What Causes Lower Left Back Pain?

Brief Answer:
Back pain

Detailed Answer:
Good morning. I'm very sorry that your back is bothering you and understanding that putting ice on the area gives temporary relief. You've not provided details on the evolution (when it started and how it's progressed), onset (abrupt without warning, after physical activity, or insidiously over a long course of time), or quality of the pain (sharp, stabbing, shooting, burning, tingling, etc.). Therefore, my apologies if I am not able to decide one way or the other what the best course of action would be but I will do my best.


If this is a chronic problem which has been diagnosed and for which you have been told in the past the cause...such as a bulging or herniated disk, pulled or strained muscles due to continuous physical activity such as bending or lifting, etc. THEN, I highly recommend that you be seen at an Urgent Care Center (if you do not have a family doctor) or your family doctor if they can get you in quickly and get a urinalysis performed along with a culture and sensitivity so that the diagnosis of a UTI such as a bladder infection or even kidney infection be ruled out.

If the problem is not that but still is something that you've not had for very long or has ramped up little by little then, there may a pinched nerve in the back or strained back muscles that need to be diagnosed. For that a good physical examination can be performed along with appropriate imaging such as either a CT or PREFERABLY and MRI to rule out things such as arthritic degenerative disease of the spine, bulging, or herniated disks though in the latter case symptoms often are reported as radiating down the buttock and leg and do not respond very well to thermal sorts of considerations. Or in a bit of an extreme case of possibility there could be either an abscess or other mass lesion pressing on structures in the back so if called for the imaging study may be ordered with contrast media (CT contrast or Gadolinium for MRI).

Based upon the results of laboratory testing for the urine and BTW, I would also order a CBC with differential to see where your white count may be since an elevation is more evidence of an acute infection with or without the urinary testing results being positive.

Finally, if you still do have your female organs such as the uterus and ovaries then, an ultrasound looking at those could be done as somewhat of a last diagnostic resort if nothing else is panning out.

In the mean time and until you get either an examination or some imaging studies performed I would advise you to not go too heavily on the Motrin tablets for pain relief for the purpose of not offending your stomach lining which can be harmed and cause bleeding or other complications from ulcer formation. You may consider EXTRA STRENGTH Tylenol which would be much less likely to cause such problems but also by the same token should be used according to labeled instructions and not more than the recommended 3 grams daily to avoid damage to the kidneys.

If you are interested in using the cold compress method of treating this pain and would like something that would be even more ROBUST and longer lasting in its effect simply because you can leave the device on for extended periods of time then, consider a device called a THERMAZONE machine. It can be used for both acute and chronic pain symptoms in different parts of the body though it was originally designed and FDA approved for use as a form of MIGRAINE THERAPY. The results for headaches were so positive when the company first came out for the machine that they quickly began testing it using different pads and other attachments to be used in places such as the shoulder, neck, knees, and back. You would have to GOOGLE the device but it is available though not all insurance companies will pick up the cost since it is considered DURABLE MEDICAL EQUIPMENT. Still, I've got patients who gladly pay out of pocket for the machine which gives them a lot of relief....it's NOT A CURE for whatever the underlying may be causing your pain....but man do people generally rave about it when I prescribe it for their headaches!......and some for their other aches and pains! LOL

Hopes for a quick solution to your problem so that you can enjoy the holiday season in comfort and joy! Cheers!

If I've provided useful and helpful information to your questions could you do me a huge favor by CLOSING THE QUERY and be sure to include some fine words of feedback along with a 5 STAR rating? Again, many thanks for posing your question and please let me know how things turn out.

Do not forget to contact me in the future at: www.bit.ly/drdariushsaghafi for additional questions, comments, or concerns having to do with this topic or others.

This query has utilized a total of 36 minutes of professional time in research, review, and synthesis for the purpose of formulating a return statement.

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Brief Answer:
I would continue to support ruling out other entities as described

Detailed Answer:
Good morning and many thanks for the clarifications. You're right....you did leave out just a TAD BIT more information! LOL.

Nevertheless, the one thing that I still take away from your question initially is that something about this pain is different from the chronic pain that you have which has already been diagnosed as multifocal degenerative arthritic disease.

Therefore, I believe it is perfectly reasonable to perform some of the other tests that I've mentioned such as the urinalysis, urine culture, blood markers just to be sure no kidney or bladder infection were afoot. Secondly, if you've not had an imaging study of the back in some time and if this pain that is newer is clearly bothersome as something that could possibly be related to some type of mass pressing again the spinal column or cord in any way (I'm not THAT suspicious for something of that nature since you've left out some other rather telltale signs) THEN, I would perform a NEW MRI of the lumbar or thoracic spines to be sure nothing odd or unexpected had cropped up.

If all of these tests are performed and come up negative then, you have a new TYPE of pain that you can now recognize and add to the list of other pains that you connect easily with your already diagnosed arthritic disease. Of course, solving the pain issues come down to other things and maybe that's a more difficult question to answer. However, I still would like you to heed the warning that the dosing of excessive amounts of NSAIDS such as Motrin, Advil, Aleve, and their generics is not recommended for the side effects they produce. There are now TOPICAL NSAIDS such as diclofenac which comes as a patch and also DROPS that can be put on to a local area of arthritic pain and discomfort which recently have shown to have at least as good if not superior results in some cases to using systemic pills and tablets. The brand names in the U.S. of these items are FLECTOR and PENNSAID respectively. I prescribed both for patients with positive results. However, they are rather expensive compared to generic tablet equivalents and most insurance coverages likely will not pick them up unless your doctor can show you have special medical necessities which make patches or drops a MUST for your pain as opposed to anything else.

Isn't insurance wonderful when they play these sorts of "which cup is the seed under?"

So again, to sum up the rapidity of your pain in the back and its increased level of intensity in my opinion still justifies a workup which can be done by blood, urine, and imaging studies....oh, let's not forget that SOLID PHYSICAL EXAMINATION?? And that should help you rule in or out other things that need immediate attention vs. chronic pain symptoms which will require another look at the therapeutic management approaches.

Thank you also for your kind comments on the help you've received and intent to score our interaction on the high scale.....it allows me to request bigger bags of peanuts as a snack from management as I sit and often times burn the midnight oil answering questions.....which BTW, I hope you can tell...gives me a lot of enjoyment and sense of having the opportunity to educate one more individual on alternatives they can discuss with their doctors for feeling better.

Cheers this holiday season!

This query has utilized a total of 52 minutes of professional time in research, review, and synthesis for the purpose of formulating a return statement.

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