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DESCRIPTION:
Most back pain occurs in the lower back area called the lumbosacral region, which is the site of the lumosacral, the sacroiliac and the iliolumbar ligaments. It is often caused by overuse and muscle or ligament strain or injury. Acute, or short-term low back pain usually lasts less than four to six weeks, and is the most common form. Chronic, or ongoing low back pain usually lasts more than three months. Low back pain usually begins to affect people in their 20s, and becomes increasingly common until individuals reach the age of 65, after which time it occurs less frequently. About two thirds of adults have low back pain at some point in their lives.
How does lower back pain develop?
Low back pain is usually intially experienced after lifting a heavy object, moving in a sudden, abrupt manner, sitting in a particular position for a long period of time or suffering an injury such as a fall or a car accident. However, the structures in the back may have been weak or injured before this initial experience of pain.
The sources of low back pain are quite varied, including small fractures to the spine from osteoporosis, muscle spasms, a ruptured or herniated disc, degeneration of the discs, poor alignment of the vertebrae, spinal stenosis, scoliosis and strain or tears to the muscles or ligaments. In fact, unresolved low back pain is often due to injury to the sacroiliac ligaments. Injury typically occurs from bending over and twisting with the knees in a locked, extended position. This stretches the sacroiliac ligaments and makes them vulnerable. In addition, some people are born with loose ligaments, making them more prone to ligament problems. High estrogen levels have been correlated with an increased prevalence of chronic low back pain. Finally, low back pain may be due to referred pain, which occurs when a ligament injury or weakness in one part of the body causes pain in another part.
What are the symptoms of lower back pain?
Symptoms of lower back pain include a tingling or burning sensation, a dull aching or a sharp pain. Weakness in the legs or feet may also be experienced. Pain felt in the lower back may come from the spine, muscles, nerves or other structures in that region of the back. It may also radiate from other areas like the mid or upper back, a hernia in the groin or a problem in the testicles or ovaries. It usually isn’t a single event that results in the pain, but rather something that one has been doing for quite a while, such as standing, sitting or lifting improperly. Then, suddenly, a single movement such as reaching for something or bending from the waist will lead to pain.
Conventional medical treatments may help relieve the symptoms of lower back pain, but they do not address the root of the problem. By strengthening structural weaknesses in the body, as natural medicine treatments like Prolotherapy do, lower back pain may be alleviated permanently.
Discover why we believe that natural medicine treatments are the best way to treat lower back pain.
Click here to read Prolotherapy research by Dr. Ross Hauser and his team on Prolotherapy injections for low back pain.
Click here to read one of our published case reports on a long-distance runner who was helped at Caring Medical with Prolotherapy injections for low back and ischial tuberosity pain.
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