Subscribe
Lumbar muscle strain
How long should I take off work for a lumbar muscle strain?
Lumbar muscle strain often occurs when engaging in heavy physical labor. For instance, swinging a heavy hammer or bending over for strenuous tasks, as is common for carpenters and roofers. Such occupations involve considerable effort from the lumbar region with frequent movements, and prolonged work can easily lead to local muscle congestion and exudation, stimulating surrounding nerves and blood vessels leading to strain. Generally, after finishing such activities, one may experience lumbar discomfort and stiffness the next morning, where the lumbar region feels stiff like a board, making movement painful. Movement can alleviate the pain somewhat, which is a typical symptom. Lumbar muscle strain usually requires strict bed rest, ideally for about a week, and it is best to take a leave of absence for about seven to ten days. Treatment often involves medications that promote blood circulation and relieve pain, combined with heat application, massage, and physical therapy, all of which can help alleviate symptoms. If it is possible and the workplace allows, it is recommended to rest for about seven to ten days.
What is lumbar muscle strain?
What is lumbar muscle strain? Lumbar muscle strain refers to the cumulative injury of muscles and fascia in the lumbar region caused by long-term unbalanced postures or incorrect positions during labor. It is one of the common causes of lumbar pain. How to understand this definition? Lumbar muscle strain is first and foremost a cumulative injury. What causes it? First, incorrect postures—sitting straight is necessary. Slouching or hunching over, especially when idle, or sitting askew, is detrimental. Second, certain types of labor, like that of miners or farmers transplanting rice, consistently place the lower back in an imbalanced state, perpetually bending forward. This day-to-day accumulation leads to lumbar muscle strain.
How to assist in the examination of lumbar muscle strain?
How should lumbar muscle strain be assessed through auxiliary examinations? What auxiliary examinations are needed for lumbar muscle strain? Clinically, lumbar muscle strain is quite common; out of every ten people, at least two or three have it. The characteristic of these patients is that their symptoms are severe but their physical signs are mild. Therefore, when encountering such patients, a screening process is generally required, which involves a method of exclusion. After examination, an X-ray is usually taken first to check for obvious lumbar spondylolisthesis, the severity of bone hyperplasia, and any traumas, whether fresh or old, that might have caused vertebral fractures. Then, some people might need a CT scan, which aims to exclude lumbar disc herniation. Many patients do not have herniated discs, or only have slight bulging, but their symptoms are severe, making them restless. Generally, there is no need for an MRI, but some patients strongly request an MRI examination. After the MRI, sometimes high-density shadows can be seen in the muscles of the lower back, which might be caused by injuries within these muscles. Therefore, the auxiliary examinations for lumbar muscle strain are usually negative, with few positive findings, which is a characteristic of this condition.
Symptoms of lumbar muscle strain
Lumbar muscle strain is mostly caused by excessive activity, overexertion, fatigue, and intense exercise, which leads to the continuous pulling of the lumbar muscle fibers beyond their load capacity, resulting in injury. After the injury, many patients may not have sufficient rest, causing the muscle fibers in the lumbar region to become scarred, which is referred to as lumbar muscle strain. The primary symptoms of lumbar muscle strain are pain and limited mobility in the lumbar region, especially after intense exercise or exertion, with the pain gradually worsening and possibly radiating to the buttocks on both sides. The main treatment involves rest, which is the most important. Additionally, treatments such as physiotherapy, rehabilitation, massage, acupuncture, and oral medication can be used to aid in the recovery and growth of lumbar muscles, with the main symptoms being pain in the lumbar area and restricted movement.
How to relieve pain from lumbar muscle strain?
Lumbar muscle strain, if the pain is severe, can usually be alleviated using the following methods. First and foremost, during the acute phase, what is primarily needed? First, you need to rest and immobilize, mainly ceasing some activities and ideally lying on a hard bed in a supine position with hips and knees flexed. Secondly, for the painful area, you can apply appropriate physiotherapy. This includes traditional Chinese massage and acupuncture. Thirdly, if there are specific fixed painful points, you might consider blockade therapy. Fourthly, when the pain is particularly severe and affects your work and rest, you can take some non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs). Additionally, use some stimulating medicines or stimulating liniments. If the pain severely impacts your mood and work, you might also consider some sedatives. Fifthly, you can use some external or internal traditional Chinese medicine, which is usually very effective in managing pain.
