Prognosis | Back pain of the lumbar spine

Prognosis

The majority of people with back pain in the lumbar spine have a good prognosis. In more than half of the cases, the pain disappears within a week, and after two weeks, about 80% of patients have recovered at least enough to resume normal activities. In over 60% of cases, however, symptoms reoccur.

Duration

To assess the duration of back pain in the lumbar spine, the cause must first be considered. For example, if there is an acute inflammation, it can usually be treated successfully and the pain is only present for a few days to weeks. Unfortunately, back pain is often chronic.

If it occurs with age, it is often a mixture of many components. Frequently it comes in the age to the so-called degeneration, thus the wear, of bones. This is especially true for the spine, since it is stressed every day.

In such cases, the cause can only be influenced to a limited extent, which unfortunately means that back pain is often not completely curable. As a consequence, the affected persons have to learn to deal with the complaints in everyday life. It is therefore important to listen to your own body and to take countermeasures early on when the pain begins.

An upright posture in everyday life is just as important as regular sport and strengthening the muscles of the back. Another recurrent cause is a herniated disc, which can lead to pain for varying lengths of time depending on the severity and timing of the therapy. Unfortunately, pain often remains in the long term due to damage to the nerve structures.

Summary

Severe back pain of the lumbar spine is not uncommon, nothing unusual and should never be underestimated. What began as a relatively harmless acute back pain (e.g. morning stiffness or slight neck tension) can develop into a chronic back pain that can last a lifetime in the worst case. Conclusion is that many symptoms can be relieved by simple measures and even prevented by a bit of personal initiative.

How can everyone prevent this martyrdom? the most important aspect, apart from a healthy lifestyle, is plenty of exercise, sports activities and a balanced degree of relaxation. Should a profession be practised that is connected with activities that are particularly hard on the back, such as office work, heavy lifting on building sites, etc.

Back training is recommended to strengthen the muscles and learn back-friendly lifting and job-related behavior. Overweight should also be avoided through a healthy diet. Too many kilos strain the spine and quickly lead to back pain in the lumbar spine.