Back Pain

Back pain is a debilitating condition that affects adults of all ages. People suffering from back pain may find difficulty performing everyday tasks like sitting, sleeping, and engaging in physical activities. Managing your back pain with chiropractic care can help alleviate back pain and restore the quality of life. At El Paso West Texas Chiropractic Center, we help patients in El Paso manage their back pain naturally with chiropractic care, avoiding invasive surgical procedures.

Types of Back Pain

• There are several types of back pain, but the most common types are acute low-back pain and chronic low-back pain.
• Acute back pain- patients with severe low-back pain often improve on their own, through self-care, and stay active. If acute low back pain persists after four weeks, you can consider non-drug therapies, including Chiropractic manipulation.
• Chronic back pain- Long-term use of pain medication usually does not improve functioning for patients with chronic low-back pain. Natural therapies, including spinal manipulation, prove more beneficial. Psychological and social factors also contribute to chronic low-back pain. Most patients with chronic low-back pain will not become pain-free, so treatment should be more focused on improving function and reducing pain.

Symptoms of Back Pain

• With back pain, the connection to a source within the body is not always evident. People are showing no spinal abnormalities on their X-rays yet suffer from excruciating back pain.
• Pain affects the back area and does not radiate to the leg.
• Difficulty standing, walking, or sitting.
• Muscle spasms or cramps
• Pain is suddenly felt
• Back is sore to the touch

Causes of Back Pain

• The human spine is a complex structure of discs, joints, tendons, ligaments, and muscles. There are several possible causes of back pain or discomfort. Most back pain sufferers don’t seek help to find out the reason for their back pain, thinking that the pain will go away on its own. They only get medical assistance if the pain intensifies and becomes unbearable.
• Strained Muscles or Ligaments
  • Muscles, ligaments, and tendons get strained when they are pulled or torn, which can damage fibers resulting in pain. It is usual among athletes and weekend warriors who engage in physically-demanding activities. However, you can still suffer from pulled muscle or ligaments while doing things, such as lifting, at home, or work.
• Stress
  • When you are stressed, you become tense, your blood pressure and heart rate rise, and your muscles tighten. Constant stress causes your muscles to become sore and weak.
• Vertebral Subluxation
  • The vertebral subluxation is a result of the spine in which alignment, movement integrity, and physiological functions are compromised. The reasons are functional, structural, and pathological articular changes. In the lumbar spine, these usually occur at the transition between the lower spine and the sacrum. Because of the relationship between the spinal column, the spinal cord, and the spinal nerves, vertebral subluxations have the potential to impair proper nerve function.
• Herniated Disc
  • When the rubbery cushions located between vertebrae or individual bones in the spine are ruptured, it results in a herniated disc. When one of these discs develops a crack in its hard outer wall, the inner disc material is pushed into the spinal canal. When this happens, the herniated disc irritates the nerves and causes pain, weakness, or numbness.