Work and daily activities can put a significant stress on our muscles, causing pain and spasms. Painful muscles can limit our activities and even prevent us from completing our tasks. Knowing why it happens, what causes it and how it can be treated is the key to dealing with this painful problem.

Muscle Spasm, What Is It?
Muscular spasm is the sudden, involuntary contraction of a muscle or a group of muscles. Spasms can occur in big groups of muscles such as those in the arms, and at the back or in smaller groups, such as those located in the face. Hollow organs can also experience sudden involuntary contractions. Examples of hollow organs include the stomach and the urinary bladder. Spasms can also occur in body orifices. Spasms normally occur in the body; it is usually harmless, painless and only lasts for a few minutes. In some cases however, muscle spasms cause significant pain and last for more than a few minutes. This type of muscle spasm needs medical attention and treatment. Severe spasms may cause strong muscle contractions that can tear ligaments and tendons. Certain spams can also cause excessive muscle tone that remains on a contracted state for a long time, and this causes a great deal of pain and discomfort.

There are several factors that cause muscle spasms. Electrolyte imbalance, dehydration, muscle fatigue or overload and underlying muscular diseases are among them. Electrolyte imbalance and dehydration causes muscle spasm because it interferes with the normal activity of contraction and relaxation. Muscles contract and relax due to the presence of electrolytes such as sodium and potassium. Skeletal muscles (muscles responsible for movement) contract due to the presence of sodium, and relax when potassium is present. Too much sodium can cause the muscle to be in a contracted state for too long and may lead to debilitating spasms. Dehydration and electrolyte imbalance share a significant relationship when it comes to regulating muscle functions. If the body is not hydrated properly, electrolyte supply is compromised, and muscle functions are affected. Muscle fatigue and overload can also cause muscle spasms. Muscle overload does not permit the muscles to go into a relaxed state, because of the continued activity and stress, muscles remain contracted. When muscles remain at this state, painful spasms are likely to ensue. This is the most common cause of muscle spasms in back causing the common problem of back pain.

Disease conditions under the category of dystonias can also cause painful muscles spasms. An example of this is hypertonic muscle spasm. This disease is caused by poor communication between the brain, the nerves and the muscles. Muscular function is partly controlled by our consciousness, the contraction of the biceps and the movement of the hands and feet is under the control of our conscious mind. In the case of hypertonic muscle spasm, the nerves which control muscle action do not respond to commands from the brain. As a result, muscles contract without or conscious control. Moreover, hypertonia causes the muscle to become contracted for a long time, causing painful and sometimes debilitating spasms.

How Is This Condition Treated?

What to Avoid When Taking Soma
Muscle relaxants are primarily used to alleviate the painful spasms brought about by these conditions. Relaxants only aim to relieve the patient of the symptoms, but it is not a direct cure for the muscle spasm. As previously stated, spasms can be caused by an array of conditions. Treating the cause of the spams eliminates the symptom, but in some cases cure for the cause of the spasm is not available. And so relaxants are used as a management of the symptom.

Muscle relaxants that aim to alleviate muscles spasms are under the category of spasmolytics. Drugs like Soma (carisoprodol) belong to this category. Carisoprodol is usually given to patients who suffer from muscle spasms in backor in the neck. Carisoprodol works by reducing muscular activity or excitability. Muscles contract because of the nerves impulses that causes it to be excitable, what soma or carisoprodol does is to control the muscular excitability by enhancing the mechanism that would cause the muscle to relax. Soma inhibits muscular action by mimicking the chemical causing relaxation. The chemical it mimics is GABA, a neurotransmitter that inhibits contraction and promoting muscular relaxation. Carisoprodol works like GABA, stimulating muscular relaxation to relieve the spasms.