More than 80% of us Dopers will experience upper and/or lower back pain at some point in our lives. Although most cases will prove to be self-limiting, a significant percentage of people will go on to develop chronic back pain (lasting longer than 12 weeks). Not only is chronic back pain potentially devastating to the individual (e.g. major depression), it has a significant negative impact on society (e.g… lost work, disability, medical costs). There are quite a few causes of back pain and even more treatment plans.
Question: If you have suffered with chronic back pain and are now improved, which medical specialist (s) and treatment modalities do you credit with giving you the most benefit? Any that you consider to have been deleterious to your condition?
If you care to share more, consider using the template below. (I’ve given input examples):
Symptoms: Intermittent sharp pain radiating from cervical spine to left elbow/ aching pain inferior scapula
Duration of symptoms: ~one year.
Diagnosis (by qualified professional): Cervical radiculopathy/ disc degeneration-protrusion C-5, C-6
Treating/consulting medical professionals: Internist, neurologist, physical therapist, orthopedic surgeon.
Treatment modalities: NSAID (e.g. Motrin), iontophoresis, ultrasound, strength, stretching and ROM exercises, cervical traction.
Surgery: No, but may be indicated in the future.
Present status: ~25% symptom improvement/ plateau /may have reached maximum improvement without more invasive treatment.
Note: Any information gleaned from this thread should serve only as a rough guide to illustrate various chronic back pain diagnoses and treatment plans. All evidence should be considered purely anecdotal. If in doubt, seek advice from a qualified medical professional.
First, I stopped pooping in my pants long before I would have earned the right to put “Dr.” in front of my name.
Symptoms: Intermittent sharp pain on the right side of my back, about a hand’s width from my spine and at about “elbow height” vertically.
Duration of symptoms: Six to ten years.
Diagnosis (by qualified professional): Gallstones and nearly full gall bladder.
Treating/consulting medical professionals: Internist, surgeon.
Treatment modalities: Pain killers, ultrasound to confirm gall bladder full-up-ness, surgery.
Surgery: Ayup.
Present status: 95% symptom improvement. Some phantom pain still appears (may be related to the body adjusting bile production).
Blew it off as part of my scoliosis problems for years, not knowing it was a GB symptom (even when what I knew was my GB was caused me pain during the longest of my pregnancies). Massage yielded no relief (thought it helped on many more of my sporadic back aches associated with scoliosis).
Gall bladder was suspected and confirmed when a mostly-routine liver-function blood test came up indicating trouble - ultrasound confirmed my gall bladder was just pretty full and should come out (and left me in pain for several weeks with the pushing on all the tender areas until I could have surgery).
I can have chronic pain due to scoliosis if I don’t watch what I’m doing. To prevent this, I generally ensure that I keep my shoe lift (to balance out the imbalanced caused by my bone structure problem) in functional new condition (replace as it gets compressed), don’t spend a lot of time in variously-heighted-heeled shoes (I generally find a shoe I like and buy a pair in every available color) and when pregnant wear shoes as much as possible during the day (when I’m just me and not gaining weight and volume, I can spend most ‘home’ time girlfoot).
Symptoms: Dull ache sometimes radiating down left buttock. Sometimes bad enough to interfere with sleeping comfortably when it flares up, then stiffness and pain with bending too. Have not had a bad episode (bad enough to interfere with walking like a normal person and wiping my butt) since 2001 when I got the MRI.
Duration of symptoms: >5 years
Diagnosis (by qualified professional): MRI revealed herniated disc (L4?5?) in 2001. Ex was a radiologist.
Treating/consulting medical professionals: Have never gone to a doctor for this unless you count the radiologist ex. (Which thankfully, I no longer do.)
Treatment modalities: Motrin once in a great while, Vicodin rarely (to sleep). Most effective: stretching/yoga/swimming, walking, sex, staying physically active. Sometimes deep tissue massage.
Surgery: Shit, I hope never. Hospitals scare me.
Present status: Chronic low grade discomfort, not really a big deal.
What makes it worse: Spending too much time sitting around on my ass, standing for long periods of time.
Big believer in staying physically active, for general wellbeing as well as back. Also because it feels good.
48/f
Why d’you ask? Now that I’ve shared all the gory details…
Symptoms: Burning pain between shoulder blades, with aches in lower back.
Duration of symptoms: More than three years.
Diagnosis (by qualified professional): Whiplash (for what it’s worth.)
Treating/consulting medical professionals: Neurologist, physical therapist, chiropractor, massage therapist
Treatment modalities: NSAID (Mobic) pain meds (Tramadol/Ultracet) muscle relaxants, massage therapy, electro stim, excersizes, Lidocaine injections
Surgery: No-- wouldn’t help.
