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Back pain health centre

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Back pain overview

Back pain affects four out of five people in the UK at some time in their lives. It comes in many forms, from lower back pain, middle back pain, or upper back pain to low back pain with sciatica. Common back pain causes include nerve and muscular problems, degenerative disc disease, and arthritis. Many people find relief from symptoms of back pain with pain medication or pain killers.

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Carrying extra weight may damage your spine

Being overweight increases your chances of having damage to the discs of your lower (lumbar) spine, which can cause back pain, research suggests.

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Medications

Understanding back pain - symptoms

What are the symptoms of back pain?

Most people have experienced back pain at some point in their life. The causes of back pain are numerous, and some are self-inflicted due to a lifetime of bad habits. Other back pain causes include accidents, muscle strains and sport injuries. Although the causes may be different, the symptoms are usually the same.

The symptoms for back pain are:

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Back pain MRI

Back pain MR neurography

Understand how an MR neurography test may help diagnose back pain causes.

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