Is There a Cure for Lower Back Pain?

Lower back pain is among the most common medical problems affecting the human population. One reason this problem is so common is that back pain can have many different causes. So, if you’re wondering if there’s a cure for your lower back pain, the answer depends on what is causing it.

Muscle and ligament strains can cause intense back pain. Many times these strains can be cured with simple rest. Where rest alone won’t relieve the back pain, non-invasive treatments such as medications, steroidal injections, and physical therapy will often ameliorate the symptoms, if not provide an outright cure.

In this article, we’ll discuss key talking points surrounding a cure for lower back pain, including common treatment options, prevention, and when to seek professional care. 

What Is the Main Cause of Lower Back Pain?

The main cause of lower back pain is spinal degeneration, whether from osteoarthritis, degenerative spinal conditions, or age-related wear and tear. 

With age, the spine undergoes a variety of changes. The intervertebral discs become thinner and drier, spinal ligaments thicken, bone tissue weakens, cartilage breaks down, and spinal joints stiffen. Osteoarthritis (also known as wear and tear arthritis) can also develop, potentially causing bone spurs, stiffness, and spine. 

In addition to osteoarthritis, a variety of degenerative spinal conditions can cause lower back pain, including:

  • Degenerative disc disease affects around 27% of all adults over age 65. This chronic condition occurs when the spinal discs break down, becoming thinner and drier. These discs are crucial for cushioning and shock absorption in the spine, so as they degenerate, you may experience back pain, tingling, numbness, or weakness. 
  • Degenerative spinal stenosis develops when the spinal canal gradually narrows, typically due to thickened spinal ligaments, damaged spinal discs, or bone spurs. With less space around the spinal cord and nerves, spinal stenosis can lead to nerve impingement, back pain, and neurological issues. 
  • Degenerative spondylolisthesis occurs when age-related spinal changes cause a vertebra to slip out of position, falling onto the vertebra beneath it. The misaligned vertebra can press on adjacent nerves, causing back pain and neurological symptoms. 

How to Avoid Lower Back Pain

You can avoid lower back pain by improving your posture, maintaining a healthy weight, remaining active, warming up your back before exercising, avoiding overlifting, and managing stress. 

  • Improve your posture

Prioritizing good posture is one of the most important steps you can take toward lower back pain prevention. Proper posture keeps your spine in its natural alignment, preventing undue impact on the spinal discs and other structures. Especially if you sit at a desk for most of the work day, make sure to align your head over your shoulders and your shoulders over your hips while keeping the natural curve in your lumbar spine. 

  • Maintain a healthy weight

Staying at a healthy weight provides countless health benefits, from preventing diabetes to improved heart health. It can also help you avoid lower back pain by alleviating excessive weight on your spine. By shedding extra pounds, you can reduce the impact on your spine when you sit, stand, and move throughout the day. 

  • Remain active and warm up before exercise

Exercising regularly helps prevent lower back pain by strengthening your muscles, which improves support for the spine. It also boosts mobility and blood flow to the spine, encouraging your body’s tissue repair process. Just make sure to gently warm up your back before exercising to prevent strains and other injuries. 

  • Avoid overlifting

Lifting more weight than you can handle or weightlifting with poor posture can lead to lower back pain. If you do add weightlifting to your workout routine, learn the correct posture for each exercise and start with small weights. If you have to lift heavy objects in a move, for example, use a dolly and enlist help when needed.  

  • Manage stress

Did you know that stress can contribute to lower back pain by increasing inflammation and muscle tension. When you’re feeling stressed-out, you may also forget to maintain good posture, potentially leading to back pain and stiffness. 

How Do I Make My Lower Back Pain Go Away?

You can make your lower back pain go away by resting, applying a heating pad or cold pack, seeing a physical therapist, taking pain medication, or adjusting your lifestyle. 

These conservative treatments help make back pain go away by:

  • Reducing inflammation
  • Strengthening muscles that alleviate pressure from the spine
  • Curbing pain signals sent from the lower back to the brain
  • Addressing lifestyle factors that can worsen lower back pain, like smoking, nutrient deficiencies, and sitting for prolonged periods

At-home remedies are often sufficient to make mild to moderate lower back pain go away within a few weeks. However, if your lower back pain is severe or from a chronic condition, you’ll need professional medical care to achieve relief. 

How to Ease Lower Back Pain Fast?

You can ease lower back pain fast by using heat or cold therapy, stretching, taking pain medication, or getting a steroid injection.

Keep in mind that getting rid of lower back pain fast isn’t always the best way to alleviate it in the long-term. For example, while steroid injections can offer rapid pain relief, they don’t address the source of the pain. If these injections are overused, they can lead to tissue atrophy in the treatment area. 

If you’re struggling with lower back pain that doesn’t improve with a few weeks of rest and at-home remedies, the best option is to get checked out by a physician. Receiving a diagnosis and starting a professional treatment plan will address the root cause of your back pain, leading to a faster recovery. 

What Treatment Is Best for Lower Back Pain?

The best treatment for lower back pain depends on the source of your pain. 

For back sprains, strains, and other mild injuries, the best treatment is generally rest, cold therapy, heat therapy, and physical therapy. Medications may be needed in the short term for pain management. 

For degenerative spinal conditions and spinal nerve compression, the best conservative treatment is often a combination of physical therapy, pain medications, and lifestyle adjustments, like improving your diet and exercising regularly. If these remedies fail after several months, spinal decompression surgery may be considered. 

For spinal conditions such as spinal stenosis and related disorders of the spine – common causes of lower back pain, with onset typically after the age of 35 – non-invasive treatments may provide relief. In some cases decompression spinal surgery may be performed to relieve pressure on affected spinal nerves. During this surgery, a surgeon trims away portions of a vertebra that impinge on a nerve. (This impingement is commonly referred to as a pinched nerve). 

Spinal decompression surgery can have a dramatic and immediate impact on reducing back pain, providing patients with some level of a “cure.” Traditionally spinal fusion back surgery has been performed in conjunction with spinal decompression, to stabilize the vertebrae where the operation was performed. However, spinal fusion eliminates the natural flexion between the fused vertebrae and can contribute to the deterioration of adjacent vertebrae. Today, spinal decompression patients have a superior alternative to spinal fusion. The TOPS System from Premia Spine preserves the natural motion of the spine and has been proven to provide superior results to spinal fusion in clinical trials conducted worldwide.

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Can Lower Back Pain Ever Be Cured?

Lower back pain can be cured, in most cases, with prompt treatment. 

Early intervention is often the key to curing lower back pain. The sooner you receive treatment, the sooner you can start on the path to healing. If you wait to seek treatment, your condition may worsen and can even lead to lasting tissue damage, in some cases. 

If you experience lower back pain, the priority is to identify its cause. Whatever the root of the problem, you will likely have a number of options for effective treatment that will relieve the pain, and in many cases cure the condition.