Lower Back Pain

[Fluffykiwi]

Hi Everyone,

I haven't been back to the site in a long long time, I get so little chance to come online. But I was forced to make the effort tonight. I'm desperately searching for an answer to my question. I've been suffering from a dull ache the last few couple of days in my lower back. It seems to eminate from my kidney area, almost the same kind of pain I had when my kidneys first started giving me real hassles. I've Googled and Googled, but nothing, everything just talks about the pain which leads to Kidney failure, but what if you already have failed kidneys and experiencing this kind of pain??

Does anyone out there know if it's something to be concerned about? Should I get it checked out? It seemed ok today, but it's back this evening and not very comfortable 

Any advice would be greatly appreciated

[marcy996]

IMO pain is not something you should ignore. If it is a problem then you should see your md. If anything is wrong at least it can be addressed and if it is not the kidney then at least it will give you some peace of mind. I know I have a bad habit of ignoring medical things until they get to a crisis point so I should give this speech to me!
I hope you feel better soon.

[chiefsfan301]

I have IGA Nephropathy and lower back flank pain, my neph indicated that IGA antibodies could cause it.
http://www.igansupport.org/faqs.html

[KICKSTART]

It could just be a bad back ! I get one from just doing hemo , in that chair for 4 hours + , its not natural !

[Rerun]

Watch to see if you get a fever.  That would indicate an infection......

[-Lady Noir-]

Hey FluffyKiwi 

Mikes always had lower backpain. And now that he's not working anymore, and not doing much else, his abdominal strength has weakened, therefore resulting in more frequent lower back pain.

[natnnnat]

In 2004 I had three bulging disks in the lower back.  I went to a physio who prescribed me a set of exercises to improve "core strength", using the muscles running along the spine to hold the spine in place.  He said the damage probably came from inactivity, as I was working on computers all day and all night, sitting and doing little else.   From being unable to walk, stand or sit, I progressed to being able to shuffle, and now I can walk and run.  But I find if I don't walk most days for about 40 mins, then the pain in the lower spine begins to come back.  Just a bit.  Just a reminder of what could be in store if I don't get my shoes back on. 

[KICKSTART]

In 2004 I had three bulging disks in the lower back.  I went to a physio who prescribed me a set of exercises to improve "core strength", using the muscles running along the spine to hold the spine in place.  He said the damage probably came from inactivity, as I was working on computers all day and all night, sitting and doing little else.   From being unable to walk, stand or sit, I progressed to being able to shuffle, and now I can walk and run.  But I find if I don't walk most days for about 40 mins, then the pain in the lower spine begins to come back.  Just a bit.  Just a reminder of what could be in store if I don't get my shoes back on.

Be interesting to know what the exercises are ? as i think we all suffer from inactivity now and sitting in that chair for four hours ! 

[natnnnat]

Well, in many ways I’m a bit nervous about explaining exercises, because they were given to me by a qualified physio in response to my specific situation, under supervision, demonstrated rather than written down, it was five years ago I did them, etc etc.

I’ve looked about a bit and found this description of the main exercise I was given to do when all I could really do was lie on my back and take pain killers  , the following description is from here:  http://www.bigbackpain.com/back_exercises.html
The Bridge: Strengthens several core muscle groups - buttocks, abs, back
Lie flat on back; bend knees at 90-degree angle, feet flat on floor. Tighten abs. Raise buttocks off floor, keeping abs tight. Shoulder to knees should be in straight line. Hold for a count of five. Slowly lower buttocks to floor. Repeat five times.
There are other exercises on that page which I could never have managed at that time.  Later he got me to do a variant on this same exercise, and when I got more mobile, he gave the go ahead for me to do a tai chi exercise. A lovely, simple one involving mainly breathing, arm raising and gentle knee bending.  Starts off feeling inconsequential but after a few repetitions you get this lovely warm activated feeling in the shoulders and the small of the back.

As noted at http://www.thephysiotherapysite.co.uk/physiotherapy/exercise/simple-back-exercises, where there are other simple exercises, Please note that exercises can make your pain worse as well as better so please consult the simple exercise guidance before getting on with them. If you have any doubts, please consult your physio, other manual therapist or medical practitioner.

[RightSide]

What's your serum parathyroid hormone (PTH) level?  And your blood calcium level?

If PTH is too high and calcium is too low, your body will suck the calcium out of your bones.  I had terrible back pain problems that way (I couldn't get into a car), until my PTH and calcium levels came back into "normal" ranges (that's "normal" for ESRD patients, that is).

[GonePostalWV]

Being a PKD sufferer, any time I have flank pain I figure I have a cyst ready to rupture.  (Time to break out the Hydrocodone)

[KICKSTART]

Thanks natnnat !