Back pain is a very common symptom at any age. Often this indicates the defeat of various systems - musculoskeletal, respiratory, digestive. When you have back pain, don't self-medicate. Only a doctor can quickly determine the cause and treatment tactics.
Back ache
Back pain is very different. It can be associated with eating or coughing, psycho-emotional experiences. The causes of this symptom are gastroduodenitis and cholecystitis, bronchitis and pneumonia, angina and acute coronary syndrome. However, these diseases are often accompanied by other characteristic complaints, which allow the doctor to correctly make a differential diagnosis.
Much more often, back pain is a sign of damage to the musculoskeletal system. It occurs in such diseases:
- Osteochondrosis (thoracic, lumbar or common).
- Scoliosis.
- Projection.
- Intervertebral hernia.
- spinal stenosis.
By themselves, these degenerative diseases rarely present with pain. However, as the pathology progresses, nerve roots and fibers become involved in the process. Their attack, compression leads to the appearance of neurological symptoms:
- Pain in the back, chest, lower back.
- Unusual sensations - burning, tingling, numbness.
- Movement disorders.
Back pain can be chronic or acute. As a rule, in diseases of the musculoskeletal system, there is a clear relationship between discomfort and physical activity, movement or breathing. To eliminate them, doctors resort to prescribing ointments, tablets and painkillers.
Processing
Injections for back and lower back pain are a very effective method of treatment. Often it is with them that the treatment of pain syndrome begins, especially if the patient's discomfort is very pronounced.
Sometimes, in addition to injections, other forms of anti-inflammatories are used:
- Gels and ointments.
- Tablets, capsules, powders.
- Rectal suppositories.
Very often the same drug is available in different forms. And the doctor selects the optimal option for the patient, relieving pain, taking into account its characteristics, tolerance and concomitant diseases. Some people can't stand injections for fear of pain, and the mere sight of a sharp needle can make them panic. Others, on the contrary, are wary of local forms, judging them insufficiently effective.
Still, more often than not, injections for lower back or chest pain are the most popular and best-selling drugs.
Injections
Anesthetic injections for back pain are used for moderate and severe forms of diseases of the musculoskeletal system. They are also prescribed when it is necessary to achieve a very quick or long-term stable effect.
Some anti-inflammatory shots are prescribed after surgery as a pain reliever. The following drugs are available as injections:
- Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs or NSAIDs).
- Steroid hormones.
- Muscle relaxants.
- Vitamins.
NSAIDs
Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs are a large and very popular group of drugs among doctors of various specialties. NSAIDs are widely used in the following medical fields:
- rheumatology;
- Traumatology
- orthopedics;
- therapy.
The most common indications for their appointment are:
- osteochondrosis;
- protrusions and intervertebral hernias;
- intercostal neuralgia;
- various radiculopathies;
- bruises and sprains.
Steroid hormones
Steroid hormones are a special class of drugs. They have a pronounced anti-inflammatory effect. But the side effects of these drugs are numerous.
Hormonal injections are used for back pain with hernia, rheumatoid arthritis and Bechterew's disease, radiculopathy. The main indications for their appointment are:
- Intense pain syndrome.
- A strong inflammatory process, especially of autoimmune and allergic origin.
- The need for a stable analgesic effect.
Hormones can be produced in the form of tablets, but for pain in the spine, back, joints, intramuscular and intravenous injections are prescribed. This allows you to quickly reduce pain and stop inflammation.
Steroid hormones can be prescribed with NSAIDs, but this combination requires careful monitoring of the patient's health.
Muscle relaxants
Muscle relaxants in the treatment of back pain began to be used relatively recently. However, due to their high efficiency, they have firmly established themselves in the prescription lists of doctors for dystrophic and degenerative diseases of the musculoskeletal system.
The mechanism of action of muscle relaxants is radically different from that of NSAIDs. They do not affect the inflammatory process in any way, do not eliminate pathological edema and pain associated with it.
These drugs, as their name suggests, relax the muscles. The mechanism of back pain is quite complex. It distinguishes not only the neuropathic component associated with nerve root involvement. Muscle spasms, which occur as a reflex response to degenerative processes in the spine and joints, are of great practical importance. It is accompanied not only by severe pain in itself, but also exacerbates the inflammation of the lesion.
