HPI Questions For Low Back Pain

Your doctor asks you HPI questions for low back pain during your examination. These questions depend on your pain level and health condition.

These questions help the doctor to understand the condition of the patient. These questions may involve when, how and by which cause your pain started.

HPI Questions For Low Back Pain

HPI questions are questions based on the history of the present illness. They include all the possible questions to understand the patient’s condition.

The doctor uses these questions to offer you better treatment and medications. These questions start from the basic to an extended level.

The most common and basic HPI questions are the following:

1. From How Long Are You Facing Lower Back Pain?

When you visit a physician, they ask you this question the very first time. It describes the intensity of your pain. If you have been facing back pain for a very long time, it might be in worse condition.

If you have started facing this pain, then it can be cured with medication and treatment.

2. Do You Feel Sharp Pain In Your Lower Back?

If you face a sharp pain in your back, it is a sign of an emergency. Sometimes you face normal pain in your back, which is manageable.

You may face this pain due to any heavy object lifting or tough physical activity. This can be cured after some rest and precaution.

3. Is The Lower Back Pain Continuous Or Comes Back After Some Time?

Lower back pain can be constant, and it may go and come back after some time. Both situations are different meanings. Constant back pains can be due to serious injury.

The pains which go and come back can be due to your daily activities.

4. Is Lower Back Pain Causing Pain In Your Neck As Well?

Lower back pain can further extend to your neck as well. It starts spreading in your body rapidly. It can be long-lasting if not treated at the initial state.

If you feel pain in your neck, you should consult your physician and get yourself checked.

5. What Are Your Physical Activities?

Your physical activities impact your body. If you perform tough activities on daily basis, it can cause serious lower back pain.  

They insert pressure on your back muscles. It causes stress in the spine as well. It can result in long-lasting lower back pain.  

Try to choose easy activities to perform. They make the body stronger and do not affect your back muscles and spine.

6. Do You Feel Lower Back Pain When You Bend?

Lower back pain while bending can be due to injury or strained back muscles. If you face lower back pain while bending, it can be due to many other reasons, like herniated discs, scoliosis, and spondylolysis.

When you bend, it inserts pressure on your back muscles and causes lower back pain. To avoid lower back pain while bending, you should try to keep your body in the correct shape.

7. Do You Sit For Long Hours?

Sitting for long hours causes lower back pain. When you sit for a long time, it inserts the pressure on your back muscles and spine. It causes stressed/tense muscles in the back.

It is important to ask if your patient sits for long hours. They should go for comfortable chairs. They should do stretching after some time as well. It can decrease stress on your back muscles.

8. Do Your Parents Also Face Lower Back Pain?

Lower back pain can be due to genetic problems. You should ask your patient if either any one of their parents or both parents face lower back pain.

It can be a family problem. If it’s due to genetics, then it can be time taking to cure back pain.

9. Have You Tried Any Massage Therapy?

Massage therapy is considered an effective treatment for lower back pain. They are used to relax tensed muscles and provide relief to back pain.

It can be a serious issue if your patient has tried massage therapy and is still not getting better. They should try chiropractor or acupuncture treatment techniques.

10. For How Long Do You Exercise In A Day?

Exercise is a must for curing lower back pain. Exercise strengthens your body’s muscles and tissues. It makes blood circulation better in the body. It keeps the oxygen level moderate in the body.

If your patient does exercises, it can cure lower back pain. If they do excessive exercise, it can cause lower back pain. Excessive exercise can cause stiffness in the muscles.

It is important to know for how long your patient exercises on daily basis. It can help to find the cause of lower back pain.

11. Do You Face Pain In Your Upper Back Also?

Lower back pain can further extend to your upper body and neck area. It can create stress in your upper back muscles as well.

You can feel pain in your upper back while bending or lifting any heavy objects. Patients should know the exact areas where they feel pain along with the lower back pain.

12. Is Your Lower Back Pain Acute Or Chronic?

There are different types of lower back pain. It can be either acute or chronic. Acute lower back pain can be cured within 2 – 4 weeks with proper care and treatment.

It does not cause any serious pain in your back. It can occur due to any tough activity. Chronic lower back pain is serious back pain. It can be due to any injury or strained muscles.

Back pain can be chronic when it does not cure within 4 – 6 weeks. Treatment options are different for both kinds of lower back pain. The doctor should know the correct type of lower back pain you face.  

13. Do You Feel Less Pain By Stretching?

Stretching can reduce lower back pain by reducing stress from your back muscles. If your patient feels less pain by stretching, you can suggest different exercises and physical therapies.

People with acute lower back pain can feel less pain by stretching. It is a drug-free solution for your back pain. It is one of the long-lasting and effective treatments.  

14. What Is Your Diet Plan?

The diet you take daily affects your body too. If you take heavy meals and fast foods, it can cause stress in your back. As a result, you can face lower back pain.

Your doctor will also ask you about your diet plan. It affects the body’s muscles and soft tissues. What food you take daily is an important part of HPI questions.

15. Do You Feel Lower Back Pain While Sleeping?

Your sleeping positions and routine can affect your spine and back muscles. If you feel pain while sleeping, it can be due to various reasons.

It may include your mattress and pillow quality. Your sleeping positions and other questions related to sleeping. Sleeping in the wrong position can cause stress in the spine and muscles. It causes lower back pain.

In that situation, your doctor will suggest checking your mattress and pillow. They may ask to change your sleeping positions with the help of a pillow.

16. What Are The Symptoms You Feel About Back Pain?

Symptoms of lower back pain can differ in people of different ages. Some people face serious muscle stiffness in the back. Others may face pain in their lower back and upper back as well.

You should tell each and every symptom and sign you feel about your back. The doctor can understand the situation and then suggest treatment.

17. Is Lower Back Pain Due To Muscles Stress?

Lower back pain can be due to various reasons. It is not just that you face lower back pain due to muscle stress. Maybe you are facing lower back pain due to any underlying medical condition.

There are several causes of lower back pain. In most cases, women face lower back pain due to pregnancy, cervical cancer, and periods.

In other people, it can be due to many other unstable medical health conditions.

18. Is Lower Back Pain Further Goes To Your Legs?

In some people, lower back pain further extends to the legs. This is due to the weakness of bones and muscles. The stress and pressure of the back muscles go to the legs muscles and tissues.

In this condition, walking properly without any support makes it hard. This situation is seen in older people more often. It is important to know whether the pain is in the legs.

Conclusion

HPI questions are important before doing an examination on patients. These questions help to understand the patient’s condition better.

HPI questions include the causes, effects, and areas of pain. The doctor asks patients when, where, and how the pain started and in which body areas.

These questions help the physician to recognize the problem. Then they will start the treatment according to the patient’s health.

They suggest medications according to the patient’s condition. When you visit a doctor, they start with HPI questions and then move further to treatments.

Different treatment options are available for different kinds of pains and affected areas. They work better when applied to affected areas.