Dr. Scholls's.com
Lower back Pain
Common causes of lower back pain include sprains and strains, osteoarthritis, osteoporosis, a ruptured or herniated disk, fibromyalgia, and, in older people, spinal stenosis.
If you experience lower back pain, and you don’t remember doing anything to injure it, the source of your pain could be your feet. If foot pain has been bothering you for some time, it could be causing problems in your ankles, knees, hips and even your back. When foot pain or a foot deformity causes you to instinctively change the way you walk, it changes the way the bones of all your other joints move together. Changing your gait changes the mechanics of your ankle joint, eventually causing ankle pain. This change in your walking pattern can also affect your knees, hips, and then the lower back.
Symptoms
Low back pain may present itself in different ways depending on the cause and type of pain. It may be intermittent or constant, superficial or deep, dull and aching, throbbing, or sharp and stabbing and it may interfere with sleep.
Doctors base the diagnosis on symptoms, physical examination, and they sometimes need x-rays or other imaging tests.
Treatment
The treatment relies on the exact cause of the low back pain. Furthermore, the evaluation and management will depend on the underlying background health status and the activity level of the person. Avoiding activities that stress the back, taking pain relievers, and applying ice or heat are often all that is needed to relieve most low back pain.
Prevention
Exercising regularly is the most effective way to prevent low back pain. Aerobic exercise and specific muscle-strengthening and stretching exercises can help. Low-impact activities like swimming, walking, and bicycling can increase overall fitness without straining the low back.
(See also arch pain)
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