When most people think of lower back pain causes, they immediately think of injuries caused by lifting items improperly or sitting at a desk for an extended period of time. Those things certainly cause the majority of the lower back pain that doctors treat every day. However, they aren’t the only causes of lower back pain.
One of the lower back pain causes that is often overlooked is a kidney infection. Obviously, not all lower back pain will be caused by a kidney infection but it should definitely be kept in mind, especially if a person doesn’t recall injuring their back in any way, shape, or form recently. Kidney infections are often accompanied by a fever. Most often, the fever can spike rather high. Kidney infections are a serious emergency and need to be treated right away. If left untreated, permanent kidney damage can result.
Another potential lower back pain cause is having a spine that isn’t aligned properly. Proper alignment of the spine is crucial not for just lower back health but body health in general. Pinched nerves and reduced blood flow can result if a person’s spine is even the tiniest bit out of alignment. Thankfully, a misaligned spine is easy to fix.
A trip to the chiropractor’s is usually all that’s needed to get everything straight again. If the problem is particularly bad or been left untreated for a long time, multiple trips might be needed to get everything perfectly in alignment again. Fortunately, most chiropractor appointments are inexpensive. Even if you don’t have insurance or your insurance doesn’t cover a chiropractor, you should still be able to afford the appointments you’ll need.
A pinched nerve is also one of the lower back pain causes. Pinched nerves can be extremely painful, depending on where the nerve is pinched at. You can get a shooting pain from a pinched nerve when you move certain ways. Occasionally, the pain can even feel like a constant stabbing pain. Either way, a pinched nerve will need to be diagnosed and treated by a doctor.
Obviously, the most common lower back pain causes are muscle injuries of one sort or another. Muscle injuries tend to be throbbing in nature while nerve injuries feel like stabbing, shooting pains. Since muscle injuries to the lower back are fairly common, it’s easy to find products you can purchase over the counter to help ease the aches and pains you may be feeling. Medications, heat wraps, and ice are commonly prescribed. Exercise and stretching can help heal an injured lower back quickly and prevent injuries from happening in the future.
Lower back pain doesn’t need to be a part of life. It can be avoided all together in most instances. All you need to do is listen to what your body is telling you, learn proper lifting techniques, and become familiar with the various lower back pain causes. Being educated about them will help prevent injuries in the future.
