Back Pain Types

Latest SPORT Data Supports Back Surgery for Degenerative Spondylolisthesis

cmaynard — Thu, 11 Jun 2009 12:36:10 -0700

June 11, 2009
by: Sylvia Marten

Spine-Health has blogged in the past about the Spine Patient Outcomes Research Trial (SPORT), including one study concluding that [url:6608,type=|node|,content=|back surgery was better for patients with degenerative spondylolisthesis|].

Well, SPORT just recently released the latest data on this study. Its verdict? The newest data supported this earlier conclusion, finding that back pain relief was more prevalent four years later for those patients who voluntarily had lumbar laminectomy surgery as opposed to those who voluntarily passed on this surgery.

Here’s a quick summary of these latest SPORT findings:

Identical Approach, Longer-Elapsed Time Frame, More Crossover, Similar Results.

To recap, there were two cohorts in this study: 304 patients in a randomized cohort (meaning that they were randomly chosen either to have or not have laminectomy surgery to treat their [url:6000,type=|node|,content=|spondylolisthesis|] and [url:152,type=|term|,content=|spinal stenosis|]) and 303 patients in an observational cohort (meaning that these patients voluntarily chose to have or not have this surgery).

It should be known that 66 percent of those patients who were randomly chosen to have surgery did so within four years and that 97 percent of those patients who chose surgery also had a laminectomy in that time period.

More telling were the latest findings that 54 percent of those people who were randomized not to have surgery ended up having surgery within four years and that 33 percent of those who voluntarily passed on surgery eventually had it. For more than a half and approximately a third of these specific patients, not having surgery apparently wasn’t as beneficial in terms of providing back pain relief.

Adding more intrigue to this study were the responses of those patients who voluntarily had surgery for their back pain. This group of patients reported improvements of 15.3 points for bodily pain and 18.9 points for physical function, and decreases of 14.3 points on the Oswestry Disability Index, signifying that gains experienced two years after back surgery were still maintained four years later.

At the end of the day, these latest findings confirm how laminectomy surgery may have wonderful results for people dealing with spondylolisthesis. Still, one must not rush to assume that surgery is always better than not having surgery when addressing spondylolisthesis associated with spinal stenosis. It should be noted that non-surgical treatments may adequately alleviate back pain for others, as very well may have been the case for the 70 percent of the observational patients who initially passed on and still did not have surgery four years later.

As each patient’s case is unique in itself, it ultimately comes down to the patient and his or her doctor examining their options and making a decision that they are most comfortable with and feel is the best course of action at the time.

Source: The Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery

More on This Topic:

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[url:152,type=|term|]

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Back Pain Overview: A Guide for Understanding Back Pain

Ben Parr — Wed, 12 Nov 2008 14:23:52 -0800

The back and spine are designed to provide a great deal of strength, protecting the highly sensitive spinal cord and nerve roots, yet flexible, providing for mobility in all directions.

Myofascial Pain Syndrome

mlepore — Thu, 19 Mar 2009 10:17:16 -0700

Myofascial pain syndrome is caused by injury or damage to the fascia. The syndrome causes chronic pain in muscles throughout the body especially in the neck and jaw.

Coccydynia

mlepore — Thu, 19 Mar 2009 10:15:30 -0700

Coccydynia or tail bone pain is an inflammation of the tip of the tail bone called the coccyx. Coccydynia may lead to pain and tenderness between the buttocks. Learn more about this condition in the following video.

Back Pain Causes: Overview of Conditions That Can Create Back Pain

Ben Parr — Wed, 12 Nov 2008 14:23:54 -0800

By far the most common cause of lower back pain is a muscle strain or other soft tissue damage. While this condition is not serious, it can be severely painful. Typically, lower back pain from a muscle strain will get better within one to three weeks.

Radicular Pain and Radiculopathy

spine-health — Fri, 04 Jan 2008 07:53:40 -0800

Definition:

Myofascial Pain

spine-health — Fri, 04 Jan 2008 07:53:16 -0800

Definition

Myofascial pain refers to pain caused by muscular irritation. The large upper back muscles are prone to developing myofascial pain that radiates from sensitive points, called trigger points throughout muscle tissue. Muscular irritation and upper back pain is due to muscle weakness and repetitive motions.

A common myofascial pain is the soreness and aching in muscles associated with poor posture.

