INFORMATION ON COMMON INJURIES AND CONDITIONS

Low Back Pain (or LBP for short) is the most disabling and prevalent musculoskeletal condition in the world according to the WHO. A lot of us will be affected by it at some stage in our lives, just like a toothache... nobody is exempt! We can do things to help reduce the chances of getting LBP (like brushing our teeth will reduce the chances of getting a tooth ache) but we can never remove the possibility in full. Chances are you will experience it at some time in your life. 

Common terms such as "put my back out" or "twisted my back" usually refer to what we call nonspecific low back pain (NSLBP). These episodes can feel quite disabling and can cause a lot of anxiety, but in over 90% of cases, there is no reason to worry. The other 8-9% of cases can be due to the spinal nerves being affected which usually give symptoms down into the legs and can be managed quite effectively. Even rarer are more sinister reasons like fracture, infection or cancer (1-2%).

The most important point to remember is that usually there is nothing to worry about when you experience LBP. Good assessment and guidance from a physiotherapist and sticking to simple lifestyle approaches and techniques will usually get you back to full health.

Recent scientific evidence is showing us that simple lifestyle approaches can equip you to manage LBP by yourself and can limit the chances of it becoming a chronic or long term condition. Continuing to go about your daily activities and continuing to work, not restricting movement, not adopting protective movement behaviours and only using MRI scanning as last resort have all been found to be important in managing LBP successfully. This means- keep doing what you would normally do (within reason), keep going to work and do not 'take to the bed'. Bed rest is the enemy of low back pain. Keep trying to bend the back, again within reason (fundamentally it is designed to bend and be flexible). Try and maintain some form of exercise. These approaches all help to limit anxiety which appears to be a very important factor generally in successful rehabilitation of all injuries.

Throw in the all important quartet of quality sleep, quality diet, quality social interactions and lower stress levels and you should be able to manage the episode with little problems and keep further possible episodes at bay.

So where do you begin when you experience an episode of LBP? As long as you are not in constant pain, you are still able to move (albeit painfully) and you are not experiencing any weird symptoms like numbness or pins and needles in any part of the body then a wait and see approach in the first few days will usually give you a chance to see how the injury is going to play out. Trying to remain physically active along with the approaches we discussed above are important in those first days. If the pain is quite bad but is not constant, then a light over the counter analgesic or pain medication can help to keep you active. A pharmacist can advise you in this regard.

If you feel the pain is not easing or you would like an expert to take a look; then a physiotherapist as a first point of call is a good option. We are trained to spot when a LBP is being caused by something that needs further referral for investigation. A physiotherapist will be able to fully assess you and guide you through the appropriate pathway that suits your LBP. We know from the data that more than likely you will not require onward referral. You will stay with physiotherapy and be guided back to health through exercise and education. It will take effort, commitment, good coaching and expert knowledge of the most recent evidence to get on top of the pain and return you back to pain free movement (excuse the pun). In some cases it might take time too, but we will get there. Movement is always the key.

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