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Back  Sprain

About Back Sprain

The back is a complex structure with bone, muscle, cartilage, tendons, and ligaments, as well as a network of blood vessels and nerves. Walking, running, lifting, and other activities place a great deal of weight on the back—especially on the lumbar area. Sprains occur as a result of strained or torn ligaments which are the fibrous bands of tissue that connect two or more bones at a joint and prevent excessive movement of the joint.

What Causes Back Sprain?

A sprain frequently happens as a result of a fall, abrupt twist, or trauma to the body that moves a joint out of its natural position.Any of these circumstances cause injury by overstretching one or more ligaments beyond their usual range of motion.  Conversely, sometimes a sprain may happen without any obvious injury or trauma.  Over-stretching or poor posture may result in back sprain.

A person may also be more susceptible to a back strain or sprain for the following reasons:

  • overly bending the lower back
  • obesity
  • having tight hamstrings, weak back muscles, and/or weak abdominal muscles (muscles in the back of the thighs).
  • Poor muscle strength, conditioning and tone

The risk of back sprain also increases when you play sports that involve pushing and pulling, such as weightlifting and football.

Symptoms Of Back Sprain

Pain
Patients with back sprain experience pain that worsens with movement. The pain experienced can vary from a dull ache to sharp shooting pain with movement.
Cramping or spams
Patients may also experience sudden uncontrollable muscle contractions, cramps, and spasms.
Other Symptoms
Some may also experience decreased function and/or range of motion of the joint like difficulty in walking, bending forward or sideways, or standing straight.

A Message About Back Sprain

A back sprain can present as severe back pain, debilitating and disabling to the point of being bedbound. Sometimes, the cause of a back sprain may not be obvious and may present itself after sleep or an innocuous activity. The pain from back sprain may be similar to that of a spinal vertebral fracture or slipped disc with nerve impingement. Hence the severity of back pain is not synonymous with the severity of the cause of back pain.

Most back sprains need short periods of bed rest and they tend to heal after a few weeks. Regaining back movement tends to improve and accelerate healing and result in the resolution of back pain.

Some acute back sprain may progress to chronic back pain. These will require a different approach, such as PRP injection into the injured muscle areas, improving proliferation and fibroblastic activity to encourage healing.

Diagnosing Back Sprain

At Singapore Paincare clinics, our team of experienced primary care doctors and pain care specialists together with an orthopaedic will evaluate your condition. Our doctors will perform a physical examination to look out for the above symptoms of back sprains. If there is a weakness or loss of function, an X-ray may be requested to rule out other possible conditions like a fracture or herniated disc.

What Treatments Are Available for Back Sprain?

Our goal at Singapore Paincare is to treat your pain with the least invasive option after accurately identifying the cause of your pain. Our pain resolution approach focuses on removing pain generators via specialised injection and minimally invasive procedures. Combined with pharmacological treatments and cognitive and physical rehabilitative therapies, we help patients improve their functionality and prevent pain from recurring.

Non-Surgical Treatments for Back Sprain

Non-Steroidal Anti-Inflammatory drugs
NSAIDs have anti-inflammatory and analgesic effects. These drugs help to relieve pain. The short term use of these medications will improve the muscle inflammation and swelling, thereby reducing the pain intensity.
Coreflex or Myospan Injection
Our Coreflex injection uses a mix of local anaesthetic, anti-inflammatory and muscle relaxant, which helps to break the pain cycle, reduce inflammation, and improve healing. Myospan PRP injection would be more suitable for a chronic back sprain. The platelet-rich plasma will improve blood supply to the injured area, thereby increasing fibroblastic activity and scarring and healing of the injured soft tissue.
Physical Therapy
The therapy sessions by our specialists involve aerobic training to reduce pain. It also consists of isometric exercises to increase the motion of the joint.However, the intensity and type of exercise may differ based on the conditions of the patient.

Surgical Treatments for Back Sprain

There is no surgical treatment for back sprains. Non-surgical methods are generally effective but full recovery may take up to 3 months if the injury is severe.

How Can I Prevent Back Sprain?

While you can’t fully protect yourself from any accidents that may cause back sprain, incorporating these strategies can help lower the risk of a back sprain:

  • Regular exercises and stretches
  • Eating a healthy balanced diet
  • Maintaining a good posture when sitting, standing and lifting
  • Maintaining a healthy weight

Get Your Pain Resolved

Send your enquiries or consult our pain experts today.

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