Causes of Back and Neck Pain

Back and neck pain has a variety of causes, including poor posture and poor body mechanics. For example, standing for long periods of time or sitting incorrectly can cause pain. Low back pain is often associated with heavy physical work, lifting or forceful movement, bending or twisting, or awkward positions. Uncommon but serious causes of back and neck pain my include tumors, fractures, and infections. Other common causes of back and neck pain include:

Sprain or strain
A sudden fall, car accident, or simply lifting something too heavy may cause back and neck pain. When an injury happens, muscles, ligaments, and tendons can become over-stretched or torn. Tissue may swell, causing pain, tenderness, and stiffness. Muscle strains are the most common cause of low back pain. Most episodes of pain from muscle strains resolve within a few weeks.

Obesity
Being overweight puts pressure and stress on the back. Carrying extra weight can aggravate other health conditions such as osteoporosis (weak bones), osteoarthritis (joint pain), degenerative disc disease (wear and tear due to age), spinal stenosis, and spondylolisthesis.

Aging
Ligaments can thicken and discs dry out with age. These changes may lead to disorders that cause pressure on your spinal nerves leading to symptoms like pain, numbness, or weakness. Degenerative disc disease is an example of an age-related spinal disorder. As we age, our discs can lose their normal structure and function. This can result in a herniated disc (bulging out) and pain. Disc tears can irritate the spinal nerves causing nerve pain (radiculopathy).

Ruptured disc
Also called a herniated disc, this is another common cause of back and neck pain. Additionally, a ruptured disc may cause leg or arm pain, numbness, and/or weakness.

Discogenic back pain
This is a common cause of low back pain. Discogenic back pain is the result of damage to the structural stability of the intervertebral disc itself, with or without disc herniation. Diagnosis of this condition may require the use of a discogram.

Spinal stenosis
Spinal stenosis causes back and neck pain in the aging population. The spinal canal can narrow and become constricted, due in part to arthritis and other conditions. If the spinal canal becomes too narrow and too tight, back and neck pain can be the result.

Arthritis
This condition commonly affects large joints such as the knees and hips. Arthritis may also affect the small joints (facets) and discs of the spine causing pain that may be present after prolonged rest (stiffness) or too much activity or movement (soreness).

Spondylolisthesis
This condition causes back pain because adjacent vertebras become unstable and begin to “slip”. The most common cause of spondylolisthesis is due to degenerative changes causing loss of the normal stabilizing structures of the spinal column. If the spine becomes unstable enough, back pain can become a problem.

Osteoporosis
This condition can cause a number of orthopedic problems and discomfort. Back pain from osteoporosis is most commonly related to compression fractures of the vertebra. Osteoporosis causes weak bones and can lead to these fractures.

Mechanical pain
This is a pain that is deep and agonizing in nature. It is not related to muscle spasm and activity worsens the pain while inactivity (bed rest) improves the pain. It is potentially a surgical problem in that instability can cause mechanical pain. Discectomy and/or laminectomy are a surgical treatment for this problem.

Muscle spasm
Muscle spasm is essentially a muscle pull of the back muscles. The muscles of the back are tender to the touch. Bed rest or inactivity does not usually relieve the pain significantly. Muscle spasm, as an isolated entity, is a non-surgical problem.

Sciatica
Sciatica and some central back problems can be related to nerve compression. Sciatica is caused by a herniated disc or bulging disc that compresses or squeezes a nerve as it exits the spinal canal causing back pain. Discectomy and/or laminectomy is a treatment of choice for this problem.

Degenerative disc disorder
Numerous spine disorders require surgery for relief of painful symptoms. One of the basic underlying factors associated with most spine disorders is the dehydration of the discs. As we age (starting around 30), the gelatin-like centers dry out and become flattened, causing the vertebrae to lose height and its healthy resilience. With this degeneration, the vertebrae get closer together and cause nerve irritation, which usually stems from a ruptured disc, bone spurs, or stenosis.

Bone spurs
With the aging wear and tear of the spine, some patients develop bony outgrowths. These growths are bone spurs, also known as osteophytes. Bone spurs are the body’s natural response to the inflammation that results from the aging spine. As the spurs grow and extend, the vertebral openings become narrow. The narrowing is stenosis (see spinal stenosis).