How to Tell If Your Back and Neck Pain is Acute, Chronic or Severe
Almost everyone will have a minor back or neck problem at one time in their life. And, generally, the movements of our body do not cause problems. It is the not surprising everyday wear and tear, overuse &/or injury cause pain symptoms to surface. Back problems and injuries also often occur during sports, recreational activities, work-related tasks or various home projects.
Back pain is defined as a problem anywhere from the neck to the tailbone (coccyx). The back includes:
The bones and joints of the spine (vertebrae)
The discs that separate the vertebrae and act as shock absorbers during movement.
The muscles and ligaments holding the spine together and the body upright.
Injuries are definitely the leading cause of back pain and frequently occur when you use your back muscles in activities that you do not do very often — lifting a heavy object, doing yard work, jumping into a new workout regime. But minor injuries can occur from tripping, falling a short distance, excessive twisting of the spine, even sleeping wrong one night. I see severe back injuries as a result of a car or work accident, falls from significant heights, direct blows to the back or the top of the head, a high-energy fall onto the buttocks or a penetrating injury such as a stab wound.
And, although back pain is often caused by an injury to one or more structures of the back, there may be other, underlying causes. And, certain people are more likely to develop back pain than others. You are at greater risk for back pain and injury if you are older, have a family history of back pain, sit and/or hunch over a desk/computer for long periods of time, are repetitively lifting and/or pulling heavy objects and/or you have a degenerative disease, such as osteoporosis.
While any of these underlying issues, such as slumping or slouching or computer work, may not be the primary cause for the pain, once the back has been strained or injured, something like bad posture can make it much worse. "Good posture" generally means your ears, shoulders, and hips are in a straight line. If aligning your spine into a “good posture” position causes pain, you may have another condition. There may be a problem with a disc, bones or muscles/ligaments of the back. And, one fact to note when assessing your back and neck pain, while most back problems occur in adults ages 20 to 50, back problems in children younger than 20 and adults older than 50 are more likely to have a serious cause.
Pain from an injury is sometimes sudden and severe. Also bruising and swelling can develop after the injury. However, pain from an injury that is considered to be acute usually does not last longer than 6 weeks. Acute injuries can include:
A sprain or strain, an injury to the ligaments or muscles in the back
A fracture or dislocation of or in the spine.
IMPORTANT: A fracture or dislocation can cause a spinal cord injury, which may lead to permanent paralysis. If this is suspected, it is very important to immobilize and transport the injured person correctly. This reduces the risk of permanent paralysis.
A herniated disc, a torn or ruptured disc. If the tear is large enough, the jelly-like material inside the disc may herniate (leak out) and press against a nerve, causing pain.
An injury that causes the compression of nerves in the lower back.
Of course, you may not remember a specific injury, especially if your symptoms began to develop gradually or during everyday activities, and grew increasingly worse over time. These “injuries” occur most often from improper movement or bad posture while lifting, standing, walking, sitting or even while sleeping. Symptoms can include pain, muscle spasms, stiffness and more. The pain often goes away within 4 weeks without any treatment.
And, there are back problems that may not be related to an injury.
Conditions that weaken the spine, such as osteoporosis, spinal stenosis, etc. can also cause back pain. These are conditions more common in older adults.
There are some medical conditions that can cause pain to spread to the back, referred from other parts of the body. Many health problems that cause back pain have nothing to do with the bones, joints, muscles or ligaments of the back.
Additionally spinal deformities like scoliosis and spondylolisthesis can cause spine pain.
Finally, a number of chronic pain syndromes, caused by a previous traumatic injury or a degenerative disease brought on by aging can cause spinal pain.
In most instances, back pain will get better with time, and go away in 1 to 4 weeks. Home treatment often relieves the pain caused by those minor injuries. And, usually, it is usually a good idea to continue regular activities while your back is healing. Just avoid heavy lifting and any activities that seem to make the back problem(s) worse.
Other treatments for more minor back problems or injuries can include first aid measures, physical therapy, medicine and, in some cases, minimal medical efforts and, possibly, surgery. Treatment by a spine care specialist will depend upon:
The location, type and severity of your injury.
Your age, health condition and activities — work, sports, hobbies.
The key is, how to tell the difference between a minor injury and something that could be more. Do keep in mind, the pain from a spine injury almost always makes the situation seem worse than it is. Even in more severe cases, often the injury is not dangerous to you. Nevertheless, knowing when to seek medical help is very important.
Here are a few conditions that are serious and need treatment. Please keep in mind, none of these are common. But all of them can cause serious symptoms that need to be taken seriously. Some of these can “fly under the radar” in early stages, but usually not for long.
The worst possible causes of back pain:
a tumor in or near the spine
ruptured discs, trauma
cancer-related
pinching in the lowest part of the spinal cord
spinal infection or near spinal structures
ballooning of a large artery next to the spine
inflammatory arthritis of spine and pelvis
In these severe cases, the symptoms to be wary of are:
pain that grows steadily and is mostly unaffected by position and activity, worse with weight bearing and at night, and comes with other signs of being unwell
hard to pee, fecal incontinence, numb groin, weak legs
a well-defined tender spot and then, eventually, deep constant pain
a rigid spine, sometimes fever and illness but not always
throbbing pain that is in sync with your pulse
long term back pain starting well before middle age and progressing slowly and erratically, improves with activity but not rest
prolonged morning stiffness, possible involvement and/or weakness in other areas of the body
In all cases of pain in the spine, if you are concerned, it is better to be on the safe side and see a specialist.