Spinal Arthritis Treatment Specialist Q&A

You may have heard, or possibly experienced that back pain, and decreased range of motion seem to go hand-in-hand with age. Especially if you are 40 or older, which is common when you start to feel pain from arthritis, which is the degeneration of cartilage between the joints. Arthritic back pain is generally the result of cartilage degeneration between the disks in the spine, the facet joints (vertebral joints in the spine), or from a previous injury. Arthritis can affect any joint in the body, and for most people over 40, the pain is common in the neck, shoulders, buttocks, thighs, and lower back. Facet joints in the spine facilitate movements like bending and twisting, and as the cartilage between these joints begins to degenerate, movement becomes restricted and painful. Arthritis of the spine can cause severe, excruciating, and debilitating pain, cause muscles to break down and dramatically restrict movement. Debilitating arthritis can also bring on emotional problems, like anxiety or depression. If your back pain persists for several weeks, or months, it is advisable that you speak with your doctor to discover if the pain you’re experiencing may be symptoms of a medical condition like arthritis, a slipped or herniated disk or sciatica. These conditions can occur at the same time, making it challenging to make the correct diagnosis and treatment.

Several different types of arthritis might be the cause of stiffness and back pain, or symptoms could be related to other issues like widespread inflammation, an autoimmune disorder, or an infection. Regardless of the reason, or the exact location of the pain, arthritis in the back is extremely painful and can become a chronic condition. Developing osteoarthritis of the spine becomes more common as we age, yet approximately 10 percent of people in their 30’s develop lumbar arthritis, while roughly 80 percent of people over the age of 80 will develop arthritic changes that are seen in imaging.

Though there are several different types of arthritis and they generally fall into one of 2 categories:

– Mechanical causes – include osteoarthritis.
– Inflammatory causes – include rheumatoid arthritis, axial arthritis, and psoriatic arthritis.

The differences between mechanical and inflammatory back pain are usually quite subtle but show clear differences in the nature of the pain, and your doctor will be able to identify these differences.

Inflammatory back pain will show some tell-tale signs:

– Strikes at a younger age, usually before age 40 to 45, but is often first experienced in the teens and twenties.
– The pain subsides with exercise and movement but gets worse with inactivity and rest.
– Pain comes and goes, but lasts for 3 months or more.
– The back feels stiff when waking for the first 30 minutes in the morning, then subsides with movement.
– Severe pain can wake you up in the middle of the night.

Different types of arthritis require specific medications and treatment, so it’s important that a doctor determine the type of arthritis that is causing pain.

Common types of arthritis are osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, and spondyloarthritis, which is a blanket term for severe types of arthritis, including:

– Axial spondyloarthritis
– Psoriatic arthritis
– Reactive arthritis
– Enteropathic arthritis
– Undifferentiated spondyloarthritis

Some of the most common reasons for flare-ups include bone spurs, stress, repetitive motions, cold weather, changes in barometric pressure, weight gain, or an infection. It is very helpful for your doctor to determine the type of arthritis you are suffering from as different types of arthritis pain have different triggers that cause flare-ups, and flare-ups can affect many other aspects of life. Our professional and highly skilled doctors, and pain management specialists at InovoSpine take your spinal health seriously, and determining the source of your pain is the first step in getting you the relief you need. For more information, contact us or book an appointment online. We are located at 1140 Business Center Dr, Suite 110, Houston TX 77043. We serve patients from Houston TX, Hedwig Village TX, Meadows Place TX, Missouri City TX, Hunters Creek Village TX, Spring Valley Village TX, and surrounding areas.