So, in this physiotherapy article we will continue looking at back pain. The last blog post looked at general back pain but this time we shall look specifically at how best to manage acute back pain.Once again, just to remind anyone who is looking at this physiotherapy blog for the first time: we are a home visit physiotherapy service based in Lichfield and offering services in Sutton Coldfield, Tamworth, Cannock, Rugeley and Walsall.
As mentioned in our last physiotherapy blog post on back pain, rather than examine the underlying causes of back pain, I thought it might be more helpful instead to concentrate on how best to manage back pain. In this article we will look at the management of actute low back pain by looking at how an "ideal" patient might manage their low back pain. First of all a quick reminder: "acute" in medical terminology does not mean painful (even though it usually is!) it actually means recent and more specifically in terms of back pain less than 6 weeks old. So, without more ado, let's look at how an ideal patient would manage their acute low back pain:
An "Ideal" Patient with Acute Low Back Pain:
Typically the patient would be gardening on a Saturday and bend over or twist and experience an excruciating feeling of pain and a sensation of their back "going". This would immediately make it very difficult to move and straighten up and most movements will give an extremely large volume of pain. Sometimes this will coincide with pain in one of the legs if a nerve root has been irritated but commonly it is just limited to the low back itself. At this point our "ideal" patient understands that the best thing to do is rest, avoid movements that cause pain and take some painkillers. This allows the initial inflammation and damage to settle. At this point there is no point in trying to do any therapy of any description. In the first 24hrs of an episode of back pain, the best thing to do is rest, change positions regularly and avoid causing anymore pain. At this point our "ideal" patient will also call a physiotherapist and book an appointment for Monday.
By seeing a physiotherapist early in the process of an acute episode of low back pain, the patient is able to get access to treatment early, understand the nature of their back pain, find out what is causing it, understand how to manage it and will know what to do and what to avoid. Treatment at this point depends upon the level of pain and nature of the condition but usually will involve some soft tissue massage, spinal mobilisations, general advice and specific stretches and exercises to help improve things. Usually stretches and exercises are very gentle at this point, in order to avoid aggravating the patient's back pain further. In my experience patients that seek early help for their low back pain usually do much better and require overall much less treatment than patients who suffer silently for months (and sometimes years!) on end. Our ideal patient will most likely see the physiotherapist a few times over the next few weeks in order to get treatment and have their exercises and stretches progressed until they are at a point where they can return to their usual lives pain free. At this point we would usually recommend that the patient has a review every so often to see if their exercise programme needs adjusting, to check how their back is moving and to discuss anything that might have changed.
I hope this has helped and has made it easier for you to understand how best to manage your acute low back pain. In the next blog post we will be looking at how to manage chronic low back pain.
Before finishing it is important to be aware that there are some symptoms associated with low back pain that are extremely serious and that require immediate medical attention. If you experience pain in both legs, tingling, a change in sensation or numbness in the saddle area between your legs, an inability to urinate or loss of control of your bowels then it is important that you seek immediate medical help.
For anyone reading: we are a home visit physiotherapy service, based in Lichfield but serving anywhere within a 20 minute drive including areas such as Sutton Coldfield, Tamworth, Cannock, Burton and Rugeley. We offer a wide range of services including paediatric physiotherapy, post-operative rehabilitation, neurological physiotherapy and neck and back pain relief. If you need further information or would like to book an appointment we can be contacted on 0788 428 1623 or via enquiries@threespiresphysiotherapy.co.uk
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