Posted on April 15, 2008 in Latest News
Lumbar arthritis (also called as Lumbosacral arthritis) affects lower back and pelvic girdle. It causes inflammation of the joints, pain and loss of movement in these areas. It also causes bone spurs where projections of bones that grow out of the normal skeletal structure in an attempt to increase joint stability. This type of situation can easily deter the function of the spinal nerves.
Causes of Lumbar Arthritis
The exact cause of lumbar arthritis is unknown, but some of the following conditions cause the condition.
- Degeneration of the spine which occurs as one ages can result in lumbar arthritis
- An injury to the back can develop into lumbar arthritis
- Job occupations that include heavy lifting, long hours of driving, sitting and other jobs that put lot of pressure on the backbone
- Overweight and sedentary lifestyle
Symptoms of Lumbar Arthritis
- Pain and swelling in the joints
- Stiffness of the joints
- Lower back pain or pelvic pain
- Weakness, tingling and numbness in the legs
- Difficulty in mobility
- This type of arthritis changes your postures impacting other weight bearing joints such as hip, knee. This impact causes pain in these areas.
Treatment of Lumbar Arthritis
Treatment of lumbar arthritis aims at reducing and controlling the pain, so that the patient can lead a normal life. Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory medications or non-narcotics are generally prescribed for pain management. In cases of extreme pain corticosteroid epidural is injected into the affected area. In this type of arthritis it is always advised to reduce the excess use of muscle relaxants and painkillers. Excess use of muscle relaxants increases the dependency and excess use of pain killers can cause sprain or injure the back.
Improving physical fitness makes a big difference in treating lumbar arthritis. It improves your condition as well as your overall health. This you can do through a guided exercise program to stretch and build up abdominal and back muscles.
Obesity puts a lot of pressure on your back which makes your condition worse. So it is important you take necessary steps to manage your weight. Even you need to avoid drinking and smoking. Beside all this all the conservative methods also improve the condition. Surgery for lumbar arthritis is relatively rare. It is done in case of severity and where other treatment methods fail to cure the situation.
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