What to do if back pain in a child

Back pain experiencing at least once in life every person. Doctors believe that this is the inevitable result of bipedalism. Modern people reinforce it with physical inactivity, poor diet, stress. Back pain in children and adolescents is also not uncommon.

back pain in children

Fortunately, with timely treatment, many processes in children are reversible. Therefore, parents must always be attentive to the child and not to ignore his complaints to deterioration of health.

Back pain the baby causes

The causes of back pain in children are varied. It can be congenital degenerative changes in the spine, diseases of the internal organs, the consequences of infection and even physical strain.

Physical overload.

The baby skeleton is not yet formed, the cartilage tissue of the vertebrae are weaker than adult. Also not developed back muscles. Overload can occur due to prolonged wearing of heavy portfolio, especially if it is matched incorrectly. Of particular danger are soft backpacks that kids wear on one shoulder. The load is distributed unevenly, some of the muscles are always in constant tension, other relaxed. Due to improper physiological position of the back pain. If the process only applies to muscles, to correct the situation easily. Need to pick up child backpack with orthopedic back and wide straps.

Pain in the back due to overloads often occur in children involved in sports, for example when jumping. This is especially true for the first time, while the body is not used to the load. Parents in the pursuit of sporting achievements of his child completely forget about his health, trying to lead him to a grueling workout every day. The muscles and ligaments do not have time to recover, so in a young athlete there is chronic pain. To eliminate pain, we need to develop the correct training regime and rest that the child had time to recover.

Prolonged sitting

Physical inactivity is the scourge of modern society. Contrary to his nature, which involves a great deal of mobility in children, the child spends a lot of time on the computer. Parents are afraid to let children out of, not find the time to drive the child to the sports section. A constant static load on the spine causes pain in the back. Added to this is the lack of fresh air, improper diet. The combination of all the factors causes the development of scoliosis and degenerative disc disease. This explains the large percentage of young people with serious back problems.

Improperly organized sleeping place

Doctors recommend sleeping on a hard surface. This is especially important for children, as their spine is susceptible to deformation.

Injury

A spinal injury can lead to the child when falling, the sudden movements, exercises for back muscles without a warm-up. The pain occurs not immediately, but after some time, when the spine formed the focus of inflammation.

Myositis

Myositis is an inflammatory process in the muscles of the back. It can be primary, i.e., occur due to injury or being in a draft, or secondary, which are infections such as influenza or sore throats. Pain syndrome occurs in a certain area of the back, muscles tense, pain increases with palpation. Can also be swelling and puffiness in the site of the lesion.

Scoliosis

Scoliosis — curvature of the spine is the most common pathology in children. The disease appears for many reasons: congenital anomalies, infection, trauma, bad posture. First external signs of the disease are absent, the child complains of a stiff back, pain when bending the torso twists, after a long sitting. 2-3 stages of scoliosis becomes apparent asymmetry of shoulder blades, pelvic bones, stooped posture. If time does not begin treatment, the child violated the function of internal organs, it will be difficult to move independently.

Osteochondrosis

It is accepted that osteochondrosis is a disease of the elderly. However, degenerative changes in the spine, often diagnosed in childhood. They can result from congenital vertebral anomalies also arise due to improper posture and lack of sufficient physical activity. In fact, the child begins a premature aging of the spine. Diagnosis of disease is difficult because symptoms are not expressed. The child may feel discomfort in the back, but not to tell your parents. Should alert the following symptoms: frequent headaches, sleep disorder, fatigue, blurred vision, disruption of the internal organs.

physical overload.

Tumors of the spine

Fortunately, tumors of the spine in children is rare. The tumor presses on nearby vessels and nerves, causing pain. When benign tumours minor pain syndrome persists for a long time. If the process is malignant, the pain increases, it is difficult to stop the painkillers.

