The medical term for back pain is back pain. As the name suggests, this is localized pain in the spine region that may come from trauma or structural changes in the spine’s muscles, bones, nerves, joints, or other spine structures.
Back pain may also be related to postural problems, where bad habits contribute to developing sore pains to different degrees.
Different from what many people believe, back pain can occur at various stages of life, although it is more common in adults, the elderly, and pregnant women.
The Leading Causes Of Back Pain
Back pain is a health condition usually multifactorial; it can have one or more causes. We will now show you what the leading causes are :
- Inappropriate posture;
- Traumas;
- Structural changes;
- Pre-existing degenerative conditions;
- Infections;
- Metabolic changes.
Usually, what causes back pain comes from the muscles, joints, nerves, bones, or other structures close to the thoracic spine. The causes can be:
Inappropriate Posture
Inappropriate posture is among the leading causes of back pain. Postural errors such as sitting inappropriately or arching the head when walking are classic situations that can trigger discomfort.
Traumas
Traumas such as muscle strains, fractures, or blows to the dorsal region are responsible for bringing the pain in the spine to the most varied levels.
Structural Changes
Spine pain can also arise due to abnormalities or structural changes in the spine. In this case, Scheuermann’s disease – which causes kyphosis and post-traumatic conditions, such as sequelae of fractures – is caused by a deformity in the spine’s structure, causing instability.
Pre-existing Degenerative Conditions
Spondylitis, rheumatoid arthritis, arthrosis, and herniated discs are among the most common pre-existing degenerative conditions when we talk about back pain.
In addition, it is essential to remember that the biochemical and biomechanical changes resulting from the aging process also have a degenerative nature capable of causing pain.
Infections
Fungi or bacteria can cause spinal infections. The most common conditions involve osteomyelitis, bone inflammation, and herpes zoster infection.
These paintings deserve attention and need care since they can affect the bones, discs, and even the spine’s nerves, causing much pain and discomfort.
Metabolic Changes
And finally, we have metabolic changes as the cause of back pain. Among the main ones, osteoporosis can cause misalignment and painful fractures by decreasing bone mass.
Symptoms Are Specific
Spine pain itself is already a sign that something is wrong. But usually, this condition can be accompanied by some other specific symptoms such as:
- Stitches;
- Burning sensation in the spine;
- Difficulties breathing.
Something important to highlight is that in these cases, the joint symptoms often may not come from back pain but rather be manifesting jointly.
Types And Classification Of Back Pain
The length of the pain differentiates the types of back pain. So in all, there are three types. Let’s go to them.
Acute Back Pain
Acute back pain is characterized by symptoms lasting less than six weeks. Recovery and disappearance of discomfort occur within a month.
Subacute Spinal Pain
This type has a duration of symptoms that varies between 6 and 12 weeks and usually presents improvements within up to 3 months.
Chronic Back Pain
Also known as persistent back pain, this type lasts longer than 12 weeks, and the tendency to disappear is problematic. The causes need to be studied by a specialist and diagnosed adequately so that assertive treatment can begin.
Preventing Back Pain
Having back pain is not good, but the good news is that there are ways to prevent the problem from manifesting itself. We separate some practical ways to avoid them.
Keep A Healthy Weight
Maintaining a healthy weight is critical to avoiding back pain. When there is overweight, the spine region can be demanded too much and cause pain and discomfort. This is an essential tip.
Strengthen The Musculature
Performing physical activity is something significant for health as a whole. Strength and stretching exercises naturally strengthen the musculature, avoiding direct overload on the spine, which helps to prevent or relieve pain and discomfort.
Bodybuilding, yoga, pilates, swimming, walking, and stretching are great options.
Be Careful When You Sit
For those who need to remain seated for a long time, the ideal is to find a way that does not harm the spine and that the posture remains adequate.
The idea is to sit with your spine at a 90-degree angle with straight knees. After periods of sitting, the ideal is to get up, walk around and stretch.
Pay Attention To Your Mattress
The way you sleep can cause or prevent back pain from the mattress. Over time it will lose firmness so that one side can be higher than the other.
This can make your spine crooked at night and cause daily pain. So keeping an eye out for the mattress is also a way to prevent spinal pain.
Correct The Posture
And finally, we have to pay attention to posture to prevent back pain.
Avoid carrying bags or backpacks with a lot of weight; picking up fallen objects on the floor by crouching down instead of bending your entire spine is the primary way to take care of your posture and prevent back pain.
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