That is why the appointment of muscle relaxants with nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs allows you to stop the pain syndrome in less time. What muscle-relaxing injections are usually prescribed by doctors?
vitamins
By themselves, vitamin preparations are not analgesics. However, therapists and neuropathologists almost always prescribe them for back pain. What are the reasons for these recommendations?
The fact is that pain in the chest or behind - between the shoulder blades and in the lower back - with degenerative lesions is always associated with the involvement of nerve roots in the process. It is their violation that leads to the appearance of unpleasant symptoms. However, the compression of nerve fibers is not only painful, but their sheath also suffers. As the process progresses, the nerves themselves are destroyed, and the manifestations of radiculopathies intensify.
Group B vitamins have restorative properties with respect to nerve fibres.
Group B
Vitamins of this group are available in the form of tablets, dragees and injections. In the acute period, neuropathologists usually prescribe injections according to the established scheme - as a rule, for a period of 10 days, and in the future they recommend switching to oral forms. They must be taken within a month.
Previously, these vitamins existed in three separate injections - B1, B6, B12. Considering that each injection is painful in itself, the administration of such a cocktail caused the patient a lot of suffering.
However, pharmacies today offer a huge selection of combined preparations, one ampoule of which already contains all the necessary B vitamins.
B vitamins are today an essential component of the established treatment regimen for various radiculo- and neuropathies. This is why these injections are always on the prescription list for acute back pain along with NSAIDs and muscle relaxants.
Gels and ointments
Although the anesthetic injection works quickly and effectively relieves discomfort, many patients prefer topical forms of medication. These include gels, creams and ointments.
These products do not require special skills for use - even a child can apply the gel to the affected area. In addition, topical forms are safer, since the active substance is practically not absorbed through the skin. This means that the risk of systemic side effects from the drug is minimized.
This is especially true for nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, which have an impressive list of toxic effects.
Ointments, gels and creams often help relieve back pain when it comes to mild forms of the disease. They are also privileged in the following situations:
- In children and elderly patients.
- With bruises and sprains of the ligament apparatus.
- With concomitant pathology - diseases of the blood coagulation system, gastrointestinal tract, with bleeding hemorrhoids.
The use of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory ointments and gels rarely leads to the development of complications, even with their uncontrolled application. This is often the sin of elderly patients with chronic pain and severe forgetfulness. In this case, the safest anti-inflammatory drugs become the drugs of choice.
Tablets, capsules, powders
Tablets and capsules are a great alternative to injections for back pain. The name of the drug may be the same or different.
Most nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs are available in oral and injectable form. In addition, there are a large number of medicinal analogues. That is why you should not replace the drug yourself if it suddenly turns out to be ineffective, because it is always possible to buy a drug with the same active ingredient, but in the form of injections or under a different name.
Tablets are the most common oral form of anti-inflammatories. Almost all nonsteroidal drugs are available, including in tablet form. They are easy to use, divide and dose. The tablets are suitable for patients of any age, except children under 4-6 years old, who can choke on them.
Oral forms of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs are preferred for the treatment of spinal diseases, as they are much more convenient to use.
Also, some medications are sometimes as strong as injections.
Rectal suppositories
Rectal suppositories with an anti-inflammatory in the composition are widely represented in any pharmacy. They serve as an alternative to oral forms and injections used for back pain.
This form of release makes it possible to achieve an analgesic effect faster than tablets and capsules. This is due to the accelerated absorption of the analgesic substance in the rectum. But, at the same time, their action develops more slowly than with intramuscular and intravenous injections. Although the portability of rectal suppositories is much better.
As a rule, doctors prescribe this form for mild and moderate damage to the spine, after surgery, in order to achieve an anesthetic effect.
Due to the nature of application, rectal suppositories are not suitable for all patients, however, they continue to be a safe, effective, and popular remedy for pain.
The choice of the form of the drug for back pain syndrome is the prerogative of the doctor. It is he who decides the question in favor of injections or tablets, gels or suppositories - depending on the patient's specific disease and comorbidities. Most often, therapy is carried out according to a certain scheme - injections in the first days of the disease to relieve acute pain, and pills or other forms - at the recovery stage.