Then a series of studies in the 1980s and 1990s revealed that resting actually slowed recovery. acupunctureDoctors also explored surgical options, only to find that these physical fixes were thwarted by the complexity of the lower back. The best candidates for surgery are patients whose pain derives from a specific, identifiable source—such as a tumor or an infection. But 90 percent of cases are untraceable. Insults to the muscles, ligaments, joints, nerves or bones—or some combination thereof—can all cause lower back pain. And the specific sensations are unique to the individual; the same nerve damage in two people can elicit entirely different symptoms. In short, it is hard to know where the pain comes from or how to intervene surgically to make it stop. In light of the limited efficacy of surgical intervention, doctors have been tackling chronic back pain with pills. Painkillers disrupt the body's efforts to relay nerve signals to the brain, dulling the subsequent discomfort.

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