Do you suffer from back pain? If you do, research shows that pain medication or surgery may not actually solve the problem.
Professor Martin Underwood from Warwick University is one of 31 authors of The Lancet Papers in relation to back pain. Although he acknowledges that back pain is a very real issue for a lot of people, such treatments are "probably doing more harm than good."
Back problem is the most common cause of disability, affecting around 500 million people globally. Martin says, "It's making lots of people's lives a misery. Our problem is that we can't tell you exactly where it's coming from, so we have to help people to manage their pain and get on with their lives."
Exercise is very important for people who have back pain, as Martin explains.
"If you've got a problem with any part of your body, if you don't use it the muscles around it become weak, and the only way to get it back to normal is to strengthen those muscles by exercising."
"Even though it's sore, you need to keep it moving, otherwise your back pain is never going to get better."
MRI scans don't always show what the problem is: "They don't show pain, they show structures."
Martin says the abnormalities that often show up in MRI scans can be seen in people without back pain as well as those who do. As a result, the vast majority of people will not benefit from treatments such as injections or surgery.
Martin's main advice for treating back pain is to exercise where possible, avoid medications and take psychological approaches such as talking therapy.
"If you're in a bad place psychologically because of what the pain is doing to you, this helps you develop the tools to self-manage it and to be able to continue with your life."
