Acute Management
The important point to emphasize is that in the majority of cases, low back pain will improve on its own - Robert Glatter MD
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If You Have Lower Back Pain, Don't Reach For A Pill
The next time you experience a flare-up of low back pain or develop a backache after playing tennis or lifting some heavy books, you may want to reconsider reaching for ibuprofen or a muscle relaxant. While it’s quite tempting to reach for a pill as a “quick fix,” there are alternative approaches that might work just as well, if not better.
This shift in management is now supported by new guidelines released earlier this week by the American College of Physicians (ACP), which recommend avoiding pills and using other modalities such as massage, heat, acupuncture, exercise, yoga or physical therapy as the primary approach to patients with low back pain lasting less than 12 weeks' duration.
Resources
A comprehensive guide to the new science of treating lower back pain
A review of 80-plus studies upends the conventional wisdom.
Back to Basics: Treatment of Acute Low Back Pain in the ED
The breadth and depth of the treatment of back pain is expansive, and often focused on specific diagnoses. An especially challenging subtype of acute low back pain (ALBP) to treat is nonspecific low back pain, as it by definition has no easily identifiable pathologic or anatomic cause. Thus, there are no specific treatments that can target an etiology for nonspecific low back pain, which remains a diagnosis of exclusion.
Doctors finally admit drugs can’t fix most cases of back pain
The American College of Physicians now recommends heat therapy and yoga ahead of pain meds for low back pain.
Lower Back Ache? Be Active and Wait It Out, New Guidelines Say
“For acute back pain, the analogy is to the common cold,” Dr. Deyo said. “It is very common and very annoying when it happens. But most of the time it will not result in anything major or serious. ”
Opioids are not the best way to treat short-term back pain, study finds
A carefully conducted study of treatments for short-term back pain finds that opioids aren't the best approach. The results throw into question current guidelines.
The Best Lower Back Stretches to Try ASAP
Low back pain is no joke — but with the help of these gentle stretches, you may be able to get some relief.
To Fight Lower Back Pain, Start at the Bottom
Former Dallas Cowboys quarterback Troy Aikman’s trainer discusses the importance of the glutes in maintaining core strength and preventing lower back pain.
What's the best way to treat lower back pain? Here's what the science says
Hint: It's not painkillers, bed rest, or surgery.
If You Have Lower Back Pain, Don't Reach For A Pill
The next time you experience a flare-up of low back pain or develop a backache after playing tennis or lifting some heavy books, you may want to reconsider reaching for ibuprofen or a muscle relaxant. While it’s quite tempting to reach for a pill as a “quick fix,” there are alternative approaches that might work just as well, if not better.
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