September Is Pain Awareness Month: Learn About Back Pain

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September is Pain Awareness Month. Pain is the most common reason for seeking medical care. Integrative approaches for managing pain are needed, and some people suffering from pain are turning to these approaches. But do they work, and are they safe? Each week during the month of September, we will focus on a new aspect of pain management and hope to help answer these questions.

 

This week, we focus on back pain. Each year, up to one-quarter of U.S. adults experience low-back pain. Most people have significant back pain at least once in their lives; often, the cause is unknown. Back pain varies widely. For many people, it lasts only a few weeks, no matter what treatment is used. But for others, the pain can become chronic and even debilitating. Low-back pain is a challenging condition to diagnose, treat, and study.

 

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