Back pain is quite common with adults and all adults have experience this even once in their life but back pain for children is a rare case and should be investigated immediately. It might be an initial symptom of an underlying disease. This is mostly true with younger children. If your child has an injury or if the child’s back pain is with other symptoms like motor or sensory problems of the extremities, bladder or bowel dysfunction or fever, then take your child to the doctor for evaluation.
Exact occurrence of children’s back pain is unknown although you can observe a slow increase with age. It is different from adults since children are seldom disabled by back pain and in more than fifty percent cases of patient a specific cause is usually found (Pediatr Clin North Am 1984).
The usual cause of back pain is muscle or spine problems but back pain in children may be related to one or more organ systems in the body like the central nervous system, gastrointestinal tract, kidneys, lung and heart, The following are symptoms of children who may have underlying problem and may need further diagnostic testing to rule out other serious diseases.
• Weakness in its motor skills.
• Loss of bladder or bowel control
• Loss of appetite
• Fever
• Pain changes every now and then with changes in child’s position.
• Does not go away with pain relievers.
• Pain that affects the child’s sleep
• Child tires easily
• Joint pain
If this symptoms occurs then it might point to some muskoskeletal strain but presence of such symptoms may also suggest other underlying disease which needs further testing to identify the problem. Doctor usually makes a thorough medical history of the child and physical examination and if needed laboratory testing and radiologic studies like x-ray, CT scan to identify the problem.
Treatment starts when an accurate identification of the problem or condition is done then proper treatment is initiated. Treatment really depends on the cause of the back pain. For overuse injury, a simple pain reliever and rest is all you need. For more advance cases, surgical or use of brace may be necessary. If the back pain is cause by infection then antibiotic is required, for malignant problems like tumors then a combination treatment of surgical and chemotherapy is necessary to treat the condition.
Irregardless of the reason of back pain, some kind of pain medication is really needed. Most of these pain medications are available over the counter and they are quite effective in treating pain of different origins and should therefore not be underestimated. If the child does not find relief in this over the counter pain relievers then much stronger medications might be prescribed. Depending on the cause of your child’s back pain, your doctor is the one to know the best medication for your child.