Pain Management for acute and chronic Back Pain
Advantages of Back Braces over Pain Medication
Everyone feels pain from time to time, whether it’s back pain, joint pain or a headache. Acute pain lasts a few hours while chronic pain can last for months or years, and severe pain can be particularly debilitating. In this article, we will take a closer look at pain management options for lower back pain.
Pain medication: a measure with side effects
In most cases, over-the-counter pain medication, such as Acetaminophen, Aspirin, Ibuprofen or Naproxen, or topical pain relievers, such as creams and patches, might be the first home remedy people use to alleviate acute back pain. Of patients seeking medical care, almost 14% were prescribed opioids for lower back pain relief, according to the CDC.4 Muscle relaxants are also commonly prescribed in conjunction with back pain.
Low-dose, non-addictive pain medication might be helpful to get active again and prevent adopting an incorrect posture. Keep in mind that medication only helps relieve the symptom, not the cause, and comes with side effects. Depending on the duration and dosage of pain medication, side effects such as stomach problems from indigestion to ulcers, liver and kidney damage can occur. High dosage and prolonged use can increase the chance of side effects.
As per CDC, long-term opioid use increases sharply after only three days of use, and pain medication can give you a false sense of security. The fact that the pain has temporarily disappeared doesn’t mean your back has fully recovered. Prescription and over-the-counter drugs aren’t a permanent solution to relieve pain in the long run – a comprehensive treatment concept is needed when other medical products can be used.
Braces and supports to help with back pain
Fortunately, pain medication isn’t the only option to treat back pain. Depending on the situation and symptoms, other medical products are recommended that are also effective, such as braces and supports. Your physician can recommend these to complement or support your treatment options. Bauerfeind offers a wide range of back products, some of which are directly available to patients. For severe cases, special products can be ordered through your physician.
Benefits of back braces and supports
- Relieves your back
- Alleviates pain
- Prevents incorrect posture
- Helps you stay active
- Promotes a healthy posture
Bauerfeind´s back therapy - treatment to alleviate pain
“Pain Management” is one of five modules in Bauerfeind’s back therapy. If you want to find out more about comprehensive back therapy and the other modules, you can find all the information here.
Long-term chronic pain management
A comprehensive pain management plan can help you feel better physically and mentally. It is important to treat the cause and investigate underlying conditions before starting a comprehensive pain management plan. Please speak to your healthcare provider about what is best for your indication.
Comprehensive chronic pain management plans may include:
- Lifestyle changes to reach a healthy weight
- Back braces and supports
- Stress management and counseling
- Yoga
- Physical therapy
- Acupuncture
- Massage
In severe cases,
- Injections
- Electrical nerve stimulation or nerve blocks
Although it may not be possible to find complete relief from chronic pain, many people with a pain management plan can learn to respond to pain differently and increase their overall quality of life.
Bauerfeind’s braces and supports have been designed to be particularly comfortable, making them suitable for everyday use, and they have significantly fewer side effects than pain medication. That’s why they’re perfect – based on medical experts’ recommendations – both for acute pain in the short term and in the mid to long term for your overall treatment.
You might also be interested in:
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SI Joint Relief
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Back Therapy
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Preventing Back Pain
Achieve a stronger and healthier back by improving posture, workspace ergonomics or proper lifting techniques.
This information is provided for general information purposes and should not be relied on as a substitute for medical advice, evaluation or care from a qualified and licensed health care provider. The information contained here is not to be considered a plan of care of physical therapy.
1 Roelofs et al; Lumbar Supports to Prevent Recurrent Low Back Pain among Home Care Workers; Ann Intern Med. 2007; 147:685-692. (ISRCTN registration number: ISRCTN73707379)
2 Valle-Jones J, C, Walsh H, O´Hara J, O`Hara H, Davey N, B, Controlled trial of a back support (LumboTrain) in patients with non specific low back pain; Curr. Med. Res. Opin.,(1992), 12, 604
3 Anders, C., Hubner, A.: Influence of elastic lumbar support belts on trunk muscle function in patients with nonspecific acute lumbar back pain, PLoSONE 14(1): e0211042. https://doi. org/10.1371/journal.pone.0211042; 2019
4 https://www.cdc.gov/acute-pain/low-back-pain/index.html