Back Spasms

Back spasms are defined as pain occurring in the back due to involuntary mild contractions of the muscles of the back. This leads to common complains of back pain. In fact, back pain is one of the most common complains of middle-aged people (about nine out of ten adults experience back pain at some or the other time in life). Thus, dealing with back spasms and back pain becomes the top priority for such people. Given below are the causes, accompanying symptoms, how to diagnose back spasms and the various treatment options available for dealing with back spasms.

Causes

Muscle Pull or Strain
Muscle pulls or strains are one of the most common back spasms causes. This may either occur spontaneously or may be the result of an exacerbation of a long standing injury. Normally, there is a catch or pull of muscle fibers, which results in stretching and tearing of muscles. This is quite a painful condition, which normally results in repeated muscle spasms in back as an attempt by the body to try to recuperate on its own.

Joint Problems
Sometimes certain problems in the joints, like pain in the synovial joints can lead to back spasms and pain in the upper and lower back. In fact, this has been identified as the culprit in one-third of the patients complaining of pain in the back. However, the way in which this kind of joint pain can lead to back spasms is not yet fully understood.

Injuries
One of the other common back spasm causes is back injuries. Many a time, as a result of injuries, either due to accidents and trauma or sports injuries, there may be back spasms. There can be many contributory factors to sports injuries, like inadequate warm ups before going in for strenuous exercise, sudden and stressful stretching, improper posture while running etc. All of these contribute greatly to back pain and may lead to painful back spasms that are often difficult to treat and have a variable prognosis.

Other Causes
Other causes of back spasms include conditions which are spurred on by degenerative diseases like osteoarthritis or deficiency diseases, like calcium or vitamin D deficiency which leads to weak bone structure. Insufficient intake of calcium and sodium also often leads to muscle pain and back spasms. Back spasms during pregnancy are also a common complaint of many women but this is often a nagging and transient problem that is normally brought on by the deficiency of calcium or vitamin D. Sometimes this problem may also occur due to hormonal problems, like malfunctioning of the parathyroid glands.

Symptoms

• Sudden pain in the back, especially lower back, which is known as lumbago.
• Twitching of muscles in the back, which is mostly transient and only causes mild pain or irritation.
• There may be palpable muscle tension in the back muscles in certain cases when they are instigated into any action.
• In some severe cases, it may not be possible to stay in a reclined position for long due to which the person suffering from back spasms at night may not be able to sleep.
• In people who suffer from repeated attacks of back spasms, there is a higher risk of being afflicted by spinal problems, like osteoporosis.
• Some patients may have difficulty bending or doing other stressful activities like exercising, climbing uphill etc.

Diagnosis

The path to attaining any kind of permanent back spasm relief is a long drawn and winding one. This is so because it is often difficult to diagnose the actual cause of back spasms. This is so because many a time, back problems also occur due to systemic conditions, like calcium deficiency or parathyroid malfunctioning, which is difficult to detect unless specifically tested for. Thus, back spasms are correctly diagnosed with the help of a combination of tests, like detailed physical and neurological examinations and an electromyography of the affected back muscles. In some stubborn cases, even procedures done under anesthesia, like medial branch block can be done so as to reach a final diagnosis. Of course, a detailed medical history also needs to be taken, as this often greatly aids one in reaching an accurate diagnosis.

Treatment

The back spasms treatment will depend on the causative factor and on the severity of symptoms exhibited. In emergency cases, where the person is getting frequent repeated attacks of back spasms which is not allowing him to sleep and is hampering his day-to-day activities, he needs to urgently visit the doctor and get the condition diagnosed and treated. In some extreme cases, there may also be need for surgery, along with the use of analgesics and anesthetizing agents to attain some kind of back pain relief.

In mild cases of back spasms, the person is normally only advised to do certain stretches for back pain which not only help mitigate the pain, but also prevent attacks of back spasms. For people suffering from chronic lower back pain (lumbago), lower back exercises are often indicated. In such cases, simple remedies like using ice packs can help not only prevent swellings due to repeated back spasms but also prevent the pain as it temporarily restricts the blood flow. Some people who do not respond to ice packs prefer to use heat treatment instead. If the pain is due to an injury, then it is best to take rest for a few days and allow the muscle to heal. So don't do any strenuous activity during that time period so as to prevent the back spasms from aggravating into full blown back aches. If you have been running, or sitting in an improper posture then you need to switch to a correct posture which will help take the pressure off your back. For this, you can also take the aid of exercises to improve posture. One can also use distraction and relaxation techniques to deal with back spasms. For others that take very long to respond to back exercises, they can take non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs or antispasmodic drugs to attain immediate back spasms relief.

It is important to understand that back spasms in itself is not a disease but merely a symptom that manifests as a result of various diseases and disorders. Thus, to really deal with and treat back spasms, it is important to treat the underlying disease causing the back pain but most of all, a healthy lifestyle supplemented by regular exercising is what will be most helpful in keeping back spasms permanently at bay.