Question
I have had a very bothersome back pain since mid July 2008.  It started while I was running around a park and halfway through I could not walk without very severe back pain.  Did not hurt standing still but very much while moving.  Over time it has just become this pain inbetween my shoulder blades.  My doctor was just giving me flexiril until I was persistant in saying that the pain was not going away and wanted to know what was wrong.  My doctor is very tight-lipped on giving an answer for what ever reason.  I have now had Xrays and an MRI and awaiting to see when he wants to reschedule for another meeting.  He said that my Xray showed a slight tilt and said he did not know anything else as he only saw the file and not the film(or vise versa)  I had an MRI done last week which said this:

C Spine

1. Patent cervical spinal canal and neural foramina.
2. There is a 1.5 cm retention cyst in the right maxillary sinus.

T-Spine

1.  No MR evidence of severe thoracic spinal canal stenosis or neural foraminal inpingement.
2. Visualized portions of the thoracic cord demonstrate normal.

So this does not look bad but i am an engineer not a MD by any means.  If this is so what would you recommend the next step be?

Answer
Back pain is usually of muscular origin.

If your pectoral muscles are tight, they interfere with the rib movements of breathing, which can induce muscular fatigue and soreness in the muscles that control rib movement (that participate in breathing), in your back.

You may read my articles on back pain at somatics.com/page4b.htm, for a clearer understanding and options for relief.

You're dealing with a conditioning problem, something that no drug can correct.  But you can retrain your movement and posture for freedom of movement, and that should take care of the problem.

with regard,
Lawrence Gold