Approximately 70 to 80 percent of men (and roughly the same percentage of women) are suffering from moderate to severe low back pain. The problem is not only painful and inconvenient, but the medical costs and lost workforce are worth up to$50 billion annually. According to the November 2006 issue of the Harvard Men’s Health Testing Center, it may be encouraging to report that money and time have been spent to finally recover from low back pain, but in most cases, without the guidance and treatment of a doctor, low back pain will not be relieved anytime soon. If you have common low back pain, it’s important to keep an eye on yourself. You need to know what to do when you have low back pain and identify which symptoms require immediate medical examination and treatment, so the November issue of the Harvard Men’s Health Testing Center features a special supplement on low back exercises. In most cases, low back pain is due to mechanical causes that are difficult to explain specifically, but sometimes it can be due to other more serious causes, including inflammation, vascular disease, tumors and other conditions. It is therefore important to understand the “red warning” signs that indicate serious disease. These signs include a recent serious injury, radiating pain in the lower leg, chronic pain, upper back and chest pain, unexplained fever or weight loss, and increased pain at night. About 90 percent of common mechanical low back pain resolves without specific treatment, but it takes time, with about 30 percent of patients showing significant improvement within a week and the other 60 percent taking up to eight weeks to gradually improve.