An overview on back pain

Anybody can experience back pain. It may be due to an injury or age related or due to other medical related problems. Over 31 million Americans experience back pain. In fact, lower back pain is the principal disability cause across the world.

It is the main cause for missing work and the second most common cause to visit the doctor. Over 80% will experience some back problem in their lives.

Middle back pain

It describes discomfort, pain or distress felt anywhere in the region of the middle back. It also includes the part where the chest region of the spine (a.k.a. thoracic spine) connects to the rib cage. Middle back pain can be chronic/acute. The most common reason of this pain is due to strained back muscles from picking up heavy objects. It can also happen if you perform an action regularly that aggravates the muscle tissue damaging the small blood vessels, and thus causes middle back pain.

Middle back pain can be due to many because of injured discs. The discs act as a cushion to absorb shock and enable movement. Injury will result in the inner liquid coming out through the weak point and into the hard casing. This causes strain in the surrounding nerves, tissues and ligaments creating discomfort and pain in the middle back. Accidents and violent falls will lead to vertebral fracture and spine deterioration. Any movement will cause intense pain.

Brittle bones or osteoporosis occurs when new bone is not formed to replace the old bone. This disease makes the spine weak and open to pain, breaks, and strains. With age the human bones become susceptible to brittle bones and spinal stenosis where spinal canal narrows abnormally.

Infections are another cause like spondylitis, which causes inflammation in the spinal joints and middle back pain. Scoliosis which is the sideways curvature of the spine, is also the cause of a lot of pain as the tissues, nerves, ligaments and weight of the body gets disturbed. Other health issues such as diseases and tumors of the spine.

Lower back pain

Different symptoms are shown when it comes to lower back pain. They can be from mild to annoying or severe and debilitating. It can start suddenly, or slowly (coming and going) gradually getting worse.

The lower back pain can be classified into dull ache; stinging burning pain that moves from the back to the legs and feet, it causes numbness and tingling; muscle spasms and tightness in the pelvis, hips, and lower back. This pain worsens if you stand or sit for long hours. More difficulty arises when trying to stand straight, walking standing up straight, walking, and from standing to sitting position.

Mechanical and soft-tissue injuries are what generally causes lower back pain. Injuries could include improper movement of spinal joints, compression of nerve roots, and even as far as damage to the intervertebral discs. The commonest reason is a pulled or a torn muscle.

Low back strain/sprain/pain can happen unexpectedly, or could develop over time. Common causes of back pain include lifting heavy objects, twisting the back, sudden movements, and poor posture. But these do not last long but the pain could be severe. Such back pain also commonly occurs in the right side.

Chronic pain over three months can mean an irritated nerve root, joint issue and/or a disc problem. These can be due to many reasons which are:

• Lumbar herniated disc: This happens when the jelly-like midpoint of the lumbar disc breaks through the outer layer and irritates the nerve root. The wall of the disc has a rich supply of nerve fibers, a tear through which could cause severe pain.
• This degenerative disease of the disc happens when people age and the discs face wear and tear and lose hydration and cannot resist the force, which is transferred to the wall of the disc that develops tears and this causes back pain.
• Facet joint dysfunction, Sacroiliac joint dysfunction and Spinal stenosis are caused when the spinal canal narrows down where the nerves are located causing pain. 
• Spondylolisthesis is when one vertebra slips up on to the next one. There are various kinds of spondylolisthesis but the commonest is a fracture or a defect, and mechanical uncertainty of the joints. The pain is due to compressed nerves and instability.
• Osteoarthritis is the wear and tear of the facet joints and discs. It is a degenerative disease.
• Deformity or what is called the bend of the spine which breakdowns the facet joints, discs, stenosis or sacroiliac joints.
• Trauma can be fractures or dislocations in the spine. This usually happens in a fall or car accident. 
• A fracture takes place in the cylindrical vertebra, where the bone caves in causing pain. These fractures happen because of weak bones or osteoporosis, it is common in older generation. Presence of these conditions does not mean it will cause pain. This disease appears on the image study but may not result in pain.