Almost everyone suffered from severe back pain at least once. When it comes to popular ailments – only a cold attacks us more often. Why is the cross sorrowful? Where does the stiff neck and pain between the shoulder blades come from? How can you prevent similar symptoms in advance and what to do when they do occur?
There is no clear answer to the question why my back hurts – almost every case could be considered individually. There are many reasons for this – from a passive, sedentary lifestyle, through old age and wear and tear of the joints of the spine, to discopathy or genetic diseases. Sometimes the pain results from ailments that we have little control over, but often the reason is our neglect or laziness. An initial diagnosis can also be made with regard to the location of the pain:
Pain in the neck and back of the neck most often it is caused by staying in one, uncomfortable position for a long time – it suffers from drivers after longer journeys, people working in the office or computer users who do not pay attention to maintaining the correct posture and the right amount of movement. Neck pain also affects people who perform uncomfortable work, such as hanging curtains or washing windows with a stool that is too low, during which the neck is unnaturally stretched and turned. It also happens to athletes exposed to microtrauma and overload. Degeneration of the cervical spine is also one of the likely causes of neck and neck pain. How can it be prevented? The priority is to change bad habits – more frequent changes of position and rest from sitting work and a properly adjusted chair for people who spend a lot of time in front of the computer are the basic actions that should be taken. Once the pain is there, it can be dealt with with a good, warming neck massage or a relaxing back swim. It also doesn’t hurt to rest on a medium-hard mattress.
One-sided acute pain in the neck it is most often the result of the so-called “Churning” occurs when a given cervical segment becomes cold or overloaded. It happens that it appears after waking up, which is the result of an uncomfortable position during sleep. It is associated with the forced tilt of the head to one side to avoid pain. In this way, degeneration of the cervical spine also manifests itself – a disease associated with old age and degeneration of the body, as well as torticollis – usually a congenital ailment most often affecting infants and young children. If not recognized early enough, it can lead to muscle weakness and an unnatural head position, as well as impaired hearing and facial asymmetry.
If it is not the result of a disease, the pain can be relieved by warming up the neck and resting, certainly do not try to straighten the head “forcibly”! In the event of a disease, the help of a physiotherapist will be required, in extreme cases it may be necessary to use an orthopedic corset.
Pain in the shoulder blade or shoulder most often it is the result of overload – for example, it concerns people overworking in the garden. It can also be caused by degenerative changes in the spine, arthritis or arthritis. Shoulder pain is sometimes complained of in diabetes mellitus, it is also associated with life-threatening tumors of the apex of the lung and heart attack. If the pain is extremely troublesome or chronic, consultation with an internist may be necessary. Massage and appropriate sports, including swimming, are effective for shoulder and shoulder pain.
Pains between the shoulder blades they are most often associated with posture defects – mainly lordosis, skiphosis and scoliosis. Spine defects are most often congenital, although they can also be caused by puberty (rapid, intensive growth). They often become permanent over the years as a result of bad habits – wearing the wrong schoolbag, adopting the wrong posture or lack of exercise. Sometimes the result of perpetuating the defect is also an inappropriately selected activity, e.g. sport involving only one hand.
The development of the defect can be remedied by appropriate corrective gymnastics and careful observation of changes. In more serious cases, an orthopedic corset or even surgery may be necessary. Postural defects should not be underestimated, apart from deformation of the body, they can cause pressure on internal organs, which poses a threat to health and life!
Back pain above or on the sides of the cross – if this pain is accompanied by abdominal pain and / or discomfort (burning) when urinating, it may be due to a kidney disease. It is likely related to inflammation or nephrolithiasis – a urologist should be consulted in any case.
Back pain is a common domain of young mothers who bend down and lift a lot. It also applies to women who wear high heels – the posture unnatural for the body forces additional overload of the spine. Pain, commonly known as radiculitis, may accompany a cold – in fact, it may be lesions of the nerve roots and the spine itself. Sometimes it occurs in the case of diabetes mellitus and herpes zoster, and even cancer metastases to the spine. If low back pain occurs during a woman’s discomfort, it may be related to some gynecological problem, e.g. inflammation of the ovaries. The safest thing to do is go to the gynecologist with the problem.
An effective method of fighting back pain is a hot bath with the addition of a small amount of rosemary oil. In the case of disease stages, it is often necessary to immobilize the patient and external drugs in the form of injections. Back pain can be avoided by proper bending – on bent legs, in a crouch, instead of reaching the ground from an upright position – then the spine is significantly relieved and prevented from straining it.
Pain below the waist, radiating down the hip and down the leg – the so-called sciatica. Pain arises when the nucleus pulposus (the structure that is part of the intervertebral cartilage) compresses the sciatic nerve, which is the longest nerve in the human body. It is a combination of several spinal roots that exit at the base of the spine. It is its length that causes such a large area of pain.
Sciatica is diagnosed by a neurologist. For people suffering from it, there is a special set of corrective exercises and exercises to strengthen the paraspinal muscles, often under the supervision of a physiotherapist. In addition, massages and physiotherapy treatments are recommended – special baths, heating and ultrasounds.
In addition to the above-mentioned causes of back pain, there are also some occurrences in every section of the spine discopathies – diseases of the intervertebral disc, the so-called disc. Sometimes the disc is said to “fall out”, meaning the disc moves and compresses more nerves, causing back pain radiating down to the extremities. It manifests itself in sudden, sharp pain when carrying out work that strains the spine, such as weeding. The patient will need medical help, then pharmacological treatment and warm compresses are applied.
Other reasons why our backs hurt may be obesity, old age (intervertebral joints “wear out”), previous spine injuries (in a traffic accident or as a result of a rollover). Back pain can also have genetic background. Sometimes back pain is only a signal for diseases completely unrelated to the spine, which should always be consulted with the appropriate doctor.
The most important thing is to limit the possibility of exposure to pain as much as possible – do not lift, change positions frequently while sitting, do not lean on straightened legs and take care of the correct posture from an early age.
Tekst: Adriana Hurry
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