Back pain in women may have gynaecological causes

This is particularly true, it said, in cases of lower-back pain around the lumbar vertebrae and sacrum.

The pain sometimes extends to the groin and anterior abdominal wall. Women experiencing such symptoms should see a gynaecologist, the BVF advised.

If the source of the pain lies in the reproductive organs, other problems often occur as well, including a sensation of pressure on the bladder, urinary urgency, and pain during urination, defecation or sexual intercourse, BVF said.

Abdominal and back pain that occurs regularly or on the days preceding menstruation could be due to benign proliferations of tissue in the uterus. The growths accompany the cyclical thickening of the endometrium and originate either on the muscle layer of the uterus or the endometrium. Most affected women are middle-aged.