Present status: Stuck where I am, it appears.
The only thing that has provided real relief to me over a long-term basis are Lidoderm patches. You can wear them for up to twelve hours, and they release a steady stream of Lidocaine (the same numbing stuff they use at the dentist) into your body. It doesn’t numb the area-- it just seems to really help with muscle pain. Nor does it completely ease my discomfort, but it “takes the edge off.”
Symptoms: Sharp neck pain after auto accident
Duration of symptoms: 2 months
Diagnosis (by qualified professional): Spinal fracture
Treating/consulting medical professionals: Hospital ER, orthopedic MD
Treatment modalities: Neck brace, rest, Really Good Painkillers – so good I don’t remember what they were.
Surgery: Not indicated
Present status: Healed
Second instance
Symptoms: Sciatica, lower back pain
Duration of symptoms: Years and years and years
Diagnosis (by qualified professional): spinal arthritis
Treating/consulting medical professionals: Orthopedic doctors
Treatment modalities: Physical therapy, anti-inflammatory drugs, exercises, weight loss. Glucosamine Chondroitin.
Surgery: Not indicated
Present status: Not bad at all today. Still gets bad if I sit, stand, walk, or lie down in one position for more than 20 minutes or so.
Symptoms: Sciatica; pain in left ass cheek, left leg, left foot. Lower back discomfort, but mostly the searing pain in the sciatic nerve.
Duration of symptoms: 7 months
Diagnosis (by qualified professional): Orthopedic, back specialist, MRI; herniated disks, c-4, c-5, s-1
Treating/consulting medical professionals: chiropractor first, then physical therapy, followed by a different chiropractor (who helped the most).
Treatment modalities: cataflam (anti-inflamatory), ibuprofen. Excercise and muscle strengthening routines.
Surgery: none
Present status: 98% cured. occasional stiffness in the lower back which I have been able to defuse with a certain type of stretch that I do. It’s a varaition of what the last chiropractor did that got me on the pain-free path.
Play full court basketball and any activity that pretty much any one else can do. In 2001 I had a hard time putting socks on.
L4, L5 and S1, most likely.
You seem determined to include your neck with your lower back.
It’s a common, though often illusive and difficult to successfully treat ailment. Affected Dopers (including me: C5, C6) may be interested to learn from case studies similar to their own. It may allow some to consider avenues of treatment they have considered before.
I have a self cure that myself and two other people have had success with.
It has to do with stretching in a way as to increase the spacing between the vertebrae and relaxing the pressure on the disks.
It’s hard to describe, but it involves hanging (from your hands) in a way that your feet are completely off the ground (like from the rafter in the garage) and letting the weight of your legs pull on the lower back and open up the spacing.
For me, it works great. You need a little upper body strength and discipline in order to hang for a minute or two while your muscles relax enough for the stretch to be effective.
I can give you more info if you’re interested.
Duration of symptoms:Seven years
Diagnosis (by qualified professional): Cervical radiculopathy. C4-5 focal protruding/extruded disc. C5-6 spondylotic changes and focal protruding/extruded disc intenting thecal sac and touching cord. C6-7 rather large focal extruded disc, extruded disc material, effacement of ipsilateral recess. C7-T1 unremarkable
Treating/consulting medical professionals: Neurosurgeon, Physical Therapist, Acupuncturist, Chiropractor
Treatment modalities: Darvocet and Flexeril, Rest, restriced duties at work, physical therapy. Deep tissue massage and chiropractic have been more effective than meds.
Surgery: Risks outweigh expected benefits, so not recommended.
Present status: Nearly constant ache.
Stretching from the arms would not apply traction to the vertebrae at my level of pathology (C-5, C-6-neck), but thank you for the offer. (I do use an at home cervical traction device that offers minimal relief). Dopers with lower back pain secondary to disk protrusion or vertebral compression may be interested in your technique, however. They should discuss it with their physicians first, of course.
Well, I’ve tried hanging from monkey-bars at a playground, silly as that seems. But it doesn’t seem to do much to stretch the lower back…I’d still be interested to hear your technique Uncommon Sense.
Those inversion table thingies look like they would do…something that felt good.
I’ve had problems with my shoulder off and on for the past 10 years. Usually it’s been the sub-scapular muscle plus secondary effects. Each time an osteopath has sorted me out within a month. I’ve been fine for over two years, but I still have to be very careful.
