Back Pain Mistakes: MN Workers' Compensation

Back injuries are the most common type of work-related injury we see in our Minnesota workers’ compensation law practice. 

Dealing with severe or chronic back pain due to a work injury can be incredibly difficult. According to Spine-Health.com, avoiding some common mistakes can help keep you from making your back pain worse.

1. Ignoring your pain for too long. Often, an acute attack of low back pain will get better within a few weeks, but that doesn’t mean you should ignore it. For chronic or severe back pain, a spine specialist may be able to give you a diagnosis and treatment plan to help you manage or reduce your pain.
2. Relying on your general practitioner for too long. If your back pain is severe and/or lasts for more than a few weeks, you may need to see someone with more specialized training in back pain, such as a chiropractor or spine specialist. A spine specialist may be able to give you a better diagnosis and treatment plan than a general practitioner. 
3. Jumping to surgery too quickly. Surgery is not necessarily a “quick fix.” In most cases, it is typically recommended that back pain patients try non-surgical, or conservative treatment, such as chiropractic care or physical therapy, for several weeks or months before seeing a spine surgeon. While surgery can correct a structural problem in the spine, such as a disc pressing a nerve, a sustained exercise and rehabilitation program can often promote long-term recovery.
4. Postponing back surgery for too long. For some types of back conditions, such as those involving nerve root compression, patients often tend to do better if they have surgery sooner, rather than later. 
5. Focusing on MRI results. While an MRI scan can show areas of your spine that might be responsible for causing your pain, you need a full clinical diagnosis to determine an appropriate treatment plan. Often patients with severe back pain have a normal MRI scan, and individuals with significant structural abnormalities on an MRI have no back pain. 
6. Being inactive. Often people with back pain try to avoid aggravating their back pain or triggering pain flare-ups by limiting their physical activity. Over time, however, lack of activity often leads to more pain. Keeping your back flexible and strong improves your core support, hastens the healing process, and reduces the chances of future injury or aggravations. 

In addition to the pain you have to deal with as a result of a work-related back injury, you may suddenly be looking at significant medical expense, an extended time off work, or even a permanent disability.

In Minnesota, if you sustain an on-the-job back injury, you may be eligible for workers’ compensation benefits, including medical expense benefits, wage loss benefits, vocational rehabilitation benefits, and/or permanent partial disability benefits. For a free, no-obligation case consultation, call Meuser & Associate at 877-746-5680 or click here to send us an email to speak with one of our Minnesota workers’ compensation attorneys.