In the UK, more than 2.8 million adults have problems linked to their back or neck. Among all the kinds of chronic pain, chronic back pain is one of the most common types people suffer from.
Chronic back problems are the leading cause of disability with nearly 119 million days a year lost: one in eight unemployed people give back pain as the reason they are not working.
If you’re living with neck and/or lower back pain, being diagnosed and treated by the right specialist is key, as the percentage of people who return to see their GP with back pain within three months is more than 29%.
Causes
Back pain can have many causes. It’s not always obvious what causes it, and it often gets better on its own. A common cause of back pain is an injury like a pulled muscle (strain). However, medical conditions like a slipped disc, sciatica (a trapped nerve), arthritis of the spine or ankylosing spondylitis can cause back pain and do require treatment.
Symptoms
Your symptoms will depend on what is causing your pain. Common conditions causing lower back and neck pain signs include:
- Slipped disc – lower back pain, numbness or tingling in your shoulders, back, arms, hands, legs or feet. Neck pain and problems bending or straightening your back, and muscle weakness.
- Sciatica – lower back pain that can travel to the buttocks and legs. The pain may be stabbing, burning or shooting, tingling like pins and needles, numbness and weakness.
- Ankylosing spondylitis – back pain and stiffness, pain and swelling in other parts of the body – caused by inflammation of the joints (arthritis) and inflammation where a tendon joins a bone and extreme tiredness (fatigue).
Treatment options
Although managing and treating chronic back pain can be a challenge, there are a wide variety of advanced treatment options that we offer. Our lead expert, Pain Management Consultant, Dr Joshua Adedokun has extensive experience in diagnosing and treating chronic pain conditions, tailored to individual patient needs which include:
- Cervical and lumbar facet joint injections
- Epidural injections
- Lumbar sympathetic blocks
- Trigger point injections
- Radiofrequency procedures
- Nerve root blocks and paravertebral blocks
- Coeliac plexus/sympathetic blocks
- Qutenza patch treatment
Find out more about Dr Joshua Adedokun and book an appointment here.