Lower Back a Pain in the Brain?

news you may not know



My Back Hurts

Right About Here...

The doctor, no longer the least bit quizzical about your lower back pain, simply nods noncommittally. Using the innate power of a raised index finger to silence your complaints, he dials quickly and speaks in hushed tones. Mere nanoseconds later the door bursts open and white-clad men wrestle you to the ground, cinch a well-starched straightjacket about your pain racked body and place a gag in your mouth to muffle the cries. The doctor instructs the attendants to escort you to Bellevue Psychiatric Hospital, explaining, "It's all in his head."

He may be right.

German doctors, reporting at a large radiological meeting in Chicago, believe some lower back pain may be caused by an overloaded pain message delivery system in the brain. They liken it to a highway that becomes congested by too much commuter traffic. As the congestion in the brain increases so does the sensation of pain in the lower back.

Scientists studied the problem using a specialized imaging technique that analyzes the distribution of water within the brain. Subjects with chronic back pain exhibited physiologic changes within the areas of the brain responsible for processing pain. One such area, the thalamocortical tract, is actually known as the "pain highway."

Hmm... If nothing else, possibly it can be converted to a toll road.

To read more about the study, see this report from ScienceDaily.