Low Back Pain
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If you suffer from acute low back pain, you know just how debilitating such pain can be.
Lower back pain can vary from a dull ache which develops over time, to a sharp, persistent pain. Most everyone will experience lower back pain at some point in their lifetime. In many cases, the pain can travel downward into the buttock area, or even lower, into the top of the legs. Causes of low back pain include:
- Torn muscles
- Trauma (bulging or herniated disc, fracture, etc)
- Compression fracture
- Pulled muscles
- Lower back strain or sprain
- Lumbar herniated disc
- Degenerative Disc Disease
- Facet joint dysfunction
- Sacroiliac joint dysfunction
- Spinal stenosis (narrowing of the spinal canal)
- Lumbar Spinal Stenosis
- Spondylolisthesis
- Sciatica
- Osteoarthritis
- Curvature of the spine—scoliosis or kyphosis
- Infection
- Autoimmune diseases such as fibromyalgia, lupus, rheumatoid arthritis
Symptoms of Low Back Pain
If you are experiencing low back pain, you may have one or more of the following symptoms:
- A dull, aching pain in the lower back accompanied by moderate to severe muscle spasms, as well as limited mobility
- Immediate pain in the lower back following a back injury
- Low back pain that worsens over time
- Low back pain that comes and goes
- Low back pain that is worse when you first wake up, and improves after you move around a bit
- Sharp or stinging pain in the lower back, or a numb or tingling sensation, usually only on one side of the body, which moves down the thighs and into the lower legs and feet
- Lower back pain that improves when you change positions
- Lower back pain that worsens the longer you sit
If you have fever and chills, recent weight loss not due to lifestyle changes, loss of bladder and bowel control, or severe unrelenting pain in the abdomen along with your low back pain, seek immediate medical attention.
Diagnosing the Cause of Low Back Pain
Your detailed description of your low back pain symptoms and medical history is necessary for an accurate diagnosis. Your activity level, sleep habits, posture, age, gender, and whether you have suffered any recent injuries are all important. A range of motion test, leg raise test, reflex test and diagnostic imaging tests are all tools used to diagnose the cause of your low back pain. Your doctor may order x-rays, MRI scans, or nerve conduction studies as well.
Treatments for Your Low Back Pain
Whenever possible, the pain management specialists at Seattle Pain want to help you avoid surgery. We do this by personally evaluating your low back pain and then combining traditional and non-traditional treatments into a comprehensive pain management program that is designed just for you. One or more of the following treatments may be advised by Seattle Pain to minimize your low back pain:
- Corticosteroid injections
- NSAIDs, muscle relaxants and/or membrane-stabilizing medications
- Medial branch blocks
- Spinal cord stimulation
- Peripheral nerve stimulation
- Disc denervation
- Trigger point injections
Is your low back pain causing you to miss out on life?
Contact Our Seattle Interventional Pain Management Specialists
We understand that low back pain can completely derail your life. At Seattle Pain, our primary goal is to relieve your pain and improve your quality of life. We believe in treating the whole patient – and not just the injury. You do not have to live in pain.
