A person can be considered healthy until one day he feels pain in his back. Almost all diseases make themselves felt, radiating to this area.
Also, such sensations do not allow you to live and work at the same pace. What can indicate back pain and what is its nature?
Causes of back pain
A lot depends on what kind of lifestyle a person leads. Even an excessive addiction to fatty foods can cause back pain. But the main causes of back pain are:
- spinal ailments;
- diseases of the genitourinary system;
- natural aging;
- too high loads;
- the pregnancy.
lumbar functions
The vertebrae located in the lumbar region have the most massive structure. They are strong and big.
This is due to the fact that most of the load falls here. The lower back assumes a very important function: the upright posture.
In addition to body weight, other loads are placed on the lumbar spine. Athletes lift heavy weights, women try to fetch huge bags from the market.
The intervertebral discs provide cushioning, but without proper care, the spine begins to change. This creates severe pain.
After sleeping, the intervertebral discs are saturated with fluid again and are ready to work. But if lower back pain becomes constant companions, you should immediately see a doctor.
With severe pathologies, even during sleep, the vertebrae do not diverge, and access to nutrients is impossible.
spinal diseases
If the lower back hurts for no apparent reason, then most likely the reason is a disease of the spine. In the first place is osteochondrosis.
It develops against the background of general exhaustion caused by malnutrition, obesity, muscular corset dystrophy.
Excess weight adds a load to the spine, the vertebrae begin to press against each other more strongly. The intervertebral discs collapse under pressure and do not rupture enough to fill with fluid.
Also, if a person does not eat properly, then the metabolism is disturbed, and, accordingly, the nutrition of the intervertebral discs is disturbed.
Muscular dystrophy can develop due to constant stress, heavy loads and a sedentary lifestyle. The development mechanism is very simple.
- The muscles get too stressed. Due to lack of preparation, they freeze and accumulate lactic acid in themselves.
- Without proper relaxation (for example, a massage), the muscles cannot contract. Being in constant tension, it does not allow blood to flow properly to it.
- Without getting the necessary amount of nutrients, the muscles simply break down.
After that, the spine is involved in the process. Bones alone cannot support the weight of a person. Ligaments and muscles help them.
But, when the muscles are absent, all the weight falls on the vertebrae. Under pressure, the intervertebral disc protrudes into the holes and can compress the nerve processes.
With lumbar osteochondrosis, the patient feels pain in the lower back, radiating to the leg. Very often, the sciatic nerve is damaged, and each step responds with an electric shock.
If you do not treat such a disease, you can completely lose sensitivity in the lower extremities. The same condition is observed with displacement of the vertebrae, lordosis, scoliosis, etc.
The main difference between spinal injuries is increased pain after movement, as well as a feeling of relief after rest and sleep. Slightly alleviating the condition helps to "stretch" the spine. It should be done before sleeping.
Diseases of the genitourinary system
Pain in the lower back can appear with diseases of the ovaries in women, kidneys. In this case, the symptoms may appear after hypothermia.
With inflammation of the ovaries, a woman experiences sensations similar to menstrual syndrome. The pain in the lower back becomes a permanent and tight character.
If the lower back hurts a lot, like a knife, piercing, to the left or right of the spine, this indicates an inflammation of the kidneys.
In this case, pyelonephritis or glomerulonephritis is possible. The doctor prescribes tests, conducts an examination. If kidney stones are found, they are removed with a laser.
natural aging
People over the age of 30 present with complaints of back pain. It may be pain from wear and tear on the vertebrae. The rate of aging of the spine is related to a person's lifestyle.
If you did not overdo it in the gym, but played sports, then the pain will become chronic very soon.
The vertebral section makes itself felt first, as it bears the greatest load. Many scientists argue that lower back pain is our retribution for the ability to keep our backs straight.
Without proper prevention, under the weight of the body, the intervertebral discs are destroyed, the vertebrae shift and twist.
loads too high
There is an opinion that it is simply necessary to go to the gym once a week and exhaust yourself in order to look good and be healthy.
But for any load you need to prepare. Before training, you need to do a warm-up, full stretching exercises.
And increase the amount of exercise gradually. Thus, it will be much more effective to do daily exercises.
With sudden loads, for example, in weightlifters, gymnasts, there is a high probability of sprain, disc protrusion, etc.
The pregnancy
Low back pain during pregnancy is almost a physiological condition. With the growth of the fetus, they can become stronger, numbness appears in the limbs after sleep. This is due to sudden weight gain.
Now the spinal column needs to contain not only the mass of the mother, but also the fetus, which grows in a large amount of water.
Pregnant women often complain that their lower back hurts in the morning. You can prevent this by sleeping on an orthopedic mattress and pillow. And during the day, a special bandage will help relieve the load, which unloads the lower back.
As a rule, such back pain disappears after childbirth. If they persist for a month, you should see a doctor.
Diagnosis of low back pain
This type of pain is not difficult to diagnose. It is enough for the doctor to listen to the patient's description of the pain, to find out whether it appears after sleep, has an increasing or constant character, whether there is an electric shock syndrome. And after that, the doctor can identify the possible root cause of the pain.
The basis of any treatment is gymnastics, which helps to strengthen the muscles, and massage, to relax them.