According to many studies, men delay paying a visit to the doctor more than women. To be sure, deciding when it’s time to seek expert medical opinion can be tricky, especially for ailments such as back pain. Sometimes, a nagging backache can surprisingly diminish within a few days. On other occasions, it can persist relentlessly.
Following are some of the tell-tale signs that it is time you visited a doctor for your back pain.
The pain persists beyond a couple of weeks
Most of us intuitively avoid heavy lifting and restrict our movements when suffering from backaches. We take pain medications and apply ice or heat packs to the affected areas. More often than not, this eliminates the pain after a few days.In the event that your pain persists for a fortnight or more, it is a good idea to visit a doctor. This is especially true if the ache interferes with your daily routine.
Pain induced by fall or collision
Fortunately, excruciating or sharp back pain is often caused by muscle strain or spasm that goes away on its own after a few days. However, if the pain began immediately after an accident such as a fall from the stairs or a bike crash, you should not delay visiting the doctor. Your discs or vertebrae could be injured and a delay in your visit to the doctor could worsen the damage to your spine.
Don’t neglect the symptoms
If your pain is accompanied by a combination of one or more of the following symptoms, you should visit the doctor immediately –
· Pain radiating in the leg or arm
· Tingling, weakness or numbness in the leg or arm
· A difficulty with coordination or balance
· Irregular bladder or bowel control
· Excruciating headaches
· Fever, nausea or chills
· Unexplained weight loss
If you are suffering from a persistent sports injury or back pain, do not neglect the same and visit a doctor promptly. If you are located in the UK especially in areas like Nantwich, Crewe or Frodsham, there are specialised doctors for such ailments known as Osteopaths.
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