1-

• Contact Laser Spine Institute
• Request MRI Review
• Medical Consulation

You are here

• Home
• »
• Spine Conditions
• »
• Back Pain Symptoms
• »
• Back Pain Symptoms
• »
• Severe Chronic Back Pain

Severe Chronic Back Pain

Severe chronic back pain is a serious, recurring condition that threatens to affect or inhibit your daily activities. If you have been experiencing back pain for more than three months, your condition is chronic and it may mean that conservative treatment methods will not provide enough pain relief. The spine is such an integral part of our body that we sometimes forget how much we depend on its health, and severe chronic back pain could be the spine’s way of telling your body that something isn’t right.

Your spine is made up of bony vertebrae, soft intervertebral discs, facet joints, muscles, ligaments, and tendons. At the center of all this armor is your spinal cord, a fragile and powerful nerve center of your body. After years and years of activity, however, all parts of the spine can degenerate and become prone to damage. Let’s look at several common conditions that can lead to severe chronic back pain:

• Degenerative disc disease – intervertebral discs disintegrate due to aging
• Spinal arthritis – affects joints of the spine, either through inflammation (rheumatoid spinal arthritis) or through degeneration (osteoarthritis)
• Spinal stenosis – a narrowing of the spinal canal that exerts pressure on nerves

These conditions can be linked to the following types of damage:

• Herniated disc – inner-disc fluid spills into spinal canal, leading to impingement on nerves
• Bulging disc – a shifted disc impinges on spinal nerves
• Bone spurs – extra bone growths, also called osteophytes, can impinge on nerve tissue

Click Here to see how you can get your life back in 5 days

When you talk to your physician, try and describe your back pain symptoms honestly and accurately. Remember to talk about the frequency of your pain, its location, what activities make it worse, and what activities you are prevented from doing because of the back pain. Also tell you doctor what treatment options you’ve already tried, such as over-the-counter pain medication, hot and cold packs, or mild massage. Chances are, your doctor will send you for an MRI or CT scan in order to confirm a diagnosis. He or she may recommend an amplified treatment routine that involves physical therapy, prescription medications, and steroid injections.

Unfortunately, these forms of relief are temporary and are not effective for all patients. If your chronic back pain symptoms persist, the award-winning surgeons at Laser Spine Institute (LSI) may be able to help. Our minimally-invasive, endoscopic procedures offer a fast recuperation period and high success rates, so an increased quality of life may be just around the corner for you. Contact us today for a free review of your MRI or CT scan.

Please note: Laser Spine Institute currently does not perform endoscopic procedures on the thoracic spine.