Renal colic

Cause of renal colic is pyelonephritis, or kidney stones. Also found a congenital abnormality in the structure of the kidneys. Renal colic is usually accompanied by sharp pain, fever, pain when urinating, frequent urge to the toilet.It is possible to detect traces of blood in the urine, changing its colour and smell.

Infectious diseases

Back and stomach the child can become ill after suffering an infectious disease like influenza. The virus spreads through the body, causing an active immune response. The result is fever, pain with muscles and joints. Usually the discomfort passes away after removing the acute period. If the pain persists for a long time after recovery, it indicates the development of complications.

Why back pain from teen girls?

Loins of teenage girls aches before menstrual cycle. The body is undergoing serious hormonal changes, which prepare the girl to adulthood. Small pain before menstruation or in the first days of menstruation is normal. The uterus is reduced, removing the endometrium. Smooth muscle spasm — this is the source of pain.

Perhaps the girl is inflammation of the pelvic organs. Severe pain is accompanied by endometriosis. In this situation, you need a full workup. At the initial stage of the disease more susceptible to treatment.

Diagnosis

To determine the cause of pain, you should consult a neurologist or orthopedist. First, the doctor will conduct a survey to find out what preceded the onset of symptoms, what is the nature of pain, how long the discomfort. Then carried out an external inspection for signs of abrasions, bruising, curvature of the spine.

To confirm the diagnosis, prescribe the following methods of examination:

  • General analysis of urine, blood.
  • Ultrasound of internal organs. The girls performed to exclude abnormalities of the uterus and ovaries.
  • X-rays of the spine. Allows to detect the effects of trauma, specific changes in vertebrae, degenerative disc destruction as a result of osteoarthritis.
  • MRI, CT of the spine is carried out, if unable to find the cause of pain. Using MRI diagnose even minimal disturbance, changes in tissue blood flow.

Treatment

The choice of treatment depends on the cause of the pain. If there is a fracture or displacement of the vertebrae, that often requires surgical intervention. For the treatment of scoliosis and degenerative disc disease apply physical therapy, massage manual therapy. Teenagers need to wear orthopedic corsets that are at the initial stage of scoliosis have a positive outcome.

If the pain is caused by prolonged static tension, the child is recommended dosage of exercise, the normalization of the mode of the day. When the pain caused by congestion, it is necessary to reduce the intensity of sports training. Will also help a relaxing massage.

For the relief of pain, you can apply the following medications:

  • Antispasmodics. Relax smooth muscles, relieve muscle spasm.
  • Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs used in extreme cases when the pain syndrome too strong.
  • Anti-inflammatory ointments, plasters. They help in myositis, pain caused by overexertion. Before applying you should make sure that the child is not allergic to components of products.

Prevention

If the workplace of the child and the day mode is organized properly, then it will never appear back problems. Basic preventive measures:

treatment and prevention
  • Proper organization of the workplace. Desk and chair student needs to match growth to be functional and comfortable. Now you can buy special orthopaedic chairs that allow the child to slouch. From the first days in school need to teach the baby to keep the back straight, then it will become a habit.
  • Convenient portfolio. For younger students it is best suited satchels with rigid orthopedic back and wide straps. They allow you to evenly distribute the load on the spine, keep your back straight, shoulders straightened. Senior students should also choose a backpack and carry it on both shoulders.
  • The arrangement of bed. The child can not sleep on a too-soft mattress and a large pillow. The mattress should be semi-rigid cushion is not very high. So during the night, the spine will be in anatomically correct position, will remain normal circulation.
  • Dosing physical loads. Harmful to children is lack of physical activity, and excessive sports training. For every age there are your standards of physical activity. It needs to know the coach, teacher of physical education. It is impossible to load the child more than it can withstand age.
  • The correct posture. Incorrect posture comes from weak muscles. The child's muscles get tired for a long time to be in the same position, so the children are constantly slouching. To maintain the correct posture you need to perform special exercises that strengthen the back muscles. Very good result gives swimming, Jogging, gymnastics.