You have to hang in a manner in which your entire body is straight, off the ground and relaxed. You may need to use a short ladder to grab such an object to hang from since it will, naturally, be taller than you can reach. Also, you want to be able to get down gingerly after the stretch, you don’t want to fall or jump down.
What I do;
Set up a ladder near a rafter in the garage (about 9’ off the ground). I position myself so that when I grab the rafter and start to hang that my feet and legs are clear of the ladder (but still close enough to get back on when I’m done).
Hang, making every effort to relax as much of my body as possible (I concentrate on the grasp of the rafter and nothing else). Legs, stomach, feet, shoulders, all are relaxed. Just my forearms/hands are doing any work right now.
You can actually feel your body stretch out and feel yourself getting ‘taller/longer’.
After I don’t notice any more stretching (about 20-30 seconds), I begin to slowly rock my hips side to side, (do not raise your legs, just try to gently rock your hips leaving your legs relaxed), this usually causes a crack or two, or a snap. That crack or snap is what I need to make myself feel better. This takes a total of about 60 seconds. Sometimes I’ll hang longer just to get a little extra in.
If you feel any discomfort in your shoulders (like they may seperate) STOP. I’ve had my left shoulder dislocated several times but never had any problems with the shoulder from doing this excersise.
When I first started doing this I was really tight and I used leg weights (five pounds per leg) to aid in the stretching. I wouldn’t recommend that unless you are in pretty good shape.
After that little routine I’m good to go for about a week or two. If I sense any sciatic pain or tightness in the back I go and hang and it completely reduces the pressure in the back.
I believe what happens during this excersise is similar to traction with a little rotation (the chiro did something similar but not as aggressive) and opens the spacing between the disks, relieving the pressure on the nerves.
Be careful if you try this yourself. I wish you the best.
Uncommon Sense, thank you! There’s a park & playground close to my house where I often walk the Rottweilers. They have monkey bars.
I’m in good shape, won’t be a problem.
Really, cracking the back is an intergral part of this? I hate having my back (or any other joint) cracked, it creeps me out. I’ll be a good girl and try though.
I have degeneration at C-5/6. I have 2 x-rays and one MRI showing an extra cervical vertebrae, so it could be, functionally 6/7. That was from a five mile an hour rear end collision in 1974. I was in a Philly collar for 3 months initially, I’ve had neck pain and hand and arm weakness/ numbness intermittently since. It’s been better in the last few years, however.
I had a work injury to my sacro-iliac joint, from moving a patient, that still causes me a good deal of pain. If I sit for a minute or two, it eases.
I occasionally have sciatia. I’ve had good results with accu-puncture for that. One treatment will “cure” it for a year or two.
Mostly, I’m just old. I seem to have worn out the moving parts.
Debilitating Episode 1: around 1987, after a six-month stint moving pianos. I was washing my mountain bike. I lifted the bike with my left hand, turned the crank with my right, and threw my back out. Terrible lower back pain, sciatica, and I couldn’t stand up straight. Later I saw a chiropractor who took an X-ray, and said my lower vertebra hadn’t formed correctly. He did some manipulations, prescribed exercises, but it seemed like I’d wind my back up and it would go out again several, but less severe, times.
Debilitating Episode 2: About two years ago, I was sitting on the couch, and turned to the left to change a diaper and threw my back out. Went to see the doctor, who prescribed muscle relaxers and sent me to a chiropractor who did electro-stimulation and stretching. Was better after a few weeks.
No surgeries.
Nowadays it gets sore and is sensitive to different types of seating, but I can still function fairly well. I can hike, ride my bike, Mow the lawn, shovel the driveway. I just have to be careful and listen to it.
For me it is, you may not experience that (or even need to for relief). In fact, I can’t remember if mine cracked the first few times I did it or if it started happening later. What I do know, is the relief only comes if I stretch to that point and not before.
Symptoms: Sciatica - pain in lower back, shooting down right leg, numbness in right foot.
Duration of symptoms: I had two episodes that each lasted about a month. At first I was barely being able to stand, then I slowly worked myself back to normal.
Diagnosis (by qualified professional): Herniated disk, l-4, l-5,
Treating/consulting medical professionals: chiropractor first (who didn’t help), then orthopedist and physical therapy. I’m not sure that that helped, either.
Treatment modalities: A bunch of pain medications that didn’t really help much, physical therapy that really didn’t help much. What really helped was walking and the weight loss that went along with it. I’d recommend walking to anyone with back pain, it really helped me.
Surgery: none
Present status: Occasional back pain, nothing debilitating. Yet. I’ve gained some weight back, so I’m afraid I might have another episode unless I get out there and walk it off again.
