Get your back on track!

World Spine Day, which is commemorated on October 16, carries a motive of creating awareness on spinal health, spinal pain and spine-related disability. It also focuses on rectifying matters related to the lack of access to quality spine care and rehabilitation in under-served communities causing chronicity and permanent deformity.

This year’s theme of this global event is ‘BACK 2 BACK’ and reflects on the importance of understanding the burden of spinal pain and disability across the world; thus motivating individuals to stick to healthy lifestyles to keep their spines active, fit, flexible and healthy.

According to experts, this theme ‘BACK 2 BACK’ with a typical modernized SMS vibe has been created, in order to get the attention of younger generations, who are supposed to gain some insight towards common spinal problems associated with wrong posture and ways to get rid of them.

“As a result of lock-downs due to Covid19 pandemic, most of the people including children have shifted to a virtual mode where they work from home, on their own tables and chairs, staring at digital screens for long hours. This routine which has been continuing for months has definitely created a considerable burden on spinal health, where we hear both elderly people and youngsters complaining on lower back pain like never before” says Dr. Uthpala Dissanayake, Consultant Rheumatologist, Teaching Hospital, Kurunegala.

The effect of Covid19 on spinal health

“It is estimated that up to 84% of adults have lower back pain at some point in their lives. This can be self limiting in most cases but has the potential to impair one’s ability to work at least for a shorter period of time. Some back pains can become chronic with long term activity limitation, which in turn creates a significant effect on the quality of life. Rarely back pain can be a sign of a serious illness and that is why you shouldn’t ignore long lasting severe aches and pains, at any cost,” adds Dr. Dissanayake. 

Covid has both direct and indirect effects on back pain” explains Dr Dissanayake.

 Direct
Covid19 can cause back pain during infection as a symptom of the acute viral infection. 
Back pain can last longer after complete recovery of Covid. It is the 3rd commonest reported long-haul symptom (25%)of covid after fatigue and shortness of breath according to one Italian study.    

Indirect
1. Limited access to medical care -The recent pandemic reduced the access to medical care in patients with chronic low back pain so that the disability and the burden of chronic back pain increased.
2. More sedentary life style during the lock downs promoted people including children to be in bad postures for a long time, increasing the incidence of acute simple back-ache
3. In contrary, there was a significant number of patients who had back pain developed due to involvement of the activities which there were not familiar with. Eg: gardening, constructions and repairs at home.
 According to doctor, the most important thing is to identify the red flag signs of back pain which can suggest an underlying serious disease. For example, backache which is severe enough to keep you up at night, needs urgent medical attention without any delay.

The importance of rehabilitation and physiotherapy
 “However, the commonest type-acute simple back-ache only needs maintenance of proper posture and back care  and can easily be intervened by a Qualified physiotherapist. All the main hospitals have specialists and para medics who deal with spinal problems and adherence to the measures given by medics will prevent your spinal pain developing in to a chronic one” concludes Dr. Dissanayake.