest of the body can lead to tightness and muscle spasm. Without proper treatment, this pain can become chronic, leading to herniated discs, sciatica or other problems.

Injury or trauma. A car accident, sports injury, fall, or other sudden injury can disturb the alignment of the spine, wrench muscles, cause herniated discs, or otherwise affect the back negatively. Spinal trauma, such as a herniated disc, can also develop over time.

Congenital defects. Many people are born with irregularities of the spine, such as spondylolisthesis or scoliosis. Depending on the severity of the condition, the patient may not experience a problem until adulthood or mid-life. X-rays or MRIs can aid a doctor in uncovering these conditions and prescribing appropriate treatment.

Lack of movement. A sedentary job or being bedridden for a great amount of time can cause stiffness and back pain from underuse. A Lack of circulation and muscle atrophy are factors that contribute to back pain due to lack of motion.