Degenerative Spine Disease Is Not Really A Disease
Degenerative spine disease refers to the condition of a spine instigated due to the failure in the working of spinal discs. With age, these discs get flatten, dry or bulge and pressurize the spinal cord and the nerves. As a result, the person experiences pain in lower back or neck and develop degenerative spine, arthritis, degenerative disk, degenerative spondylosis or spinal stenosis. The spine is made up of a string of bones called vertebrae. It has discs, muscles and ligaments which protect the nerves in the spinal cord and root canals. The discs in the spinal cord are made up of cartilage, fibrous tissue, and water which act as shock absorber. As you get older, the water in the discs gets dried slowly. You may get flatten or thinner discs which are nothing but degenerative discs. Therefore, degenerative spine disease is a term used to describe the changes that occur in the spine with age. Else, it is not a disease. It is just that your disc degenerates or looses its flexibility due to insufficient supply of blood.
Sometimes very small cracks appear in the outer layer of the discs and the watery substance comes out, results in a degenerative spine with bulgy discs. This is called a herniated disc. Sudden injury can also lead to herniated disc. Due to these changes, the person experiences pain in the back or neck, most commonly in the lower back. Many people with degenerative disk don't experience any pain. The location of the pain depends upon the degenerated area. Degenerative disc in the neck cause pain in the neck and arms, whereas degenerated disc in the lower back cause pain in the back, legs and buttock. This is called the degenerative spondylosis. Even a minor injury can trigger the pain of degenerative disc. There can be multilevel degenerative disc disease which affects more than one vertebra. Then the entire spine gets affected as the condition gets deteriorate with time and cause more stress on the spine canal. Due to the increased pressures on the spinal canal, the person experiences horrendous pain in legs, feet or lower back. The diagnosis of the degenerative disk disease begins with the medical history and physical examination. The doctor will analyze the symptoms and examine the injuries or any activities that cause pain in the neck, legs or back. Then he can ask to do some imaging tests like X-ray, MRI scan, or CT scan, if required. The treatment of the degenerative spine disease begins with non-surgical treatments like medication, rest and physical therapy. There are exercises for degenerative disc disease. Surgical treatment is rarely recommended when the condition of a patient is not responding to non-surgical treatments. |