The development of back pain

Every person has either experienced or will experience at some point in his or her life the trouble of back pain. Almost every person is affected by it at least once during his or her life. Almost every person already knows that lower back pain can be either acute or chronic.

General information about lower back pain

People should know that lower back pain is a musculoskeletal disorder that involves the lumbar vertebrae and associated soft tissue structures. These soft tissue structures are muscles, ligaments, nerves and the intervertebral discs. A person who experiences lower back pain that lasts from a couple of days up to three weeks and then goes away, is suffering from acute lower back pain. In cases of chronic lower back pain, the pain lasts for more than three months. It is important that people treat this problem because it is known to become even more severe if it is not. Both men and women are equally hit by this disorder. Some of the most common signs of lower back pain are stabbing muscle pain, restricted flexibility, inability to stand straight and in some cases numbness in legs.

Causes of lower back pain

It is not uncommon for a person to experience lower back pain due to a simple injury. On the other hand, a severe nerve root syndrome can also be the cause of the pain. However, apart from these two causes there are some others that occur more often.

Out of all the causes, the most common one is muscle strain. A stressful injury to the lower back region that occurs all of a sudden is known to lead to muscle strain.

Age and other causes

Age plays a role in the occurrence of lower back pain due to age-related degeneration which causes the bone’s strength and muscle’s elasticity to reduce. Muscle weakening and lack of calcium in the system are the two most common causes of lower back pain in women. Lower back pain is also known to occur due to a herniated disc or a ruptured intervertebral disc. Spinal stenosis, cauda equine syndrome and scoliosis are also some of the common causes of lower back pain. Lower back pain may occur in people who are obese, smoke, suffer from osteoarthritis or have wrong sleeping postures.

Proper diagnosis of lower back pain

People need to know that a proper diagnosis is essential with this problem. Without it a person cannot use a proper treatment plan to get rid of the problem.