Back pain

• Back pain is a very common complaint.
• Approximately 80% of population will have low back pain at least once in their lifetime.

Causes

• Overuse/overstretch of ligaments and muscles on the back i.e. immediately after lifting heavy weight or after an awkward twist.
• Excessive wear and tear of spinal bones, its ligaments and disc prolapse
• Ageing, osteoporosis, increased body weight, poor posture contributes to excess wear and tear.

Symptoms

• Pain ranging from a dull ache to a stabbing or shooting sensation.
• The pain may make it hard to move or stand up straight.
• Acute back pain comes on suddenly, often after an injury from sports or heavy lifting.
• Pain that lasts more than three months is considered chronic.
• If your pain is not better within 72 hours, you should consult a doctor.

Types

Muscle Strain

The kind of back pain that follows heavy lifting or exercising too hard is often caused by muscle strain. Common reasons for muscle strain are

• Your Job.
  • If your job involves lifting, pulling, or anything that twists the spine, it may contribute to back pain.
  • However, sitting at a desk all day comes with risks of its own, especially if your chair is uncomfortable or you tend to slouch.

The stress from poor posture can lead to back pain by causing problems with your muscles, discs, and joints. Back pain caused by poor posture may have any of the following characteristics:

• Poor posture.
  • Back pain that is worse at certain times of the day
  • Pain that starts in your neck and moves down into your upper and lower back
  • Pain that subsides after switching positions while sitting or standing
  • Sudden back pain that coincides with a new job, a new office chair, or a new car

• Herniated disc.
  • The spine's vertebrae are cushioned by gel-like discs that are prone to wear and tear from aging or injuries.
  • A weakened disc may rupture or bulge, putting pressure on the spinal nerve roots. This is known as a herniated disc and can cause intense pain.
  • If a bulging or ruptured disc presses on the sciatic nerve, pain may run from the buttock down one leg. This is called sciatica.

Neck pain:

A sudden-onset (acute) bout of neck pain is common. In most cases it is not due to a serious disease or neck problem and often the exact cause for the pain is not clear. This is called 'nonspecific neck pain'. Most are probably due to minor sprains or bad posture.

Types and causes of neck pain

Nonspecific neck pain

This is the most common type. This is sometimes called 'simple' or 'mechanical' neck pain. Often the exact cause or origin of the pain is not known. It may include minor strains and sprains to muscles or ligaments in the neck. Bad posture may also be a contributing factor in some cases. For example, neck pain is more common in people who spend much of their working day at a desk, with a 'bent-forward' posture.

Wear and tear (degeneration)

Wear and tear of the spinal bones (vertebrae) and the discs between the vertebrae is a common cause or recurring or persistent neck pain in older people. This is sometimes called cervical spondylosis.

Cervical radiculopathy

When the root of a nerve is pressed on or damaged as it comes out from your spinal cord in your neck (cervical) region, the condition is known as cervical radiculopathy. As well as neck pain, there are symptoms such as loss of feeling (numbness), pins and needles, pain and weakness in parts of an arm supplied by the nerve. These other symptoms may actually be the main symptoms rather than neck pain.The common causes of a radiculopathy are cervical spondylosis and a prolapsed disc.

About us & low back & neck pain

An elaborate medical history on the and clinical examination will be done to identify the probable cause. Following this the patient will be advised on radiological investigations if necessary to rule out disc prolapse etc. Treatment options may range from medications & physical therapy to control pain to surgery for correction of disc prolapse.

Physical therapy

This will help to manage pain and improve your strength and flexibility.
They will also give advice on how you can prevent symptoms returning in the future.

• Pain control with modalities like IFT, Ultrasound, Waxbath etc
• Muscle strengthening
• Stretching of muscles
• Posture correction
• Ergonomic Advisory