07.02.2010 - Dr Carmen Martínez Soto tells us that the condition they see most frequently is lum­bago, which affects almost the entire population at some stage in their lives.
USP Costa Adeje have boosted their rehabilitation service with the incorporation of a medical specialist who will offer medical cover to patients who require specific treatments.
For Dr Martínez one of the conditions suffered most by the general population is lum­bago, defined by the pain that is present between the back’s lumbar region (between the last rib and the gluteal mus­cles). And has become one of the principal socio-sanitary problems in industrial na­tions.  “Between 60 and 90 per cent of people we know suffer lower back pain at some stage of their lives, and it is the second highest cause of absenteeism, only topped by upper respiratory infections (catarrh, bronchitis...).”
In Spain, within industrial and the services trades, a high number of people take sick leave as a result of lum­bago, way ahead of those working in construction and agriculture.
Dr Martínez continues, “this illness generates an enormous amount of lost work days and is the top cause of compensatory payouts by public bodies and work-re­lated insurance companies”.  It is reckoned that lumbago is responsible for 20-25 per cent of disability benefit costs in industrialised countries, as a result of which it has become “a problem of the first order, as much for its medical as for its social and economic implications”.
There are circumstances which make it more likely you will sufferes from lum­bago.  “Back pain is more common among young men, youths, persons who have a below-par health profile, and those whose work involved heavy lifting or manual la­bour during which the spine is stretched or held in an awkward position. It can also be caused by vibration, and psychological-social fac­tors are also relevant in that back pain is more frequent in patients who are not happy in their work or whose job is monotonous.
The rehabilitation special­ist agreed that “fortunately the progression of lumbago is relatively mild and in the first month up to 85  per cent of lumbago suffers improve and only 10 per cent go on to develop chronic pain.  In those cases it would appear psychological-social and work factors are key.
There is also secondary lumbago, when the pain is a result of infections, swellings or spinal tumours.  Primary or mechanical lumbago is as a result of degenerative conditions (arthrosis, slipped discs...) or trauma to the same (spinal fractures, con­tusions...).
In this regard the reha­bilitation specialist plays a decisive role in the treatment of acute mechanical lumbago and the objective of the team in the USP Hospital Costa Adeje is two-fold.  On the one hand relief treatment for the pain during the acute phase and on the other, preventing the pain moving into a chronic phase.
At the UPS Hos­pital Costa Adeje they offer a multi­tude of therapeutic tools and op­tions in their rehabilitation programmes, “but some elements are standard and indispensable, such as keep­ing the pa­tient informed (fundamental as they will be able to help themselves), the duration of rest prescribed (if it is too long it can prove more prejudicial than beneficial), training on how to avoid back trouble, specific exercises (which have been proven to be highly instrumental in reducing the amount and extent of pain, including pain as a result of serious spinal injuries), electro­therapy (microwaves, ultra­sound, analgesic currents, etc), Orthotics (girdles, corsets), spinal manipula­tion, pharmaceutical treat­ment and joint injections are the basic tenets of our therapeutic programmes.

This article appears in the print edition 609 of Island Connections

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