“When should I go to the ER for back pain?”

This is a great question. Of course, you should be calling your primary care doctor to see if you can get in right away. However, if you are anything like most men your age, you don't HAVE a primary care doctor. Maybe you called around and the next "new patient visit" is next spring. So you are left to wonder about the seriousness of your back pain. In this case, it is an appropriate first step to go to the ER. They can "check you out" to make sure you do not have any genuinely serious problems. If there is a serious problem, they can send you to the right specialist. If there is NOT a serious problem (most likely scenario) they will refer you to a new primary doctor who can get you on the road to recovery.