subject: Why Are Muscles Ignored In Common Back Pain Diagnoses [print this page] Many people have chronic back painMany people have chronic back pain. Sometimes this pain is thought to be permanent, but this is not the case in all situations. Chronic pain can be categorized as permanent pain that requires invasive procedures such as surgery, nerve injections, spinal cord stimulation, or a morphine pump to achieve any relief.
What is chronic back pain?
A chronic pain is where a patient experiences pain long term. One does not expect a lengthened period where this pain is elicited. Normally, an acute pain, the counterpart of chronic, only exacerbates in a shortened and limited time duration while chronic pain may last for more than six months.
Chronic back pain, on the other hand, elicits a location on where the chronic pain is felt. This kind of pain has been known to be the number one in surveys of demographics of patients. This condition can be debilitating in the long run.
Can chronic back pain be eliminated?
The current standard of care isn't working very well. An article in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), in February, 2008, by Martin, Deyo, et al., reported that even though the cost of neck and low back pain in the United States increased from $26 billion in 1997 to $86 billion in 2005, there was no improvement in treatment outcome. To put that number in perspective, we spend $86 billion annually on cancer.
Back pain is one of the most commons sources of discomfort and pain in the United States. It is one of the primary reasons we visit a doctor for care. And yet, the treatment outcomes are not improving.
The problem isn't getting any better. Patients report that they were more impaired by neck and back pain in 2005 than in 1997. These numbers clearly indicate that the current treatments aren't working. It appears that the reasons that we frequently use to explain low back pain are frequently wrong, since treating these so-called causes result in partial, temporary, or even no improvement.
Frequently, low back pain is identified as being caused by:o herniated discso degenerated discso arthritiso spinal stenosisWhat is missing from the published diagnosis and treatment guidelines for common pain problems in the lower back, neck and shoulders, is any approach which addresses muscles as the primary source of pain. There are many reasons why muscles are ignored, but doctors have many options for addresses muscles and the source of back pain.by: Shirley L Dudley
