Experts flag rise in back problems, advise staying active & mobile

The experts also flagged concern about how certain infections can impact the spine and hence early treatment is important. “Infections like TB can spread to the spine through the bloodstream and cause severe problems like reduced sensation and neurological impairment. In one particular case of a 62-year-old farmer from Beed, he was unable to walk and was bedridden before he was brought to Sancheti hospital a year ago. This was a challenging case as during the course of investigation we identified that the patient had spinal TB,” Dr Hadgaonkar said. Dr Bhushan

Patil added that the patient was advised to religiously take TB medication. A year later, he was able to walk. “We are also seeing an increasing number of young people complaining of back and neck pain,” said Dr Mayur Kardile, Director, Pune Spine Institute, and consulting spine surgeon at Jehangir hospital.

Rapidly changing lifestyle, lack of proper exercise, improper diet, poor posture and habits like smoking are contributing to rising complaints of back and neck pain. “Modern surgical techniques like motion preserving spine surgery can help patients retain proper movement. With modern technology and surgical interventions we can expect functional recovery and getting back to sports,” Dr Kardile said, adding these are techniques where microscopic / endoscopic spine surgery is done and use of implants is avoided.

Meanwhile, at a webinar, Dr Tarun Suri, Head of Spine Surgery at Amrita Hospital, Faridabad, said that poor posture has become the most common cause of back and neck pain among its OPD patients. “Remarkably, nearly 70% of our OPD patients fall into this category. Poor screen etiquette is also a leading contributor to such pain.

People often use their gadgets with their neck bent for prolonged periods, leading to a condition called text-neck syndrome. Individuals between the ages of 25 and 45 are most commonly affected by postural back pain. Recently, we have also observed children aged 10-20 years are experiencing postural spine pains. Within this age group, poor studying posture, excessive gadget use, and carrying heavy school bags can all be important causes of back pain,” Dr Suri said.