Will praying relieve SI joint pain?

By George N. True II

This is the second part of my series on sacroiliac joint pain or low back pain that affects millions of people worldwide.

See a doctor at the first sign of sacroiliitis or SI joint pain to determine what’s causing it. Causes include:

  • Differences in leg length
  • Enthesopathy (a problem that involves the attachment of tendons, ligaments, or parts of the joint to the bone)
  • Infection
  • Pelvic ring fractures (when bones that make up the pelvis break)
  • Pregnancy (which stretches the sacroiliac joints to accommodate childbirth and contributes to added weight)
  • Previous spinal surgery (a poorly recognized cause of sacrum pain)
  • Scoliosis (sideways curvature of the spine)
  • Spinal surgery
  • Spondyloarthropathy (any joint disease of the vertebral column)
  • Sports like figure skating, golf, and bowling
  • Sudden repeated heavy lifting
  • Traumatic injury from a sudden impact like a motor vehicle accident (rear-end collisions) or a fall

Certain types of arthritis can also trigger SI joint pain. These include:

  1. Ankylosing spondylitis

The University of Washington Department of Orthopaedics and Sports Medicine said this inflammatory condition affects 300,000 people in America alone.  In this autoimmune disease, the small bones in the spine fuse, making the latter less flexible.  It is common in more men than women.

  1. Lupus

This is another autoimmune disorder where the body’s immune system attacks tissues and organs. Affected areas include the skin, blood, kidneys, and joints. At least 5 million people worldwide have lupus, according to the Lupus Foundation of America. Most victims are women of childbearing age.

  1. Osteoarthritis

This is the most common form of arthritis that affects more than 300 million people globally, according to data published in Annals of Internal Medicine. This is also called wear-and-tear arthritis or degenerative joint disease. It targets the joints of the hands, knees, hips, and spine. Osteoarthritis happens when the protective cartilage that cushions the ends of bones breaks down over time.

  1. Rheumatoid arthritis

In this chronic autoimmune disorder, the immune system attacks healthy cells by mistake. This not only affects the joints but can damage the skin, heart, and lungs among others. Results of the Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors study show 19.9 million people had this condition in 2017 and women are more likely to get it.

 

Why sacroiliitis is difficult to detect

Because it can be mistaken for other causes of back pain, sacrum pain can be difficult to diagnose. To know what your problem is, the doctor might test the sacroiliac joints during a physical exam. This involves pressing certain areas on the hips and buttocks and moving the legs to different positions.

A pelvic X-ray will tell if the SI joints are damaged, while an MRI is recommended if ankylosing spondylitis is suspected. This non-invasive test uses radio waves and a large magnet to produce detailed images of the bones and soft tissues.

Additionally, the physician might inject an anesthetic into the sacroiliac joint to see if the pain originates there. This will help rule out other conditions.

Unusual SI joint pain treatments

In the past, all that people with sacroiliitis could do was pray to the saints. One of them was St. Albert of Cashel who suffered from arthritis of the back and hips. A favorite of arthritis sufferers, Albert was an Englishman who lived in the 8th century. He preached in Ireland and Bavaria and was described as having the voice of an angel.

Other weird and questionable sacrum pain treatments include:

  1. Leeches

In ancient Egypt until the early 19th century Europe, it was fashionable to treat sacrum pain with leeches. This worked since the leech’s saliva has an anesthetic that numbs the area. A 2003 study published in Annals of Internal Medicine said this method could relieve arthritic joint pain and might reduce joint stiffness.

But there are drawbacks to leeching. The leech’s saliva contains substances that prevent blood clotting and can lead to excessive bleeding. People with circulation problems can also be infected by the microorganisms this creepy creature carries.

  1. Willow bark

Around 4000 B.C. in Mesopotamia, willow bark was chewed to relieve inflammation. This ancient remedy is still available today and is used to treat lower back pain. There is some basis for this since the bark contains salicin from which aspirin’s active ingredient was derived. However, like aspirin, this natural remedy can cause Reye’s syndrome that can lead to brain and liver damage in children.

  1. Tobacco smoke enemas

If leeches and willow bark don’t appeal to you, how about a tobacco smoke enema?  This was popular in Europe in the late 17th century and was originally used to treat constipation in horses. Someone believed that tobacco smoke blown up the rectum could relieve pain in the gut and abdomen.

This theory was later debunked in the early 19th century by Daniel Legare, a medical student at the University of Pennsylvania who found that it had no medical benefits. What’s more, tobacco smoke is dangerous since it contains carcinogens.

  1. Botox

Don’t be surprised if people with sacroiliitis have a lot of wrinkles because of their painful condition. But did you know that Botox is also effective against low back pain?  This was shown in two studies. The first was published in 2006 in the Clinical Journal of Pain, and in Current Pain and Headache Reports in 2007 which said that Botox is safe for back pain, too.

Botox works the same way as it does on the face to reduce and soften wrinkles. Sadly, its effects don’t last long and repeated shots can be expensive.  Those facts are probably enough to give patients more wrinkles! (On Friday: Home remedies for SI joint pain. Don’t miss it!)

For questions, email [email protected].

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