[Medical Q&A] Does low back pain mean lumbar disc herniation?

Planner: Chinese Medical Association

Reviewer: Han Liqiang, deputy chief physician, Tianjin Third Central Hospital

When many people have low back pain, the first thing they think of is lumbar disc herniation, which has a lot to do with the fact that people attach great importance to lumbar disc herniation. In fact, low back pain does not necessarily mean that you have lumbar disc herniation.

There are many clinical causes of low back pain, lumbar disc herniation is only one of them, and other causes include lumbar facet joint synovial incarceration, lumbar muscle strain, lumbar spondylolisthesis, lumbar spinal stenosis, degenerative lumbar scoliosis, etc. Although each type of low back pain is low back pain in the eyes of the patient, and there seems to be no difference, in the eyes of doctors, each type of low back pain has different causes and manifestations. For example, low back pain caused by lumbar disc herniation will worsen after activity, while low back pain caused by lumbar muscle strain will be relieved after activity. The doctor will get a clear diagnosis direction of the disease through interviews and physical examinations, which is much more accurate than searching for relevant knowledge on the Internet to diagnose yourself. Of course, everyone will occasionally have low back pain, and may not need to go to the hospital for examination and treatment, but if low back pain affects daily life and work, you need to see a doctor in time, receive formal examinations and treatment, and must not diagnose and treat yourself to avoid delaying the disease.