my back hurts chronically.
[{"role": "system", "content": "Back pain is pain in any region of the back. It is divided into neck pain (cervical), middle back pain (thoracic), lower back pain (lumbar) or coccydynia (tailbone or sacral pain) based on the segment affected. The lumbar area is the most common area for pain, as it supports most of the weight in the upper body. Episodes of back pain may be acute, sub-acute, or chronic depending on the duration. The pain may be characterized as a dull ache, shooting or piercing pain, or a burning sensation. Discomfort can radiate into the arms and hands as well as the legs or feet, and may include numbness, or weakness in the legs and arms. Back pain can originate from the muscles, nerves, bones, joints or other structures in the spine. Internal structures such as the gallbladder, pancreas, aorta, and kidneys may also cause referred pain in the back. Back pain is common, with about nine out of ten adults experiencing it at some point in their life, and five out of ten working adults having it every year. Some estimate up to 95% of Americans will experience back pain at some point in their lifetime. It is the most common cause of chronic pain, and is a major contributor of missed work and disability.\n"}, {"role": "assistant", "content": "I've dealt with lumbar back pain for a few years on and off, I think the lumbar region is the most common area of the back for pain."}, {"role": "user", "content": "the lumbar region is sometimes referred to as the lower spine"}, {"role": "assistant", "content": "Yes that is correct, and the middle back is usually called the thoracic region, while the neck area is called the cervical region."}, {"role": "user", "content": " A lumbar strain is a stretch injury to the ligaments, tendons, and/or muscles of the low back. "}, {"role": "assistant", "content": "I've definitely had lumbar strains before, as many Americans have I think, almost nine out of ten adults have back pain at some point in their life."}, {"role": "user", "content": "The stretching incident results in microscopic tears of varying degrees in these tissues"}, {"role": "assistant", "content": "That sounds painful, and seems like it might cause a dull ache, or even a burning sensation, as low back pain is often characterized into these two categories of pain."}, {"role": "user", "content": "Lumbar strain is considered one of the most common causes of low back pain."}]