When your back is stiff, you will feel it in your upper back, lumbar area, neck and sometimes in your tailbone. Everyone will experience this type of pain and it can be many issues that will trigger this pain. Most of the time, the pain will go away after a day or two, maybe even a week later.
But when the pain lingers or becomes more intense, it may be time to get medical attention. Most people will make schedule an appointment with their primary doctor first. He or she will examine the patient, ask questions, and take x-rays.
Once they a determination where the pain is at and what is causing it, they will prescribe pain medications. However, when that isn’t helping the patient any, their doctor may refer them to a pain clinic.
The Goal: Find The Problem
Before any doctor can heal an aching back, they must find out where the pain is and what is causing the pain. At the pain clinic, there will be several professionals assigned to a patient. They each have a focus on pain and will try to discover if there are any underlying issues that are causing the back pain. At a facility such as this, treating these types of conditions with the musculoskeletal system and each will have their own focus on the various pains.
They will start by eliminating things that may be causing the pain, such as bad posture, and injury or muscle strain. The most common cause of lower back pain is fractures, osteoarthritis, osteoporosis, spinal stenosis, and spondylolisthesis.
If it is determined that one of these causes the back pain, the pain clinic team will determine which member of the team is best suited for helping the patient. It may be recommended that the patient work with one or more of the specialists depending on what kind of pain, what is causing the pain and where the pain is located.
There are varieties of treatments available at a facility like this which will either cure the pain or help ease the pain for the patient. The treatments that are most typical for back pain include the following and some not listed here:
Heat Treatment
For chronic back pain that is mild, a pain doctor may recommend using hot compresses. This is something you can do in your home once you have received instructions from the pain clinic staff.
Massage Therapy
For a patient that has been experiencing back trouble for a long time, the pain clinic team may recommend massage therapy with a therapist at there.
Physical Therapy
When the pain has become uncontrollable and you aren’t able to perform your daily activities, the pain clinic team may recommend physical treatment. The specialist that will be in charge of this will have numerous exercises for you to do there and home, all to improve your muscle performance.
