Lower back pain amongst adults is one of the leading causes of the over use of over-the-counter pain medication.
The lower back is a complex structure that has a number of overlapping elements including muscle, tendon, soft tissue, nerve endings, spinal discs and complex joints.
Proper diagnosis, evaluation and treatment plans should be applied to acute or chronic lower back pain by a qualified pain clinic.
Evaluation and Diagnosis Simply taking pain medication to alleviate lower back pain does not often solve the underlying causes of the pain.
Instead it can cause ancillary problems like substance abuse or contributing to the long-term debilitation of the pain.
When seeing a pain treatment specialist part of the evaluation will be to determine if the pain is short or long-term and acute or chronic which will determine the path of treatment.
The causes of lower back pain can be from any number of sources for adults between the ages of 30 to 50 including spasms, muscle pulls, slipped discs, spinal stenosis, bone lesions, viral infections, spinal compression, or simple strain or sprain.
Many of these lead to lower back pain and can be caused by any number of things in your everyday life including smoking, obesity, repetitive muscle strain, stress, poor physical condition, poor posture and even a poor sleeping position.
Treatment Options The treatment options available for the pains are varied and many.
And it's all depend on the diagnosis results that could explain the underlying causes.
The following is a list of treatment options for short-term lower pains.
Painkillers - NSAIDs and ibuprofen are the most clinically prescribed drugs for lower pains whereas paracetamol is the most effective in treating lower back pain.
Sometimes even drug such as codeine can be used to treat this pain.
In certain circumstances a muscle relaxant such as diazepam may also be prescribed.
Hot and Cold Treatment - most people often find hot or cold treatments offer comfort and dissipation of pain in relation to back issues.
Sometimes the best treatment can be an alternating treatment of heat and cold.
Do not apply ice directly to the skin.
Relaxation - achieving ultimate relaxation can help alleviate pain quicker and more effectively than those that continually stress and worry about their condition.
Studies of proven those that maintain a positive attitude recover quicker.
Avoid stress and find ways to relax.
Sleeping Position - sometimes changing your sleeping position slightly can help alleviate the pressure on the back part.
By pulling your knees closer to your chest and putting a pillow between your legs if you are a side sleeper will help.
If you sleep on your back placing a pillow underneath your knees will do the same thing.
An Active Lifestyle - an active lifestyle including keeping physically active will help alleviate lower back pain.
Studies of shown that those with a sedentary lifestyle has increased lower back pain.
Even by walking around the house or going for short walks of 20 minutes will help alleviate the condition in the long-term.
In order to be properly diagnosed see a pain clinic near you to establish an effective treatment plan for your short-term lower back pain.