UNDERSTANDING BACK TROUBLE OTHER BACK PROBLEMS-PAGET’S DISEASE (OSTEITIS DEFORMANS)

April 1st, 2009 by admin in Healthy bones Osteoporosis Rheumatic

The kinds of back trouble that have been described so far derive from some dysfunction of the spine or from a congenital deformity, or from a violent injury, or from gradual deterioration with use and age.

There are other kinds of back trouble. Some of them affect the spine mainly or solely; others affect various parts of the body, the spine being just one of them. A third category includes disease which produces back pain without necessarily involving the spine.

Paget’s disease (osteitis deformans)-This is a bone disease of unknown origin, and may occur in any bone. It usually starts in middle age and is rarely found before the age of 60. The bones thicken and become denser, but also softer, tending to deform. If the disease is mild, as is often the case, and causes no symptoms, no treatment is given. In the spine, Paget’s disease may cause pain through pressure on the nerve roots; pain-killers may suffice.

Treatment, notably with calcitonin, a hormone which inhibits the excessive laying down of bone material, is very expensive and considered justifiable in only very few cases.

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