What do you do about burning lower back pain?

LOREN
LORENon September 19, 2017
1 Comment
My mom is 81 and had a stroke in early June , she is doing great in rehab and walked 425 ft today with a walker . The problem we keep facing is the pain in her lower back. She says it's burning and tingling pain . None of her pain meds seem to help and this hampers her from doing so much more as the pain is so bad she just wants to go too bed.
1 Responses
StrokeLine avatar
StrokeLine

Hi Loren,

 

I’m really sorry to hear of your mum’s stroke and the pain she has been experiencing.

 

Unfortunately pain tends to be common after stroke. There can be a number of different causes of pain following stroke, so it’s important to find out what’s causing the pain so that treatment can be targeted.

 

I’d suggest that you discuss with the medical team whether there is anything ‘local’ in the lower back that could be causing the pain. If the pain is not from a ‘local’ injury, it may be a form of neuropathic pain, for example ‘central post-stroke pain’. Damaged nerves may send incorrect information or extra messages that cause someone to feel pain. Additionally the area of the brain that senses pain may have been affected by the stroke.

 

Many hospitals and rehabilitation units will have access to specialist pain health professionals that may review patients that have pain that is more difficult to manage – I’d suggest asking whether this is an option.

 

The physiotherapist and occupational therapist may also be able to discuss pain management strategies and work on ways to keep your mum moving more comfortably.

 

To read more about pain after stroke, you can refer to our pain management after stroke fact sheet.

 

There are quite a few discussions about pain amongst the stroke survivor community on our website: https://enableme.org.au/resources/pain-management.

 

There is also a great podcast about pain here: https://enableme.org.au/Community/Podcasts/Pain.

 

Best wishes,

 

Katherine

(StrokeLine - 1800 787 653)

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