Severe pain in the back can affect simple physical activities, like arm movement, walking, sitting, bending, or even sleeping. If you constantly suffer from excruciating back pain, then read the following article to know about the common causes of upper and lower backache.

A back carries the burden of the entire human body and facilitates our movements in all possible angles. Back pain can be experienced due to excessive stress or damage to the muscles, ligaments, discs, or tendons. Studies indicate that at least four out of five adults suffer from severe back pain at least once during their lifetime. Knowing the causes of an immobilizing backache may help in avoiding this painful awkward situation. Numerous factors like vitamin deficiency, poor diet, lack of exercise, excessive stress (physical and mental), wrong posture, muscle tightness, muscle weakness, pinched nerve, etc., are responsible for an unbearable pain in the back.

Causes of Severe Backache

• Lumbar Muscle Strain
  This is perhaps the most common cause of a sudden tormenting back pain. Lifting extremely heavy objects, wrong posture, lack of muscle conditioning, nutrient deficiency, side effects of drugs, menstruation, or pregnancy can lead to muscle spasms in the back. Pain due to muscle cramps disappears within a few days.
• Osteoarthritis
  Osteoarthritis or degenerative joint disease is the most common type of arthritis and involves the degradation of joints. It results in the breakdown of cartilage in joints and commonly occurs in the weight bearing joints of the hips, knees, and spine. The degenerative process that is associated with aging may impact the cervical, thoracic, and/or lumbar regions of the spine affecting the discs and spinal joints.
• Spinal Stenosis
  Spinal stenosis is one of the most common causes of a sharp back pain in people over the age of 50. It occurs as a result of constriction of space surrounding the spinal cord or spinal nerves. It is more often seen in people who have arthritis.
• Ruptured Disc
  Ruptured disc or herniated disc occurs when the cushion lying between the spinal vertebrae is pushed outside its normal position. Repetitive straining of the spine, an accident, or a sudden fall can cause the disc to rupture.
• Osteoporosis
  Osteoporosis usually affects the thoracic and thoracolumbar regions of the spine and may cause a terrible pain in the back. A loss of bone mineral density resulting in fragile bones is responsible for this disorder.
• Discogenic back pain
  A damaged, degenerated, or worn out lumbar intervertebral disc can lead to an unbearable pain and a restricted body movement. The exact cause of the pain can be found out with the help of a discogram.

In addition to the above causes, excruciating upper back pain can be experienced due to injuries, dysfunctioning of joints in the upper back ribs and vertebrae, fibromyalgia, etc. The causes of an agonizing lower back pain can be scoliosis (curvature of the spine), injuries, and other problems mentioned above. Sudden pain in the back, immediately after you wake up, can be due to a wrong sleeping posture. Tormenting upper left back pain can be a symptom of a heart attack. In fact, dysfunction of any of the bodily systems or organs can lead to a backache. So, the pain should not be neglected.

Constant Backache During Pregnancy

A woman experiences various physical and emotional changes during pregnancy. Almost 80% of pregnant women complain about constant pain in the back. Hormonal changes, the new shape that shifts the center of gravity of your body, increased weight, etc., are responsible for the pain. Throbbing backache can be experienced after prolonged sitting, standing, or repetitive lifting, as the muscles along the spine are stressed during pregnancy. Prompt medical attention and sometimes, sufficient rest offers relief from the pain.

Back exercises performed under the guidance of a physician, ice and heat treatment, pain killers, massage with olive or sesame oil, comfortable bedding, sufficient rest, healthy diet, maintaining a correct posture, etc., greatly help in relieving the pain. If nothing works, your doctor may recommend cortisone injections that provide mobility to the painful back, and the pain disappears within a few minutes.

Regular exercising, stretching, and warming up is necessary to train the muscles. Reducing weight in case of obesity helps in averting debilitating backache. Hospitalization and surgery is required in very few cases. Adopting a healthy lifestyle and maintaining correct sitting and sleeping postures is the easiest way to prevent severe back pain. Good eating habits help in maintaining the strength of bones and muscles.

Disclaimer: This Buzzle article is for informative purposes only and should not be used as a replacement for expert medical advice.