What is the first treatment for lumbar spondylosis?

Lumbar spondylosis describes age-related wear in the joints, discs, or bones of the lower spine. Initial care aims to reduce irritation while keeping the back moving. A clinician may recommend changing activities that trigger pain, using suitable pain relief, and beginning exercises that improve trunk strength, flexibility, and control. The plan depends on your symptoms, examination, other health conditions, and medicines you already take.

Keep gently active within your limits rather than staying in bed for long periods. A physiotherapist can tailor movements and show you how to lift, sit, and return to daily tasks with less strain. Anti-inflammatory medication may help some people, but it is not suitable for everyone; check with a clinician or pharmacist before using it, especially if you have stomach, kidney, heart, or blood-pressure concerns. If symptoms continue despite this approach, a spine specialist may discuss options such as a facet joint injection or radiofrequency ablation.

Arrange prompt medical assessment for new weakness, worsening numbness, trouble walking, or pain that follows a nerve into the leg. Seek emergency help for loss of bladder or bowel control, numbness around the groin, or sudden severe symptoms after a significant injury. These features need assessment because they can indicate nerve compression or another problem requiring rapid treatment.

Which activities should I modify, and which movements are safe now? Could my current medicines make anti-inflammatory treatment unsuitable? What signs would mean I need imaging or a specialist review?