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Back pain: when to see a doctor, what can cause it, and what helps
For anyone whose back hurts, whether it started yesterday after lifting something or has gone on for months. The National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases (NIAMS, part of the NIH) says back pain is one of the most common medical problems in the United States, and that most people find relief within 6 weeks. This page passes on, by name, what NIAMS says: how it can feel and which signs mean see a doctor, the causes and who is more likely to have it, the questions and tests, treatment and who gives it, and how to live with it and prevent it. It puts first our own rule for when it cannot wait, builds the words to say to a provider, and prints a card for the visit.
Right now
- After a hard fall, a crash or a hard blow, the person cannot move or cannot feel their legs: call 911 and do not move them unless they are in danger (ours).
- Back pain with chest pain or pressure, or trouble breathing: call 911 (ours). See our page on heart attack.
- You suddenly cannot pee, cannot hold your urine or stool, or your legs are suddenly getting weak: go to the emergency room now (ours).
- See a doctor for back pain with numbness and tingling, trouble urinating, weakness, pain or numbness in your legs, fever, or weight loss you did not intend; after a fall or injury; when it is severe and does not improve with medication; or when it does not improve after a few weeks (NIAMS). With a fever, call today (ours).
More help
- Related: Living with chronic pain · Arthritis · Kidney stones · Bladder infection (UTI) in adults · Broken bones · Heart attack · Depression · Insomnia · Your rights at work.
- Care and costs: When you need a doctor and can’t pay · My medicines list · Get ready for your appointment · Symptom diary.
- In a crisis: Help right now (988, 911). All our free tools.
Pain, a bone or a joint, and not sure this is the right page? The pages on this site for back pain, arthritis, pain that lasts, headaches, broken bones and sickle cell, on one list.
This page and its wording were written with AI (Claude) for Scarlet Beast (our AI policy). No doctor or nurse has reviewed it. The facts were read on October 15, 2026 on NIAMS’s Back Pain page, both parts: Overview, Symptoms, & Causes and Diagnosis, Treatment, & Steps to Take (NIH, last reviewed February 2023). Ours: calling 911 when, after a hard fall, a crash or a hard blow, the person cannot move or feel their legs, and not moving them unless they are in danger; calling 911 for back pain with chest pain or pressure or trouble breathing; going to the emergency room now if you suddenly cannot pee, cannot hold your urine or stool, or your legs are suddenly getting weak; calling the same day with a fever; calling or texting 988 for thoughts of suicide; following the label and asking a pharmacist before mixing pain relievers; asking what a test would change and what it costs; and the order of the steps. What we left out: any single medicine or dose, the names of the surgeries NIAMS lists, any exercise program, and NIAMS’s research pages. This page saves nothing and loads no trackers.