San Luis Obispo Chiropractor

Joints and bone conditions, lumbar strain, bony encroachment, lumbar radiculopathy, and nerve irritation are some of the common lower back pain causes. Read on if you want to know more about these lower back pain causes because this article reviews each of these causes.

1.Nerve Irritation

Being one of lower back pain causes, nerve irritation can cause the sufferer too much pain because any disease along the path of nerves can irritate the lumbar spine. This can occur anywhere from the spinal cord roots to the skin surface. This condition is often associated with different back pain diseases such as lumbar disc disease, bony encroachment, and nerve inflammation.

2. Lumbar Strain

Being one of lower back pain causes, a lumbar strain can be very painful as it is the result of a stretching injury that occurred in the lower back muscle ligaments and tendons, thereby causing different degrees of microscopic degeneration in the affected tissues. This condition is often caused by trauma, overuse, or improper use. Lumbar strain is classified into two types: acute lumbar strain which means that the lower back pain has been felt by the patient for days or weeks while chronic lumbar strain has been felt for more than three months already.

3. Bony Encroachment

Bony encroachment, one of the common lower back pain causes, is the result of any growth or movement of the lumbar spine vertebrae that limits the encroachment or space for the adjacent nerves and spinal cord. Bony encroachment is caused by foraminal narrowing, spondylolisthesis, and spinal stenosis. These conditions often lead to sciatica pain that runs down the lower portion of the body. Spinal stenosis causes pains in the lower extremity, which can be worse with walking activities and can be better by resting. Treatment of these conditions can vary depending on how severe the condition and can range from resting to surgical decompression done by removing the bone that compresses nervous tissue.

4. Lumbar Radiculopathy

A type of nerve irritation, lumbar radiculopathy is a result of the damages in the discs along the vertebrae. This is usually caused by degeneration or wear and tear of the outer ring of the discs, traumatic injury, or even both. Because of these, the middle portion may rupture or be herniated through the outer ring of the disc and adjacent to the spinal column. The damage in this area causes sciatica pain that can be felt through the legs.

5. Joint and Bone Conditions

Joint and bone conditions are one of the leading lower back pain causes. These conditions can be congenital injury acquired from birth or wear and tear injury due to the degeneration of tissues, muscles, and bones, or due to injuries caused by arthritis or inflammation of the joints. Some of the more common congenital injuries are spina bifida and scoliosis while spondylosis is one of the more common degenerative injuries. Fractures and arthritis are two of the more common joint and bone conditions

The lower back pain causes mentioned and discussed above are just some of the many factors causing lower back pain. If you’ve been experiencing pain in your lower back, visit your physician right away so your doctor can devise an effective treatment plan for your lower back pain.