Dr. Stefano Sinicropi, M.D.

Back pain isn’t often viewed as something that can spread throughout your body like cancer or an infection, but an unresolved spine issue can absolutely have consequences for other areas of your body. In today’s blog, we explain how untreated spinal issues can lead to pain in other areas of your body.

How Back Pain Can Spread

Back pain is a very common health condition, but that doesn’t mean it should just be ignored. Sometimes mild back pain stemming from soreness or overuse will resolve without problem on its own, but more serious cases of chronic or acute back pain require intervention, otherwise they can worsen or cause problems in other areas of your body. Here’s a look at some areas where back pain can “spread.”

• Hips – One of the most common areas for back pain to spread to is the hip or buttocks area. If your spine is injured, your body naturally tries to shift stress off this area. When pressure is shifted off of the spine, it often gets thrown on the hips and pelvis. Excess pressure and stress on your hip joints can lead to pain in the area.
• Feet – Another area that oftentimes has to take on a bigger burden in the wake of back pain is your feet. Back pain can cause gait changes, and as stress is channeled differently through your feet because of this shift in gait, different structures can become overloaded. Arch problems can develop as a direct result of unresolved back pain.
• Extremities – Your arms and legs can also begin to hurt due to untreated back pain. There are a number of spinal nerves that control and regulate activity in your extremities. Damage to a spinal nerve could cause a disruption in the healthy connection between the nerve and the brain, leading to an expression of pain elsewhere along the neural pathway. Herniated or bulging discs that compress a spinal nerve are common sources of arm or leg discomfort.
• Shoulders – Similarly, a number of nerves and muscles that control the shoulder lie in close proximity to the spine. A pinched nerve in the spine can lead to pain in the back and shoulder region, and this pain will persist until the underlying nerve problem is addressed by a spine specialist.
• Neck – Finally, neck pain can develop as your body works to protect the spine area from pain. Like a lot of issues on this list, a nerve problem in your spine can cause pain to develop in your neck. Also, if your back pain is being brought on by poor posture habits, there’s a good chance that your cervical spine is also feeling the effects, and that could manifest in the form of neck pain.

If you are dealing with significant back pain or a nerve problem in your spine, reach out to an experienced spine specialist in your area to help treat the issue before pain moves to other areas of your body. For more information or for help with your back pain, reach out to Dr. Sinicropi’s office today.

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