Low back pain is incredibly common. Nearly one–half of all working Americans notice painful symptoms in the lower back at least once each year, and roughly 31 million individuals are affected by it at any given point in time. Thus, low back pain is essentially just a part of life and something that most of us will eventually encounter, like it or not.
Dealing with low back pain can be troublesome and place a strain on everyday life. Typical movements like bending over to pick something up off the ground or twisting your torso when looking to the side might suddenly give you pause and make you less mobile. Being regularly bothered by pain and movement limitations will often lead one to wonder what’s causing the pain and what steps can be taken next to address it.
The truth is that the specific cause of low back pain is usually difficult to pinpoint, and regardless of its cause, the most effective treatment is almost always a comprehensive and individualized physical therapy treatment program. Nonetheless, although rare, there are a few signs that may be “red flags” and warrant further investigation. To help you better understand what could be causing your back pain and what to do next, below are the 6 most common low back pain conditions seen by physical therapists and some red flags to be aware of:
For more information about red flags to consider with low back pain, click here. In our next post, we describe our picks for the best exercises to reduce your risk for low back pain.
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