Causes of Low Back Pain
Low back pain is generally blamed on poor back-muscle tone, muscle tension or spasms, back sprains, tears in ligaments or muscles, and joint problems. Sometimes nerves, as they leave the spinal cord, can be irritated by slipped disks. Such irritation can cause pain in the buttocks or legs and numbness, tingling, or weakness in the legs.
The causes of low back pain are not clear, but recent research has provided some valuable insights. Autopsy studies have shown that people who had back pain also had characteristic soft tissue injuries. In particular, small tears of the connective tissue membranes that link the outer shell of the disk to the vertebrae appeared to be responsible for the pain experienced. When these membranes tear, bleeding, inflammation, and swelling occur. The chemical by-products of this tissue damage make the normally alkaline disk acidic. The acidity then irritates neighboring nerves and causes the pain.
Because the disks do not have a blood supply of their own, enhanced fluid exchange is the only mechanism for improving cell nutrition and for removing offending chemical agents and excess acidity. Fluid exchange can be accomplished by physically moving extracellular fluid into and out of the disks by moving the spine. If time passes without adequate mobilization, the biochemical and mechanical changes caused by the soft tissue injury become less reversible, and the chances increase that the back pain will become chronic.
