Back Pain When Coughing: Understanding and Managing Lower Back Pain

Coughing is a natural activity that helps you clear your airways. Even though it is a respiratory reaction, coughing uses muscles throughout your body, including your diaphragm, core, and back muscles. Severe coughing can irritate back discomfort and create new back pain because of the strain it puts on your body. 

While back pain may go away on its own, it’s important to address any source of back pain to protect your overall health. If there is a significant issue, the back pain could worsen to the point that it interferes with your day-to-day life. 

Coughing is already an unpleasant experience, whether you are suffering from a cold or living with a chronic condition. This article can help you minimize and address back pain caused by coughing so you don’t have to contend with that as well. Dr. Todd H. Lanman, an industry-leading spinal neurosurgeon, frequently meets with patients with diverse sources of back pain – including pain caused by coughing. Here’s his advice.

Understanding the Causes of Lower Back Pain When Coughing

The first step is to get to the root cause of your back pain. This will help you follow a dedicated treatment plan to make the pain go away. It is better to seek treatment for a minor issue than to ignore a major issue that gets worse over time. Here are a few common causes of back pain. 

Common Causes of Back Pain

• Muscle Strain: This is also known as a pulled muscle and occurs from sudden and severe use. Moving or sitting in certain positions can make the muscle feel worse until it heals. 
• Herniated Disc: This occurs when the cushions protecting your vertebrae, known as spinal discs, break. The inner nucleus of the disc can push into the nerve canal, causing pain. Coughing puts sudden pressure on the discs and can cause them to break. While a herniated disc can heal, it sometimes requires surgery. 
• Spinal Stenosis: This condition occurs when the spinal column is too narrow, which puts more pressure on the nerve canal. Coughing can worsen spinal stenosis symptoms, leading to numbness or tingling in the legs or trouble controlling bowel movements.
• Sciatica: This condition is a result of nerve pain caused by a herniated or slipped disc. Coughing can further push the disc into the nerves, sending sciatica shockwaves of pain down the nerve canal.  

In some cases, coughing can directly cause back pain. This happens when coughing leads to muscle strain or a herniated disc. In other cases, coughing worsens back pain, like a bad cough exacerbating spinal stenosis or sciatica. 

Symptoms to Watch For: Is Your Back Pain Serious?

Back pain is a common complaint for people contending with a cough. You might experience symptoms like a dull or sharp pain in the lower back that gets worse when coughing. You could also notice pain that radiates down your legs or buttocks instead of staying in one place. This pain could limit your ability to move comfortably, whether you’re bending over to pick up objects or walking through the grocery store.  

There are a few red flags to look out for if you are worried about the severity of the back pain caused by coughing. Seek medical help immediately if you notice: 

• • Severe or worsening pain. Make note of pain that starts to interfere with your daily life, becomes unbearable, or gets worse rather than better. 
  • Pain accompanied by numbness or tingling. This could indicate that something in your back is interfering with your nerve canal. 
  • Loss of bladder or bowel control. This is another sign that information about your bowels isn’t clear between your body and brain, signaling a nerve issue. 
  • Changes in your back pain. Some people live with chronic back pain. If your pain suddenly changes, it could be a sign that there is another problem that has been left undiagnosed. 

The main concern is whether your back pain improves as your cough heals. If your pain remains or worsens, it could be a sign that you have a significant condition that needs to be addressed by a medical professional. 

What to Do if You Experience Severe Symptoms

There are two things to do if you experience severe symptoms. The first is to stop doing activities that worsen your pain. Consider taking cough suppressants to reduce the urge to cough and avoid inflammatory movements like lifting heavy objects or high-impact exercise. Your back needs time to heal. 

The next step is to call a medical professional. Schedule an appointment with your doctor to discuss your back pain. They may refer you to a spinal specialist if they are concerned about any serious conditions.

Treatment Options for Lower Back Pain When Coughing

When you talk to your doctor about back pain, they will develop a treatment plan using a variety of remedies. These treatments work together to support your overall spinal health. Here are a few things they may recommend. 

Non-Surgical Treatments

The first step is to take a non-surgical approach to back pain. These are treatments you can try as soon as you leave the office. Many conditions, including pulled muscles and herniated discs, can be treated without surgical intervention. 

• • Rest and Activity Modification: your doctor may give you a list of strenuous activities to avoid and ask you to stick with light tasks at work. They can also provide safe ways to stay active, like switching to swimming or biking instead of running. 
  • Physical Therapy: this involves a series of stretches and exercises to promote spinal health and build muscles back. Your doctor may recommend a physical therapist or walk you through various exercises during your appointment. 
  • Medications: over-the-counter pain relievers can reduce discomfort while anti-inflammatory medication can reduce swelling. Your doctor may discuss prescription medications for severe pain. 
  • Home Remedies: you can also reduce discomfort by using heat and cold therapy and practicing gentle exercises. If you have access to a pool, your doctor may recommend floating or gentle swimming. 