How many days will it take for a lumbar muscle strain to heal by itself?
Lumbar muscle strain is a chronic condition, not an acute onset. It is caused by fatigue, overexertion, trauma, and vigorous exercise, leading to prolonged and repeated strain, pulling, rupture, and damage of the lumbar muscles, resulting in scar formation and lumbar muscle strain. Therefore, this disease is essentially a chronic ailment, and its healing mainly relies on rest to promote recovery. If muscle damage occurs in the lumbar region and one does not rest, continuing to work and bear loads as usual, the muscles will not heal and will eventually become scarred. Thus, the duration for the healing of lumbar muscle strain depends not on the number of days, but whether adequate and proper rest has been taken. Additionally, applying medications that invigorate blood circulation and disperse blood stasis can assist in recovery. Generally, if care is taken to rest adequately, avoid carrying heavy loads, prevent fatigue, and avoid vigorous exercise, while also using oral medications or plasters that invigorate blood and dispel stasis, healing can gradually occur. However, the condition may recur under fatigue and strain in the future, as it is a chronic disease and complete healing is very difficult to achieve. (Note: This answer is for reference only. Medication should be administered under the guidance of a professional physician, and medications should not be used blindly.)
Causes of Lumbar Muscle Strain
The causes of lumbar muscle strain generally include two points: First, after an acute lumbar injury, such as a sprain or trauma, proper treatment is not administered, and sufficient rest is not taken when needed, leading to improper treatment and eventually resulting in chronic lumbar muscle strain. The second point, which is also the main reason, is due to the lumbar region being in a state of continuous tension during prolonged work. This causes the muscles in the lumbar region to be under constant stress, then compressing the small blood vessels, leading to insufficient oxygen supply to the lumbar muscles, and causing metabolic byproducts like lactic acid to accumulate. This eventually stimulates local inflammatory responses that contribute to injury. Initially, the muscles themselves can make some compensatory adjustments. However, as the condition worsens, this ability to regulate increasingly diminishes until it can no longer adjust, leading then to compensatory regulation, also known as serial compensatory adjustment. Thus, if lumbar muscle strain is not treated properly or in a timely manner, the condition will progressively worsen, eventually causing the lumbar muscles to lose their original function and potentially leading to a deformity in the lumbar region. Therefore, the main reasons for lumbar muscle strain are firstly, improper treatment during the acute phase that transitions into chronic lumbar muscle strain, and secondly, the lumbar muscles being in a state of long-term overload, ultimately leading to strain.
Treatment methods for lumbar muscle strain
Firstly, general treatment is necessary, which mainly includes rest, or regularly changing posture, and avoiding bending over to lift objects. This is primarily to alleviate symptoms and prevent recurrence. Additionally, using a lumbar support belt at work can limit the range of motion of the waist and is very effective for lumbar muscle strain. Moreover, after entering the remission phase, when the pain has subsided, it is important to strengthen the muscles of the lower back. If the strength of the lower back muscles is improved, the stability of the lumbar spine will also improve, making lumbar muscle strain less likely to occur. Secondly, some physiotherapy can be applied to the painful area, including massage, manipulation, or acupuncture. Thirdly, if there are specific tender points, localized treatment around these points can be considered, which is highly effective. Fourthly, if the pain is particularly severe, affecting work and rest, or causing patient anxiety, consideration can be given to using some non-steroidal anti-inflammatory painkillers, muscle relaxants, or sedatives like diazepam. Therefore, treatment of lumbar muscle strain is essential and must be correctly administered. (Medications should be used under a doctor's guidance based on specific conditions.)
How to effectively treat lumbar muscle strain?
The best treatment for lumbar muscle strain usually involves local heat application or massage. It is crucial to employ the correct massage techniques, such as kneading, pinching, and rolling, which can effectively promote local blood circulation, alleviate muscle tension, and improve the clinical symptoms of the patient's lumbar muscle strain. For severe pain, it may also be necessary to combine this with some medications, such as oral non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, or use topical plasters that activate blood circulation and dissolve stasis. Additionally, it is essential to sleep on a hard bed, wear a waist belt for protection, and avoid fatigue, cold exposure, prolonged sitting or standing, excessive bending, and lifting or carrying heavy objects.