# The Back-pain virus **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [July 31, 2021, 3:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-back-pain-virus/947710 "2021-07-31T15:11:36Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 10\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![purplehorseshoe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/purplehorseshoe/32/2996_2.png) [@purplehorseshoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/purplehorseshoe)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2021, 6:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-back-pain-virus/947710/41 "2021-08-01T18:10:55Z")
> [@Darren\_Garrison](#): > > Back pain happens because a body plan originally placing the spine horizontally now places it vertically. I think this gets overlooked a lot. Bipedal motion on a quadrapedal body plan is going to cause … conflict. Why? 'Cuz physics. Think of it this way: humans are _partially_ evolved to walk upright on our back legs. We eventually got the big ol’ glute (“butt”) muscles that facilitate this stance … but our spines and back muscles are still mostly in “quad” mode, evolutionarily speaking. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2021, 6:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-back-pain-virus/947710/42 "2021-08-01T18:32:09Z")
> [@Roger\_That](#): > > It’s completely unheard of for a complaint of a physical nature to be treated in so wide a variety of completely contradictory methods. As others have already said, “back pain” is not one thing, with one cause, and so, it should not be surprising in the slightest that there are “contradictory methods” for treating it. ---
**Author:** ![Roger\_That](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/roger_that/32/8505_2.png) [@Roger\_That](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Roger_That)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2021, 6:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-back-pain-virus/947710/43 "2021-08-01T18:38:58Z")
> [@kenobi\_65](#): > > As others have already said, “back pain” is not one thing, with one cause, and so, it should not be surprising in the slightest that there are “contradictory methods” for treating it. And as I keep pointing out, there should be ways to determine, first off, if the patient’s back pain falls into one category or another before prescribing treatment. But the problem is not that there are different sources for back pain, but rather that each practitioner has ONE method of dealing with back issues. You won’t find Sarno (who’s dead, I just learned) recommended bed rest and muscle relaxers for a type of back pain. No, he was offended by the idea that all back pain doesn’t derive from psychological issues. And a chiropractor will never say, “Oh, your type sounds like this all is caused by childhood trauma.” That’s not how it works. ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2021, 7:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-back-pain-virus/947710/44 "2021-08-01T19:01:47Z")
> [@Roger\_That](#): > > And as I keep pointing out, there should be ways to determine, first off, if the patient’s back pain falls into one category or another before prescribing treatment. There are. Do you have any first hand knowledge of the subject at hand? ---
**Author:** ![Roger\_That](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/roger_that/32/8505_2.png) [@Roger\_That](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Roger_That)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2021, 7:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-back-pain-virus/947710/45 "2021-08-01T19:05:15Z")
If there were, I wouldn’t have had the thought that this might all trace to some mysterious virus. Diagnosing back pain is a crapshoot. My first hand knowledge is seeing numerous doctors who went “Oh, back pain. Very hard to tell where it comes from --I want you to do X” or “Y” or “Z” without ever asking any of those diagnostic questions you say are so common. ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2021, 9:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-back-pain-virus/947710/46 "2021-08-01T21:42:22Z")
> [@Roger\_That](#): > > Diagnosing back pain is a crapshoot. Difficult doesn’t equal crapshoot. Yes, the back is a difficult area to diagnose because it’s a very complex series of bones/joints/nerves, with lots of referred pain. But there are are tests to help diagnose issues, explore whether they work before going to more invasive procedures, and progress to more complicated ones. You’re doctor may not have done that, but other doctors take a more holistic approach. The bigger problem is that there aren’t too many great treatments for back pain. There are lots of treatments of varying degrees of scientific rigor and effectiveness because it’s a tough problem to solve. There’s a big gulf between diagnosing and resolving. We also don’t have many good treatments for decapitation, but it’s rarely a chronic problem. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2021, 7:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-back-pain-virus/947710/47 "2021-08-02T07:46:33Z")
> [@Roger\_That](#): > > If there were, I wouldn’t have had the thought that this might all trace to some mysterious virus. Perhaps ignorance about the subject caused you to come up with your “virus” idea? ---
**Author:** ![Roger\_That](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/roger_that/32/8505_2.png) [@Roger\_That](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Roger_That)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2021, 9:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-back-pain-virus/947710/48 "2021-08-02T09:31:25Z")
Totally. Makes as much sense as any other idea about the sources of back pain, though. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2021, 10:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-back-pain-virus/947710/49 "2021-08-02T10:08:36Z")
> [@Roger\_That](#): > > Totally. Makes as much sense as any other idea about the sources of back pain, though The first sentence does not correspond with the second sentence. ---
**Author:** ![Roger\_That](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/roger_that/32/8505_2.png) [@Roger\_That](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Roger_That)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2021, 12:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-back-pain-virus/947710/50 "2021-08-02T12:02:57Z")
It does. Totally, [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-back-pain-virus/947710.md?page=2)