As reported in medical journals up to 80 per cent of adults will experience back pain at some time during their lives. Let us take a closer look at the seven myths about back pain mentioned in various medical journals.
Myth 1: If you have slipped a disk (also known as a herniated or ruptured disk), you must have surgery. Surgeons agree about exactly who should have surgery.
Truth
The causes of bad back can be complex and difficult to diagnose. For more than 70 per cent of patients with chronic back pain, it is not possible to make a specific diagnosis pinpointing the cause of the pain. Surgery to relieve back pain should only be used as a last resort. Very specific tests should be done to confirm that a disk has been damaged and that the pain is directly related to this damage. Even if tests show a damaged disk, recovery often occurs without surgery. Studies using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) have shown that the herniated part of the disk often shrinks on its own over time The causes of back pain can be complex and difficult to diagnose. Surgery to relieve back pain should only be used as the last resort. Approximately 90 percent of patients with a herniated disk improve gradually over a period of six weeks.
Myth 2: X-ray images, CT and MRI scans can always identify the cause of pain.
Truth
Abnormalities of the spine are as common in people without back pain as they are in people suffering from this pain. Getting a better quality image of a herniated disk, in the absence of a thorough physical examination, leaves you with only a better picture, not necessarily a better diagnosis. Even the best imaging tests cannot identify muscle spasms or strained ligaments that might be the cause of pain. Many doctors only recommend CT and MRI scans for those patients already heading for surgery for other reasons.
Myth 3: If your back hurts, you should take it easy until the pain goes away.
Truth
Thinking of today is to continue the routine activities of daily living and work as normally as possible. Persons who remain active do better than those who try either bed rest or immediate exercise. Not all workers can immediately return to work. It is often helpful to have workers with back pain return to some form of light work until they recover more fully. Even the best imaging tests cannot identify muscle spasms or strained ligaments that might be the cause of pain. Persons who remain active do better than those who try either bed rest or immediate exercise.
Myth 4: Most back pain is caused by injuries or heavy lifting.
Truth
It is true that workers whose jobs involve lifting, lowering and carrying materials are much more likely to experience pain in the lower back than workers who do not do this kind of work. It is also true that the weight of the material is a risk factor for injury, as is how often the materials are handled and the workers posture when doing the work. And regardless of whether or not the work involves lifting, people are more likely to be injured early in the morning, when their backs are stiffer, than later in the workday. Up to 85 per cent of persons with bad back can not recall a specific incident that brought on their pain. While heavy lifting or injuries are risk factors, they do not account for most episodes of pain.
Myth 5: Back pain is usually disabling.
Truth
Most people with back pain get better, regardless of whether they receive treatment or the treatment method used. Most people who leave work return within six weeks, and only a small percentage never return to their jobs. That is the good news. The bad news? If you have experienced back pain in the past, you are at greater risk of experiencing it again. Fortunately, recurring episodes of pain usually go away on their own, just like the original back attack did
Myth 6: Everyone with back pain should have spinal X-rays.
Truth
Routine X-rays of the spine are unnecessary and often of little value. The spine abnormalities detected with X-rays often have nothing to do with the symptoms experienced. Many people have abnormalities and are completely pain-free. The latest medical guidelines for evaluating back pain recommend that the use of X-rays be limited to patients such as those who have suffered major injuries in a fall or automobile accident.
Myth 7: Bed rest is the mainstay of therapy. If you have experienced back pain in the past, you are at greater risk of experiencing it again. Routine X-rays of the spine are unnecessary and often of little value.
Truth
For the longest time, patients with back pain were told to lie down to get better. While many patients experienced less pain while lying down, it was not always the case that they got better. Studies have shown that four days of bed rest turns out to be no more effective than two days, or even no bed rest at all. Imagine what it felt like to get up after one to two weeks of strict bed rest - the recommended practice not that long ago.
Here is the Panacea for Back ache and related problems:
Removing the stiffness of all muscles from the ankle to the neck, which effect the spine, is the panacea of bad back pain and related problems. But how? You and your chiropractors may have tried many exercises on you, but your pain may have little or no improvement.
