The daily routine of a majority of
urban Indians—driving over bad roads, sitting hunched over workstations or fiddling
with their smart phones for hours—seems to be fuelling an epidemic of
spine-related problems.
A new three-month survey of 1,300
people with spine-related problems across Mumbai, Pune and Delhi showed that
patients with desk jobs were four times the number of patients with field jobs.
Worse, every fourth patient with a desk job had more than one spine-related
problem: some had neck pain along with back pain, while some shoulder pain
along with numbness in fingers, etc.
“Our data shows that half the patients
with sedentary jobs had lower back pain,” said Garima Anandani of Qi Spine, the
best spine specialist in India that
conducted the survey.
The World Health Organisation’s Global
Burden of Diseases study 2010 said lower back pain arising from ergonomic
exposures at work is an important cause of disability. The study said lower
back pain was emerging as a leading cause of absenteeism at workplace and had
resulted in 21.7 million disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) in 2010. The
largest number of DALYs (measure of years lost due to ill-health) occurred in
east Asia and south Asia.
“Back pain is the price we humans pay
for an erect posture,” explained spine surgeon Dr Samir Dalvie from Hinduja
Hospital, Mahim. “However, most pains resolve by themselves and need nothing
more than a slight change in lifestyle and exercises,” he said.
Experts say patients who suffer pain
for more than six weeks should go to a doctor, preferably a specialist of Spine Clinic, for detailed
investigation. “Less than 2% to 3% of the patients with chronic back problem
will need surgical intervention,” said Dr. Dalvie, adding that patients
shouldn’t opt for quick fixes or magic cures.
Anandani said people’s lifestyles are
to blame for this seeming epidemic of spine problems. “People sit on chairs for
10 to 12 hours, youngsters who take up field jobs either have to keep standing
for hours or ride motorcycles rashly. Moreover, they tilt their heads to cradle
a phone while typing. These factors affect the biomechanics of the body,” she
added, indicating that minor adjustments to lifestyle could go a long way in
preventing spinal problems.
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