Back Pain Self Help

Medical treatment for back pain can involve several disciplines

Since back pain is one of the main reasons people visit a doctor these days, most general medical practitioners have a great deal of experience in diagnosing back pain. Your doctor will observe how you walk, bend, sit, and stand and then will ask you to lie down on an examination table, where he/she will do a hands-on examination of your back, while you lie on your stomach.

Then you will be asked to turn over and the doctor will check your reflexes. He/she may raise each of your legs and ask you to try to bring your knees to your chest, to find out which movements are painful for you. If your back pain is caused by muscle spasms or strain, your doctor will probably prescribe pain medication and anti-inflammatories.

But if your doctor suspects that your back pain is caused by something other than simple muscle spasming or strain, he/she may order diagnostic tests to try to find out the cause of your back pain, then refer you on to the relevant general medical practitioner or specialist for diagnosis and treatment.

Orthopedic surgeon and Neurosurgeon

Surgery can sometimes prevent paralysis and can often offer immediate relief from severe back pain. Orthopedic surgeons and neurosurgeons are Medical Doctors or Doctors of Osteopathy who are highly trained in the use of surgery to correct back problems.

While they generally perform the same types of spinal surgery, orthopedic surgeons and neurosurgeons do specialise in certain areas, e.g. orthopedic surgeons operate to correct spinal deformities and neurosurgeons operate on tumours close to the spinal cord. Recent improvements in surgical technique have led to higher success rate and less post-op pain and faster healing.

An Anesthesiologist often treats patients suffering from chronic back pain, sometimes as part of a pain management clinic or spine care centre, but more familiarly as part of a surgical team, administering pain controlling drugs and maintain life support systems during surgery. Anesthesiologists also supervise care before surgery and in the recovery room.

Neurologist

Neurologists are Medical Doctors or Doctors of Osteopathy who are trained to diagnose and treat disorders of the brain, nervous system and related muscles, such as multiple sclerosis, Parkinson’s disease, epilepsy, Alzheimer’s as well as chronic pain such as back pain.

Neurologists use diagnostic test such CT scans and MRI scans, which cab provide detailed images of the brain, nerves and muscles, to diagnose problems causing back pain, as well as clinical examinations. They can also prescribe medications for neurological disorders and will refer patients for surgical evaluation, but they do not perform surgery.

They are also trained to perform spinal taps to obtain cerebrospinal fluid for analysis, and to perform EMG/NCV (electromyography/nerve conduction velocity tests, which helps to diagnose nerve and muscle disease.

Osteopathic physician

Osteopathic practitioners can prescribe drugs and tend to treat all types of lower back pain, however osteopathic physicians place great emphasis on preventative care. Heath problems are often treated with spinal manipulation osteopathic physicians, since the displacement of the spine is believed to be the source of all disease. Treatments for lower back pain can involve a wide range of therapies.

Physiatrist

Physiatrists are physical medicine and rehabilitation (PMR) specialists, who treat lower back pain with physical therapies such as exercise and stretching, epidural steroid injections, selective nerve block, IntraDiscal Electrothermal Therapy (IDET ) as well as other non-surgical options such as massage therapy, heat/ice therapy, TENS units, and prescription drugs.

They are also qualified to order diagnostic tests (CT myelogram, MRI, x-ray, and bone scans and can interpret the results. The physiatrist may specialize in many of the above treatments, and can be found practicing in hospitals, rehabilitation centers, and spine treatment centers, where they treat both acute and chronic lower back pain.

Rheumatologist

A Rheumatologist diagnoses and treats the many chronic musculoskeletal diseases that involve the joints, muscles and bones, such as rheumatoid arthritis, osteoarthritis, osteoporosis, fibromyalgia, autoimmune diseases, and tendonitis. The Rheumatologist must complete four years of medical school and two to three years in rheumatology training.