Nonspecific back pain

Injury	Disease	Nutrition	Poison

Symptoms	Surgery	Test	Special Topic

Skeletal spine

Vertebra, cervical (neck)

Vertebra, lumbar (low back)

Vertebra, thoracic (mid back)

Spinal stenosis

Spine supporting structures

Nonspecific back pain

Definition:

Nonspecific back pain refers to pain in the back due to an unknown cause.

Alternative Names:
Back pain - nonspecific
Causes, incidence, and risk factors:

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Back pain is one of the most common complaints treated by physicians. Nearly 4 out of 5 people will experience back pain at some time in their life. The vast majority of these cases do not have a definable cause for their pain. This is an important, common problem and the annual cost of treating this pain runs in the tens of billions of dollars.

Back pain can develop in association with a number of causes, including muscle strain, injury to the back, overuse, muscle disorders, pressure on a nerve root, poor posture, and many others. Pregnant women, smokers, construction workers, and people who perform repetitive lifting all have increased risk of back pain. (See also low back pain).