There is no single regimen that can be considered as the best treatment for lower back pain. The wide array of back pain causes and the varying severity of each cause require that treatment methods are specifically tailored to each individual condition. Thus, it is hard to say only rest, medication or surgery can be considered as the best options for treating lower back pain for every single case that is diagnosed.
Of course, from the perspective of preference and convenience, doctors hope that rest, therapy and other non-invasive treatments will be sufficient for treating most lower back problems. This is because prescribing rest, therapy and pain medication implies that the condition has not progressed beyond the point where it already requires surgery. For doctors and patients alike, this is great news. After all, no one would want to risk surgery given all the potential complications that may arise from the procedure.
However, there are also times when surgery becomes the best treatment for lower back pain and no other method will suffice. This is usually because a herniated disc is damaged enough that it is permanently pressing on the nerve roots surrounding its location resulting in extreme and continuous pain. When this happens, rest or medication may not be sufficient to treat the condition. Even epidural injections only provide temporary and short relief when a herniated disc has progressed to a significantly advanced stage. Under these circumstances surgery may become the only option for a permanent and satisfactory solution.
There are many types of back surgery that can be used for treating lower back pain. In the mildest of cases, the protruding spinal disc is shaved so that the mass of bone impinging on the nerves is reduced. In more advanced cases, removal of the disc is required. When this happens, recovery time can take up to 3 months, but if done successfully it will provide permanent relief from the nagging pain brought about by the herniated disc.
Naturally, at the core of assessing which is the best treatment for lower back pain is the debate between necessity, benefit, and risk. This is what doctors use to decide which treatment procedure to prescribe to a specific patient. Is this procedure necessary? Are there other procedures that carry fewer risks and will still hopefully deliver the same benefit? Would you want to risk a serious back operation if a 2 or 3 week bed rest along with medication would do the job? Doctors constantly weigh these considerations in order to provide their patients with the best and safest option for treating lower back pain.
So the next time you suffer from severe back problems, do not immediately start trying a lot of self- help techniques for treating lower back pain. Instead, see a doctor to get a more complete picture of your condition. Go through the diagnostic steps. Assess your options. Only after you've done this will you have enough knowledge to choose the right treatment plan. When done properly, you can be confident that your chosen treatment method is the best for your specific condition. In the end, that is all matters. As long as you are getting pain relief by using the lowest risk options available, then you have done a superb job in making sure you are getting the best treatment for lower back pain.