You can see how these treatments work together. Pain medication can reduce discomfort so you can complete your physical therapy exercises. Anti-inflammatory medication and an ice pack can reduce swelling and make you more comfortable. 

Surgical Treatments

If your back pain worsens or your doctor diagnoses a severe condition, they may recommend surgical intervention. Here are a few potential treatments they could move forward with. 

• Microdiscectomy: This is when a surgeon removes part of your spinal disc, but not the whole thing. A microdiscectomy is designed to relieve pressure on the nerves when a disc is bulging into the nerve canal. 
• Laminectomy: This is a procedure to remove part of the vertebral bone. A laminectomy can be used to treat spinal stenosis or sciatica. 
• Artificial Disc Replacement: This is when the doctor completely removes the damaged spinal disc and replaces it with an artificial model. Artificial disc replacement is preferred over fusion because it is less invasive and preserves the range of motion of patients. 

Your doctor will provide a tailored treatment plan to help you overcome back pain, whether it involves regular physical therapy appointments or surgical intervention. 

Managing and Preventing Lower Back Pain

There are plenty of ways to stay healthy whether you live with back pain and want to manage it or hope to prevent the development of back pain over time. Here are a few ways to evaluate your current health and take steps to improve it. 

• Lifestyle Changes: Follow the CDC’s guidelines for regular exercise and take steps to eat a balanced diet with reasonable portions. This can help you maintain a healthy weight while strengthening your muscles. 
• Ergonomic Adjustments: Take steps to improve your posture and practice healthy sitting habits. You can also invest in ergonomic furniture that supports your back when you sit. 
• Healthy Habits: Stay hydrated even if you don’t feel thirsty. You can also cut back on your alcohol consumption and quit smoking. These habits can help your body in numerous ways. 

Finally, listen to your body. Rest when you are exhausted and treat back pain when it is mild. This will prevent the pain from becoming severe and interfering with your life.

Expert Insights: What Do the Professionals Say About Pain While Coughing? 

Managing back pain while coughing is difficult. Unlike back pain caused by exercise or work, it’s hard to stop coughing entirely to support your back. However, you can take steps to reduce your discomfort. Here are a few tips from Dr. Lanman. 

• Brace yourself: hold on to a table or armrest to stabilize your body when coughing.
• Use your core muscles: try to take pressure off your spine when coughing by engaging your core muscles. 
• Arch your back: avoid hunching over when coughing, which puts your spine out of its natural alignment.  
• Try hugging a pillow: this can redistribute force and make coughing more comfortable. 

You can also take steps to lessen your need to cough. Take cough suppressants, drink tea, and eat soup to soothe your cough. This can make you feel better while protecting your back. 

When to Seek Medical Help

It can be tempting to ignore back pain if you can still complete daily tasks or if you feel like you are too busy to see a doctor and start a course of treatment. However, neglecting your pain is dangerous. It could worsen to the point where it impacts your ability to perform daily tasks and live a life uninhibited by pain.

Talk to your doctor if you have persistent or severe pain that will not go away. You should also discuss any symptoms of numbness or tingling related to nerve damage. These symptoms are significant and alert your doctor to problems with your spine. 

Preparing for Your Doctor’s Visit

Once you schedule an appointment to discuss your back pain, make sure you are ready to have an open conversation about your situation. Write down all of your symptoms and identify the most severe ones. This will help you communicate how you are feeling with your doctor. It helps to write down any questions beforehand so you don’t forget them. A few common questions include:  

• How will I know if my condition is getting worse?
• Will the treatment plan have any negative side effects?
• What caused my pain and how can I avoid it happening again?
• What is the timeline for healing? 
• Are there any alternative treatment options that could help me?

If you aren’t sure whether you need to speak with a doctor, make an appointment anyway. It is better to meet with a medical professional and receive a mild diagnosis than to let a severe continue to worsen. Request a consultation with Dr. Lanman today. 

Taking Control of Your Back Health: Coping with Pain When Coughing

If you are living with a cold or chronic cough, you may experience back pain when coughing. In most cases, this will subside as your cough heals. However, pain that worsens or leads to new symptoms should be addressed immediately. The longer you wait, the more painful your spinal condition could become. 

Make an appointment with Dr. Lanman, a leading spinal neurosurgeon, or one of the recommended spinal professionals in his Top Doctors program. They can guide you through different surgical and non-surgical treatment options to help you feel better.