Lower Back Pain Treatment

At LivingCare, your care starts with a consultant-led assessment at Thorpe Park Clinic, Leeds or Canon Medical Arena, Sheffield. The aim is to understand how your pain is affecting you, explore what may be causing it and agree the most appropriate next step. Procedures start from £1,100.

What Is Lower Back Pain?

Lower back pain is pain or stiffness in the lower part of your back, sometimes spreading into the buttock or leg. The NHS describes it as very common: it usually improves within a few weeks but can sometimes last longer or keep coming back [1]. According to Arthritis UK, low back pain is the top cause of years lived with disability in the UK (2019) [2].

Pain that lasts 3 months or longer is described as chronic [3]. If your pain is in your upper back or across more of your spine, see Spine Pain Treatment. For pain in your neck, see Neck Pain Treatment.

Symptoms and Causes of Lower Back Pain

Common Symptoms of Lower Back Pain

• Back pain that lasts longer than a few weeks or keeps coming back [1]
• With sciatica, a sharp, burning pain down the back of the leg, tingling like pins and needles, numbness or weakness [4]

Common Causes of Lower Back Pain

• An injury like a pulled muscle (strain), a common cause of back pain [1]
• Medical conditions like a slipped disc, sciatica (a trapped nerve) or ankylosing spondylitis [1]. Sciatica happens when the sciatic nerve, which runs from your lower back to your feet, is irritated or compressed [4]
• The facet joints, the small joints at the back of the spine, which can be a source of chronic low back pain [5]

When to Seek Lower Back Pain Treatment

It is worth seeking specialist help if your pain is not settling, keeps coming back, or is affecting your work, sleep or daily life. Repeated episodes can also leave you feeling frustrated or worried about when your back might go again. A specialist assessment gives you time to explain what has been happening and discuss a clear way forward.

The NHS advises you to see a GP if you have back pain and [1]:

• it does not improve after treating it at home for a few weeks
• it's stopping you doing your day-to-day activities
• you're worried about the pain or you're struggling to cope
• you've lost weight without trying to
• there's a lump or swelling in your back, or your back has changed shape
• it does not improve after resting or is worse at night
• it's worse when sneezing, coughing or pooing
• it's coming from the top of your back (between your shoulders), rather than your lower back

Ask for an urgent GP appointment or get help from 111 if you have back pain and [1]:

• you feel hot, cold, shivery or generally unwell
• it's severe pain that starts suddenly, or it's getting worse quickly

Call 999 or go to A&E if you have back pain and [1]:

• pain, tingling, weakness or numbness in both legs
• a loss of feeling around your genitals or anus
• changes in your bladder or bowels, such as difficulty peeing, or peeing or pooing yourself
• changes in how your penis or vagina feels during sex, not being able to get or keep an erection, or not being able to orgasm
• chest pain
• it started after a serious accident, such as a car accident

Do not drive to A&E. Ask someone to drive you or call 999 and ask for an ambulance [1].

If you have sciatica, the NHS advises you to go to A&E or call 999 if you [4]:

• have sciatica on both sides
• have weakness or numbness in both legs that's severe or getting worse
• have numbness around or under your genitals, or around your bottom (anus)
• find it hard to start peeing, cannot pee or cannot control when you pee - and this is not normal for you
• do not notice when you need to poo or cannot control when you poo - and this is not normal for you

These could be symptoms of a serious back problem that needs to be treated in hospital as soon as possible [4].

Lower Back Pain Treatment at LivingCare

Treatment starts with finding out what is causing your pain. The self-management, diagnostic block, radiofrequency and epidural options below follow NICE guidance on low back pain and sciatica [3].

Pain Management Consultation

Your first step is a Pain Management Consultation, where a consultant assesses your pain and agrees a plan with you. NICE recommends advice and self-management at every step, including encouragement to continue with normal activities [3]. Your plan may include physiotherapy [1].

Diagnostic Medial Branch Block

If your pain is thought to come from the facet joints, a diagnostic medial branch block uses local anaesthetic near the medial branch nerves that supply those joints. How your pain responds to the block helps your consultant decide whether radiofrequency denervation may help [5].

Radiofrequency Denervation

The NHS describes a procedure to seal off some of the nerves in your back so they stop sending pain signals, only for long-term lower back pain [1]. For chronic low back pain thought to come from the facet joints, NICE advises radiofrequency denervation only after a positive response to a diagnostic medial branch block [3]. It is available at Thorpe Park Clinic, Leeds: see our Radiofrequency Treatments.

Epidural Injections for Sciatica

For acute and severe sciatica, NICE says an epidural injection of local anaesthetic and steroid may be considered [3]. Epidural injections target the space around the spinal cord. Your consultant may also discuss a nerve root block, which targets a specific nerve root where it exits the spine. See Spinal and Thoracic Injections.

Recovery and Expected Outcomes

Recovery depends on the cause of your pain and the treatment you have. Sciatica usually gets better in a few weeks to a few months but can last longer [4].

After any procedure, your consultant will explain what to expect, when you can return to your usual activities and how your progress will be reviewed. Results vary from person to person and no single treatment works for everyone, which is why assessment comes first.

Reducing the Risk of Chronic Lower Back Pain

Staying active matters. The NHS advises that you [1]:

• stay active and try to continue with your daily activities
• try exercises and stretches for back pain
• use ice or heat packs
• do not stay in bed for long periods of time

Accessing Lower Back Pain Treatment in Sheffield and Leeds

LivingCare offers consultant-led lower back pain treatment at Thorpe Park Clinic, Leeds and Canon Medical Arena, Sheffield. Radiofrequency denervation is available at Thorpe Park Clinic, Leeds. Treatment is available self-pay or with private medical insurance, and procedures start from £1,100. If needed, we can also arrange a private GP consultation and referral to support your care pathway.

To talk your options through first, book a Pain Management Consultation, or see everything our Pain Management team offers.

References

1. NHS - Back pain: https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/back-pain/
2. Arthritis UK - The State of Musculoskeletal Health 2025: https://www.arthritis-uk.org/media/flpbvm2m/arthritisuk_state_of_msk_health_-report_2025.pdf
3. NICE - Low back pain and sciatica in over 16s: assessment and management (NG59), recommendations: https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/ng59/chapter/Recommendations
4. NHS - Sciatica: https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/sciatica/
5. British Pain Society and Faculty of Pain Medicine - Recommendations for Good Practice in the use of Medial Branch Block and Radiofrequency Denervation for Low Back Pain of Lumbar Facet Joint Origin (2020): https://www.britishpainsociety.org/static/uploads/resources/files/BPS_and_FPM_Medial_Branch_Block_and_Radiofrequency_document_7th_May_2020.pdf.pdf