About Back Pain

Spine Basics

Your spine does a lot of work! It holds up your head, shoulders, and upper body. It supports you so you can stand up, but also helps you bend and twist. It also protects the spinal cord. Your spine has four main curves that help you keep your balance and stand straight. The lowest part of the spine connects to the sacrum, a bone that fits between the two hip bones.

The spine is made of bones (vertebrae) that are stacked on top of each other with disks (intervertebral disks) in between them. When you walk or run, the disks act like a cushion and keep the bones from bumping into each other. The vertebrae attach to each other with joints and ligaments. This allows your spine to rotate, and bend backward, forward, and side to side. Muscles, tendons and ligaments support your back and help you move. Nerves carry messages between your brain and your muscles.

Illustration of the parts of the spine, Cervical curve at the top, followed by the thoracic curve, then the lumbar curve and the sacra curve at the bottom

Causes of Pain

We often don’t know what causes back pain, but some likely reasons are:

  • strained muscles
  • sprained ligaments
  • tight joints
  • small tears in the disks

These injuries usually don’t show up on imaging tests, like X-Rays, MRIs or CT scans. Most people with back pain aren’t helped by getting these imaging tests. However, your doctor may order an imaging test if your symptoms call for one, or if you’re not getting better after 4-6 weeks. Whatever the cause, this type of common back pain is usually treated the same way: stay active, limit time spent lying down to rest, apply ice (or heat if ice doesn’t help you), and take non-prescription pain relievers.

The majority of people with low back pain symptoms don’t know the exact reason for their pain. It can be frustrating not knowing what’s causing your pain, but this doesn’t mean that there’s something serious going on. It’s difficult to actually damage your spine. Back pain is common, and generally not serious.

80%

At some point, 80% of us will have low back pain. Most people (about 90%) recover fully within 6 weeks.

Should I see a doctor?

While low back pain isn’t serious in most people, there are a few warning signs to watch out for.

Call your doctor right away if you have:

  • weakness, numbness, or tingling in your leg
  • pain spreading down your leg, especially below your knee
  • new bladder or bowel problems
  • unexplained weight loss, fever, or stomach pain
  • constant or intense pain, especially when you lie down
  • had a fall, blow to your back, or other injury
  • a history of cancer, osteoporosis, steroid use, or drug or alcohol abuse
  • pain for the first time and you’re over 50 years old  

If you don’t have any of these warning signs, chances are good that your back will start feeling a little better within a few days. If it doesn’t improve at all, or if the pain gets worse, call your doctor. Most people recover completely within a few weeks. If your back pain is still bothering you after a month, see your doctor.