Extended period of Back pain, doesn't go away!??
Question: Ok so I did an 80 mile bike race in June 2007, Thats when I first felt it, at the end I went to get a massage and when they went over my lower back on the right side It hurt incredibly, ive never had one before so i didn't know it wasn't supposed to hurt. i was out of commission for a few days, then it toned down after like 2 weeks to a mild pain in the same spot, and sometimes the pain would/will spread to my right leg as well. and then go away with a nights rest. I went to the doctor and she said it was a sprain. get some rest balh blah blah. i did that for a least a month. Pain was still there. And it has been the same problem ever since, now 1/30/08 same pain. most of the time when im walking id say the pain is like 3/10, if im doing ab workouts or something with my back it shoots up to like 6/10 sometimes. anyone with a possible diagnosis? I am very active and don't know why something like this happens to me. I'm in the ARMY and i could live with but would prefer without.
Answers: Hi Raymond,
I assume when you say lower back on the right side you mean the pain is away from your spine.
If this is the case then the most likely scenario is Sacro-Iliac Joint dysfunction. It is a joint you use almost all the time, as it has no disc in the joint for protection or cushioning, it can become irritated easily with certain activities.
Cycling for 80 miles bent over your bike may have tightened the joint. The muscles around the area will then tighten as well, the massage locating the tender areas.
Add in some other lower spinal joint irritation and you end up where you are. The radiations of pain are common with Sacro-Iliac joint irritation as when these joints tighten your Piriformis muscle tightens. This is the muscle that has the sciatic nerve either running through it or next to it. It tightens and you get pain down your leg... very common.
Disc bulges affect over 60% of the population. The majority of these people have no pain at all. Major disc problems will cause greater pain that will not settle quickly.
The ab workouts or any back exercise will place strain on the S-I joints, try do only ab exercises where your back is flat on the ground and you only raise your shoulders an inch or two, do not raise your legs for lower ab's, but rock your pelvis instead. This should help prevent the pain with these.
The best thing to do though is get the joint moving and the muscles around it relaxed. There are a lot of things you can do your self at home to achieve this. And the pain should settle and not come back. Exercise will then strengthen it.
Follow the link below for some free techniques and feel free to email me for any advice or direction.
All the best
Dr Graeme Teague
It is possible that you have a bulging disc in the lower lumbar spine .... sounds as if its aggravated with certain activities .... see an orthopedist for evaluation and x-rays and a course of physical therapy should do the trick.
Stretches and back exercises. Maybe your doctor can get you into some kind of physical therapy and they can show you what to do to.
Here they give you some suggestions:
http://www.spine-health.com/topics/conse...
http://orthoinfo.aaos.org/topic.cfm?topi...
.
This does sound like it may be discogenic pain, ie coming from one of the discs in your back.
You need to go back to see your doctor, especially since the pain has been going on for so long and is related to activity.
If the pain is worse with coughing or sneezing it probably is related to the discs.
Ask for an X ray to check the general anatomy of your spine (this can be compared to previous ones that you may have had when you joined the Army), and ask for a MRI which will show the actual discs quite clearly.
Treatment will depend on the findings, but may involve rest and anti inflammatory medication. It may pay to see a specialist depending on the scan results.
Good luck.
Answers: Hi Raymond,
I assume when you say lower back on the right side you mean the pain is away from your spine.
If this is the case then the most likely scenario is Sacro-Iliac Joint dysfunction. It is a joint you use almost all the time, as it has no disc in the joint for protection or cushioning, it can become irritated easily with certain activities.
Cycling for 80 miles bent over your bike may have tightened the joint. The muscles around the area will then tighten as well, the massage locating the tender areas.
Add in some other lower spinal joint irritation and you end up where you are. The radiations of pain are common with Sacro-Iliac joint irritation as when these joints tighten your Piriformis muscle tightens. This is the muscle that has the sciatic nerve either running through it or next to it. It tightens and you get pain down your leg... very common.
Disc bulges affect over 60% of the population. The majority of these people have no pain at all. Major disc problems will cause greater pain that will not settle quickly.
The ab workouts or any back exercise will place strain on the S-I joints, try do only ab exercises where your back is flat on the ground and you only raise your shoulders an inch or two, do not raise your legs for lower ab's, but rock your pelvis instead. This should help prevent the pain with these.
The best thing to do though is get the joint moving and the muscles around it relaxed. There are a lot of things you can do your self at home to achieve this. And the pain should settle and not come back. Exercise will then strengthen it.
Follow the link below for some free techniques and feel free to email me for any advice or direction.
All the best
Dr Graeme Teague
It is possible that you have a bulging disc in the lower lumbar spine .... sounds as if its aggravated with certain activities .... see an orthopedist for evaluation and x-rays and a course of physical therapy should do the trick.
Stretches and back exercises. Maybe your doctor can get you into some kind of physical therapy and they can show you what to do to.
Here they give you some suggestions:
http://www.spine-health.com/topics/conse...
http://orthoinfo.aaos.org/topic.cfm?topi...
.
This does sound like it may be discogenic pain, ie coming from one of the discs in your back.
You need to go back to see your doctor, especially since the pain has been going on for so long and is related to activity.
If the pain is worse with coughing or sneezing it probably is related to the discs.
Ask for an X ray to check the general anatomy of your spine (this can be compared to previous ones that you may have had when you joined the Army), and ask for a MRI which will show the actual discs quite clearly.
Treatment will depend on the findings, but may involve rest and anti inflammatory medication. It may pay to see a specialist depending on the scan results.
Good luck.
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