Author: Lenard MD

A lot of times it’s very reasonable to try injections before you consider surgery. Injections vary a lot. They can be as simple as what’s called a trigger point injection, which can be performed in the office, in the area of the back or neck that is experiencing the most pain, all the way up to an injection around the spine, such as an epidural steroid injection, which can help the patient relieve pain and sometimes make it so that they don’t need surgery.

There are a lot of things that are nonsurgical that patients can try before considering surgery for back problems. Typically they include physical therapy and or chiropractic treatment, a home exercise program, medications, sometimes by prescription, sometimes over the counter, and injections as well.

If none of these things work and the symptoms are bad enough and there’s a reasonable surgical option, that’s when it’s time to consider surgery.

In terms of when patients should see a doctor for back pain, it really varies patient by patient. People perceive pain differently. What could be a 1 out of 10 to one patient in terms of pain could be a 9 out of 10 to another. Really when the pain is so bad that routine over-the-counter medications don’t allow you to live your life, that would be a good time as to when to see a doctor.

There are a lot of different causes of back pain. The most common one is simple sprain or strain. Someone lifts something heavy, throws their back out, if you will. And then there’s some underlying things that make people susceptible to that, whether it’s arthritis, preexisting herniated disc, things of that nature.