If you're living with back pain, you may be learning new words daily. Here are some common terms related to types of back pain, back anatomy, treatments, medications, and devices.

Acute back pain: A type of back pain that lasts less than three to six months. It can occur suddenly and may be the result of an injury or illness.

Analgesics: Medications that relive pain. Includes over-the-counter and prescription pain medication.

Block: An injection of pain medication that prevents a nerve from continuing to send pain signals to part of the body. A block can be permanent or temporary.

Bone graft: A way to rebuild bony structures using bone from another portion of the body or another person, or from synthetic materials.

Cervical vertebrae: The seven vertebrae that support the neck, referred to individually by numbers: C1, C2, C3, C4, C5, C6, and C7.

Chronic back pain: A type of lingering back pain that continues for more than three to six months.

Coccyx: A series of small fused vertebrae that make up the tail end of the spine.

Decompression: The removal of pressure on a nerve or the spinal cord through back surgery.

Disk: The pad of tissue between two vertebrae that cushions the vertebra and allows the spine to be flexible.

Disk replacement: Surgical removal and replacement of a damaged disk.

Epidural space: The area between the bone and the membrane enclosing the brain and spinal cord. "Epidural" is often used to describe an injection of pain medication into the epidural space.

Fusion: A surgical procedure in which vertebrae are joined together for greater stability.

Implantable drug delivery systems: Pumps that can be surgically implanted to deliver medications into the spinal canal in order to control pain.

Kyphoplasty: A procedure normally used to fix a vertebral compression fracture. A small balloon is injected into the damaged bone; the balloon is blown up, forcing the damaged bone into its rightful shape. A synthetic bone filler (or cement) is then injected into that space for stability.

Ligaments: Tough bands of tissue that hold bones together in joints.

Lumbar vertebrae: The five vertebrae in the lower back.

Muscle relaxants: Medications that help control and release muscle spasms.

Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs): Over-the-counter and prescription medications used to treat pain and reduce inflammation.

Opioids or opiates: Prescription pain medications such as morphine that control the perception of pain by binding to certain receptors in the central nervous system.

Recurrent back pain: Back pain that lasts for a while, goes away, and then returns.

Relaxation therapy: Learned techniques to help relax the mind and body, which may be used to help ease back pain.

Spinal cord stimulators: Devices that use electrical signals to help manage back pain. Spinal cord stimulators may be outside the body or implanted in the body, much like pacemakers.

Spinal fluid: Also known as cerebrospinal fluid (CFS), this is the fluid that surrounds the spinal cord and brain.

Spinal manipulation: Spinal treatments, either using a device or the hands, that are intended to realign the spine and other elements that contribute to pain. Also called an adjustment.

Spine: The stabilizing structure of the body that runs up the back and is made up of bones called vertebrae, ligaments, disks, and nerves.

Tendons: Tough bands of tissue holding muscle to bone.

Thoracic vertebrae: The 12 vertebrae between the neck (cervical) vertebrae and the lower back (lumbar) vertebrae.

Traction: Use of a harness or table to stretch the back in order to relieve pain or tension.

Transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS): Use of a small device that delivers small shocks in order to stimulate the body’s natural pain killers.

Vertebra: One of 33 bony structures in the spine that are lined up and stacked upon each other, with disks in between, to give the back flexibility.

Vertebral compression fracture: A fracture, or break, in a vertebra, which makes the vertebra collapse.

Vertebroplasty: A procedure in which synthetic bone filler is injected into a fractured vertebra to help stabilize it.

Zygapophyseal joints: Also known as “Z” joints or facet joints, these are joints between adjacent vertebra.