Mechanical Pain

spine-health — Fri, 04 Jan 2008 07:53:12 -0800

Definition

Mechanical pain is the general term that refers to any type of back pain caused by placing abnormal stress and strain on muscles of the vertebral column. Typically, mechanical pain results from bad habits, such as poor posture, poorly-designed seating and incorrect bending and lifting motions.

Discogenic Pain

spine-health — Fri, 04 Jan 2008 07:52:44 -0800

Definition

Discogenic pain is pain originating from a damaged vertebral disc, particularly due to degenerative disc disease. However, not all degenerated discs cause pain. Disc degeneration occurs naturally with age.

Once a fully degenerated disc no longer has any inflammatory proteins that can cause pain, the disc enters into a stable position. Hence, discogenic pain rarely occurs after 60 years of age.

Compressive Pain

spine-health — Fri, 04 Jan 2008 07:52:35 -0800

Definition

See Compressed Nerve

All About Neuropathy And Chronic Back Pain

spine-health — Wed, 19 Dec 2007 13:13:15 -0800

More Chronic Pain Info

Chronic Pain Overview

Causes of Neck/Back Pain

Back and Neck Surgery

Nerve Pain Anatomy

Back Pain and Exercise

Types of Back Pain: Acute Pain, Chronic Pain, and Neuropathic Pain

spine-health — Wed, 19 Dec 2007 13:07:01 -0800

More Chronic Pain Info

Chronic Pain Overview

Causes of Neck/Back Pain

Back and Neck Surgery

Nerve Pain Anatomy

Back Pain and Exercise

Types of Back Pain

spine-health — Mon, 17 Dec 2007 09:06:04 -0800

It's important to have a general understanding of the major different types of back pain, because the type of pain dictates the treatment options.

More Back Pain Info

Causes of Neck/Back Pain

Back Pain and Cancer

Spondylosis Information

Back and Neck Surgery

Back Pain and Exercise

When Acute Pain Becomes Chronic Pain

spine-health — Mon, 17 Dec 2007 09:06:04 -0800

More Chronic Pain Info

Chronic Pain Overview

Causes of Neck/Back Pain

Back and Neck Surgery

Nerve Pain Anatomy

Back Pain and Exercise

Treatment Options for Neuropathic Pain

spine-health — Mon, 17 Dec 2007 08:55:41 -0800

Treating pain from neuropathy

Currently there is no proven treatment to prevent or cure neuropathic pain (neuropathy or nerve pain). Instead, the primary goals of treatment are to reduce the pain as much as possible, balance the negative side effects of the treatment, and help patients manage any unresolved pain.

It is thought that early identification and treatment of intractable, chronic pain can help in effectively treating the pain.

Sport Injuries, Back Injuries, and Back Pain

spine-health — Tue, 11 Dec 2007 21:50:16 -0800

Types of sports injuries causing back pain

Exercise is an important part of a healthy lifestyle, and sports are one approach many people choose to get their exercise. For people with back pain, sports can still be a viable option if they pay attention to their back. For others, knowing the type of strain sports place on the back may help prevent a back injury. This article gives specific information about sports injuries and back pain from bicycling, weight lifting, running, swimming, skiing, golf and tennis.

Spinal Anatomy and Back Pain

spine-health — Tue, 11 Dec 2007 21:50:15 -0800

Spinal anatomy is a remarkable combination of strong bones, flexible ligaments and tendons, large muscles and highly sensitive nerves. It is designed to be incredibly strong, protecting the highly sensitive nerve roots, yet highly flexible, providing for mobility on many different planes. Most of us take this juxtaposition of strength, structure and flexibility for granted in our everyday lives—until something goes wrong.

Types of Neck Pain

spine-health — Tue, 11 Dec 2007 21:31:46 -0800

Introduction to types of neck pain

While neck pain (in the cervical spine) is less common than lower back pain (in the lumbar spine), millions of people experience neck pain and/or related arm pain at some point in their life.

Chronic Neck Pain

spine-health — Tue, 11 Dec 2007 21:31:46 -0800

Suffering from Chronic Pain?

Watch this Chronic Pain Video for causes, symptoms, and treatments.

There are many conditions that can cause chronic neck pain. The following information describes symptoms of some of the more common causes of chronic neck pain.

Understanding Low Back Pain (Lumbago)