Your Sacramento Chiropractor

Acute lower back pain is a common concern of people, affecting up to 80% of the American population. Around 50% experience more than one episode of back pain. Acute lower back pain is not considered a disease. It is rather a symptom that occurs from different processes. In fact, in around 70% of people with lower back pain, no specific cause can be identified despite thorough medical examinations. Nevertheless, there are some reasons or incidences that trigger the pain to attack. Read on and know some of them.

Lower Back Pain Causes

Acute lower back pain may be triggered by different factors such as bone, spinal nerves, and muscle injuries and diseases. It may also characterize some organ problems within the abdomen, pelvis, or chest, as well as intra-abdominal disorders like appendicitis, kidney diseases, pelvic infections, aneurysm, bladder infections, ovarian disorders, and a lot more. Acute lower back pain may also be caused by normal pregnancy due to the strain placed on the lower back, stretching of pelvis ligaments, and nerve irritation. All these things will be considered and ruled out during the evaluation of your pain.

Acute lower back pain may also be a symptom of nerve impingement due to the herniated or ruptured disc between the bones at the lower back. Sciatica is one condition of nerve root impingement, which is characterized by acute lower back pain that is localized at a specific area in the back accompanied by other symptoms such as numbed legs. Acute lower back pain may also be caused by spondylosis, a condition caused by the loss of moisture and volume of the intervertebral discs and decrease in the disc’s height due to aging. Inflammation and nerve impingement may also result from minor physical trauma from similar circumstances. These can produce classic sciatica even without damaging the disc.

Spinal stenosis, a problem with the spine, may also be signaled by some lower back pain symptoms, including pain that radiates down to lower part of the body, felt more often then a person is standing for a long period of time. A medical emergency referred to as cauda equine syndrome can also trigger acute lower back pain to attack, especially when the spinal cord is compressed directly. Myofascial pain is another condition that can trigger back pain as well as other symptoms such as feeling of tenderness in some areas, difficulty to move certain muscle groups, and pain along the peripheral nerves.

Other factors that trigger acute lower back pain are osteomyelitis, fibromyalgia, tumors, and nerve inflammation. Fibromyalgia is characterized by pain and tenderness throughout the body, generalized stiffness, fatigue, lower back pain, and muscle aches. Osteomyelitis is characterized by stiffness and pain in the spine. Cancerous tumors are said to be characterized by acute lower back pain. Spinal nerve inflammation is caused by spinal nerve infection from the virus known as herpes zoster. This condition is characterized by shingles in spine and lower and upper back pain.

There you go - some reasons why you experience acute lower back pain. To avoid wrong assumptions, make sure to consult with your doctor and rule out possible reasons for this pain.