Facts About Backaches and When to Worry About It

Back pain is one of the most common reasons people visit their doctor. According to the National Arthritis, Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases Institute, 8 out of 10 people have some type of backache.

The origin of back pain is unknown in about 85% of the cases, despite sophisticated techniques, which provide detailed anatomical images of the spine and other tissues, we fail to determine what is causing the backache. Although other problems can also cause it, the most common diagnoses include: disk disease, spinal arthritis, and muscle spasms.

In sciatica, there is a pain down into the leg, which travels below the knee, and may involve the foot. There may be numbness and weakness of the lower leg muscles. Some Symptoms may come on their own, but they are often combined with low back pain. The order in which the symptoms appear may vary. Sometimes the back pain comes before the sciatica, and sometimes it will follow.

When To Really Worry About Backache

There is a group of features (the Red Flags) where doctors need to act more quickly. These may suggest a problem which is not just simple back pain or sciatica. You should see your doctor as soon as possible if:

* The pain is constant and getting worse.
* The pain is in the back of the chest.
* The pain follows a violent injury (eg. a road traffic accident).
* You have recently lost a lot of weight.
* You have great difficulty bending forward.
* You have a problems in your nervous system (eg numbness, loss of power, etc).
* You have an obvious structural deformity of the spine.
* You have HIV.
* You are or have been a cancer patient.
* You are younger than 20 or older than 55 when you get the problem for the first time.
* You are using steroids.
* You are a drug abuser
* You are generally unwell in yourself.

Anyway, it is wise to see your doctor if you develop sciatica. Certainly you should consult him or her if you are not able to adequately control the pain with simple painkillers and/or anti-inflammatory drugs, or if the pain carries on for more than two weeks.