Left lower back pain - causes | symptoms | Treatment - Sentelhealth

Left lower back pain - causes | symptoms | Treatment 

Overview

Lower back pain is a fairly common issue. According to the American chiropractic association, 80% of the population in the U.S. suffers from back pain in their lifetime. when the back pain is isolated to one side it may indicate something minor like a simple muscle spasm/strain which can be relieved by simple medications and rest or an underlying serious condition.
The pain in the lower left back can come suddenly or grow slowly over a period of time. It can be a sharp or dull ache type of pain.
The pain can radiate from bones, joints, ligaments and internal organs.

Causes -

The lower back pain isolated to one side can be caused by either one or the combination of the following causes

1)Trauma 

Trauma to the muscles, joints, ligaments and bones in the lower back accounts for the most number of cases of lower left back pain. Muscle strains are the most common cause of lower left back pain. The trauma to these structures can occur from minor injuries or can be as a result of the impact in the car accident or sports injuries.

2)Internal organs 

Though, this sounds odd but, pain isolated to one side of the back can actually come from the internal organs located in the middle back. The pain can be a result of the infection, inflammation or irritation of the organ. The organs most commonly involved in the lower left back pain are :

A)Kidney 
a)Kidney stones - pain on the left side of the back can be due to stones in the left kidney. pain occurs when a stone travels in the urinary system from the kidney to the ureter and to the bladder. However, back pain in such a condition is often accompanied by symptoms like difficulty in urination, blood in the urine and pain with urination.

b)Kidney infection - infection of the urinary tract and the bladder can spread to the kidney causing inflammation and irritation of the organ. The infection of the left kidney can cause pain in the left side of the back. other typical symptoms of the infection like fever, nausea/vomiting and burning micturition are present.

B)Intestines - ulcerative colitis an inflammatory bowel disease of the large intestine causes a marked inflammation of the intestine and causes weight loss, pain, and diarrhea. Ulcerative colitis causes sharp back and abdominal pain on one or both sides of the body.

C)Pancreas - an inflammatory condition of the pancreas called pancreatitis can cause pain in the upper abdomen which radiates to the lower back on the left side. Pain after having food is a typical presentation of such patients.

D)Gynaecological diseases - Two of the gynaecological disorders are known to cause pain in the lower back are namely endometriosis and fibroids. Pain in endometriosis is mainly sharp and stabbing in nature and is due to uterine tissue growing outside the uterus. It also causes fatigue, painful menstruation and abdominal pain.
Fibroids on the other hand are the benign masses growing inside the uterus,fibroids typically cause the left lower back pain with frequent urination, abnormal menstruation and pain during intercourse.

3)Spinal problems -
Apart from the muscle strains which is considered the most common cause of the left lower back pain, there are certain spinal causes of the left lower back pain. It can be caused by damage or injury to the spinal structures like spinal joints, vertebrae, connective tissues or muscles supporting the structures. the most commonly encountered spinal causes of lower back pain are :

a)Osteoarthritis: osteoarthritis is one the most common cause of left lower back pain, age related bone degeneration affects one or both facet joints of the vertebra leading to stiffness and dull aching pain in the left side of the lower back.

b)Lumbar disc herniation: herniation of the lumbar disc can cause pain on the side of the disc herniation,left-sided disc herniation causes left lower back pain. In disc herniation pain is more severe in the leg than in the back. The pain radiates from the lower back to the entire length of the leg down to a foot.

When to consult a doctor

A severe left lower back pain affecting the daily activities and not relieved with primary treatment is an indication for a professional medical opinion.

Whom to consult

1)Physician - physician is usually the first doctor to consult and most of the cases are managed at this level.
2)Orthopaedic surgeon - A patient with disc herniation and other orthopaedic causes are referred to the orthopaedic surgeon.

Treatment of the left lower back pain

Self-care and awareness

The first step in the treatment of the left lower back pain is self-care which includes
a)Take rest for a day or two if the pain is too severe and affecting your daily activities.
b)Avoid strenuous activities - muscle and tissue take time to recover so, avoiding the strenuous activity help them recover faster.
c)Cold packs - if swelling is present at the pain site cold packs are very effective in reducing the swelling.
d)Heat therapy - heat increases the circulation thus boosting the recovery.

Medical treatment

medical treatment is used in the self-care fails to give results, it includes the use of :

a)Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDS) - these are used as an over counter drugs to help reduce pain and discomfort. These include the drugs like ibuprofen and naproxen.

b)Muscle relaxants - muscles relaxants like baclofen are commonly used to reduce muscle tightness and spasms.

Surgical treatment 

surgery is reserved for the select number of patients not responding to above-mentioned treatments. Surgery is the last resort and is advised in patients with severe back pain not relieved after 6-12 weeks of treatment.