 Low
back pain? You're not alone! It's been estimated that 85% of us will
suffer a bout of debilitating low back pain at some point in our
lives. In fact low back pain is responsible for a mind-blowing
25-billion dollars in health care costs each year!
Low back pain is the leading cause of disability in
people under 45. And because there are so many potential factors
involved in low back pain, most of the time the precise cause is difficult to diagnose. Fortunately, 90% of low back pain cases resolve themselves within a month.
But what causes back pain in the first place?
Let's take a look at some of most common culprits.
1) Muscle strains, ligament sprains or overuse/injury to the facet joints or the sacroiliac joints. These are common when we:
- overdo our workouts
- or use poor body mechanics to lift or move objects (or small people ;-).
2) Spinal nerve root compression which can be caused by many things, including:
- Herniated discs: this is when an
intervertebral disk is damaged so that some (or all of the soft,
gelatinous inside of the disc) pushes out into the fibrous outside
layer, resulting in the irritation of a nerve.
- Osteoarthritis: also known as degenerative
joint disease (DJD), is caused by the gradual loss of cartilage in the
joint and the development of bony spurs and cysts at the margins of the
joint.
- Spondylolysis or spondylolisthesis: In
spondylolysis there is a stress fracture of a bony structure in the
lumbar spine known as the pars interarticularis. When that stress
fracture results in a sizable gap which allows on vertebrae to slip
forward and away from the one beneath it, it is called
spondylolisthesis.
- Stenosis: a condition where the spinal canal
narrows, compressing the spinal cord and nerves. This narrowing can be
caused by: age-related spinal degeneration, disc herniation,
osteoporosis or a tumor.
- Spinal fractures: such as burst fractures or
fracture-dislocations, which typically happen from trauma such as falls
from heights or car accidents.
- Compression fractures from osteoporosis: this
is when osteoporosis literally causes the boney tissues in the
vertebrae to collapse. For a person with osteoporosis this can happen
just from something as mundane as sneezing!! It usually occurs in the
thoracic or lumbar spine and can cause nerve root compression resulting
in numbness, tingling or weakness.
While lower back pain is very prevalent, there are
many things you can do to protect the health of your spine, principally
learning how to move smarter -- and strengthening the
musculature which supports our spine.
Geralyn Coopersmith, MA, CSCS is the author of
Fit and Female: The Perfect Fitness and Nutrition Game Plan for Your
Unique Body Type and the creator of The Best Me Ever -- A Complete Weight Loss, Fat-Burning and Muscle Sculpting System
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