Myth 1: If you have slipped a disk (also known as a herniated or ruptured disk), you must have surgery. Surgeons agree about exactly who should have surgery.
Truth
The causes of bad back can be complex and difficult to diagnose. For more than 70 per cent of patients with chronic back pain, it is not possible to make a specific diagnosis pinpointing the cause of the pain. Surgery to relieve back pain should only be used as a last resort. Very specific tests should be done to confirm that a disk has been damaged and that the pain is directly related to this damage. Even if tests show a damaged disk, recovery often occurs without surgery. Studies using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) have shown that the herniated part of the disk often shrinks on its own over time The causes of back pain can be complex and difficult to diagnose. Surgery to relieve back pain should only be used as the last resort. Approximately 90 percent of patients with a herniated disk improve gradually over a period of six weeks.
Myth 2: X-ray images, CT and MRI scans can always identify the cause of pain.
Truth
Abnormalities of the spine are as common in people without back pain as they are in people suffering from this pain. Getting a better quality image of a herniated disk, in the absence of a thorough physical examination, leaves you with only a better picture, not necessarily a better diagnosis. Even the best imaging tests cannot identify muscle spasms or strained ligaments that might be the cause of pain. Many doctors only recommend CT and MRI scans for those patients already heading for surgery for other reasons.
Myth 3: If your back hurts, you should take it easy until the pain goes away.
Truth
Thinking of today is to continue the routine activities of daily living and work as normally as possible. Persons who remain active do better than those who try either bed rest or immediate exercise. Not all workers can immediately return to work. It is often helpful to have workers with back pain return to some form of light work until they recover more fully. Even the best imaging tests cannot identify muscle spasms or strained ligaments that might be the cause of pain. Persons who remain active do better than those who try either bed rest or immediate exercise.
Myth 4: Most back pain is caused by injuries or heavy lifting.
Truth
It is true that workers whose jobs involve lifting, lowering and carrying materials are much more likely to experience pain in the lower back than workers who do not do this kind of work. It is also true that the weight of the material is a risk factor for injury, as is how often the materials are handled and the workers posture when doing the work. And regardless of whether or not the work involves lifting, people are more likely to be injured early in the morning, when their backs are stiffer, than later in the workday. Up to 85 per cent of persons with bad back can not recall a specific incident that brought on their pain. While heavy lifting or injuries are risk factors, they do not account for most episodes of pain.
Myth 5: Back pain is usually disabling.
Truth
Most people with back pain get better, regardless of whether they receive treatment or the treatment method used. Most people who leave work return within six weeks, and only a small percentage never return to their jobs. That is the good news. The bad news? If you have experienced back pain in the past, you are at greater risk of experiencing it again. Fortunately, recurring episodes of pain usually go away on their own, just like the original back attack did
Myth 6: Everyone with back pain should have spinal X-rays.
Truth
Routine X-rays of the spine are unnecessary and often of little value. The spine abnormalities detected with X-rays often have nothing to do with the symptoms experienced. Many people have abnormalities and are completely pain-free. The latest medical guidelines for evaluating back pain recommend that the use of X-rays be limited to patients such as those who have suffered major injuries in a fall or automobile accident.
Myth 7: Bed rest is the mainstay of therapy. If you have experienced back pain in the past, you are at greater risk of experiencing it again. Routine X-rays of the spine are unnecessary and often of little value.
Truth
For the longest time, patients with back pain were told to lie down to get better. While many patients experienced less pain while lying down, it was not always the case that they got better. Studies have shown that four days of bed rest turns out to be no more effective than two days, or even no bed rest at all. Imagine what it felt like to get up after one to two weeks of strict bed rest - the recommended practice not that long ago.
Here is the Panacea for Back ache and related problems:
Removing the stiffness of all muscles from the ankle to the neck, which effect the spine, is the panacea of bad back pain and related problems. But how? You and your chiropractors may have tried many exercises on you, but your pain may have little or no improvement.