By for Summit Medical Group

By Joy Pierce Mathews for Summit Medical Group

If you’ve ever had even mild back pain, you know that it can make almost everything you do uncomfortable. When it’s severe or chronic, back pain can considerably limit your activities.

Although back pain may be caused by arthritis and degenerative disc disease, it is often likely to be the result of muscle strain and nerve damage from improper lifting.

To prevent back problems when lifting objects:

• Consider how best to lift the object
• Ask someone or others to help if the object is heavy
• Discuss and agree on your plan with your helpers before you begin
• Clear the path you need before you begin moving the object
• Wear a back brace or back belt for support
• Keep the object close to your body for stability and strength
• Do not lift the object above your shoulders
• Be sure you have a firm hold on the object at all times
• Keep your feet no more than shoulder-width apart to establish a firm base
• Bend your knees while raising and lowering the object
• Raise and lower the object with your leg muscles rather than your back muscles
• Keep your stomach muscles tight to help support your back
• Keep your eyes focused upward to avoid the tendency to bend the back
• Take small steps
• Avoid twisting your back — keep your spine, shoulders, and hips straight
• Lift and moveslowly and carefully
• Stop and get more help if you feel your back straining!

“Although it can take several weeks to resolve completely, most back pain improves with simple steps you can take on your own, including resting your back, avoiding activities that irritate it, and taking aspirin or ibuprofen to help alleviate the pain,” says Summit Medical Group physiatrist Rohit Oza, MD. Dr. Oza adds, “If you have continuous, intense back pain and suspect that you have permanently damaged the discs or nerves, you should see your doctor. You also should see your doctor if your back pain, however mild or severe, lasts more than a few weeks without improvement,” says Dr. Oza.

Signs of a serious back problem can include:

• A fever
• Trouble sleeping
• Difficulty urinating
• Difficulty with bowel movements
• Pain, weakness, numbness, or tingling in one or both legs
• Numbness or tingling in the groin, anal region, and buttocks
• Throbbing abdominal pain
• Unintended weight loss

When your back pain is the result of a serious problem that doesn’t respond to therapies such as rest, cold compresses, gentle stretching and exercise, you might need surgery to alleviate pressure on the nerves from a herniated disk or narrowed spinal column (spinal stenosis), compression fracture of the spine, or a severe spinal injury.

To learn more or schedule an appointment,
please call Summit Medical Group Physiatry today
at 908-277-8646.