Kay Kay Healthcare Ltd.
DISK PROBLEMS
SYMPTOMS
Many cases of damage spinal disks have no physical symptoms. However, if your disk problem directly affects spinal nerves, you may have one or more of the following symptoms:
• Sharp pain in the back, sometimes going down the back of one or both legs, immediately upon or shortly after exertion or injury.
• Inability to bend or straighten your back, accompanied by severe pain.
• Gradual development of neck or lower back pain, possibly intense on arising or when sneezing or coughing.
• Numbness or tingling in an arm or leg, and possibly a progressive loss of strength in one or both legs.
WHAT IS DISK PROBLEMS
Only a person who has experienced it understands the agony and helplessness that come with damaged spinal disks. The pain is excruciating, and every movement makes it worse. Like most kinds of pain, however, it is actually a valuable warning signal. If you heed the warning and take proper action or, more appropriately, inaction the discomfort usually stops and the problem can be corrected. If you ignore the warning, you could suffer permanent physical and neurological damage. As children, some of us may have heard parents or relatives grumble about the pain of a sleep disk. We may have a pictured a wobbly stack of pennies with one sticking out enough to tip the rest over. As with order myths and mysteries of childhood, there was a little truth in the image, but not much. Intervertebral disk are actually flexible pads tightly fixed between the vertebrae the specialize bones that make up the spinal column. Each is a flat, circular capsule roughly an inch in a diameter and perhaps one quarter inch thick, made of a tough, fibrous outer membrane called the annulus fibroses, surrounding an elastic core called the nucleus pulpous. The disks are firmly embedded between the vertebrae and are held in place by the ligaments connecting the spinal bones and by the surrounding sheaths of muscle. There is a really little if any room for them to slip or move. The points on which the vertebrae actually turn are called facet joints, which stick out like arched wings on either side of the vertebrae and keep the vertebrae from bending and twisting far enough to damage the spinal cord, the vital network of nerves that runs through the center of each bone. The disk is sometime described as a shock absorber for the spine, which makes it sound more flexible or pliable than it really is. White the disk separates the vertebrae and keeps them from rubbing together, they are far from pneumatic or spring like. In children they are actually gel or fluid filled sacs, but they begin to solidify as part of the normal aging process. By early adulthood, the blood supply to the disk has stopped, the soft inner material has begun to harden, and the disk is less elastic. In middle aged adults the disks are tough and quite unyielding, with a consistency similar to that of a piece of hard rubber. Under stress, it is the possible for the inner material to swell and herniated, pushing through the tough outer membrane of the disk. The entire disk becomes distorted, and all or part of the core material actually protrudes through the outer casing at a weak spot, causing pressure against surrounding nerves. If further activity or injury causes the membrane to rupture or tear, the disk material can injure the spinal cord or the nerves that radiate from it, producing extreme, debilitating pain an unmistakable signal to stop all movement immediately. Such damage to a disk can be irreversible. By far the majority of disk injuries occur in the lumbar region of the lower back, with less than 10 percent affecting the neck and shoulders. Not all herniated disks press on nerves, however, and it is entirely possible for a person to have deformed disks without any pain or discomfort. For that reason, an x-ray or MRI scan showing a distorted disk can sometimes misdiagnose pain that has an entirely different cause. Herniated disks are most common in men under 50, although they can occur in active children and young adults. Older people, whose disks no longer have fluid cores, are much less likely to encounter the problem. People who do regular, moderate exercise are much less likely to suffer from disk problems than their sedentary counter parts. They also tend to stay flexible considerably longer, without the annoying stiffness that many people take for granted as they grow older.
CAUSES
Although a violent injury can damage a disk, problems with disks are often brought on by everyday activities lifting heavy objects the wrong way, stretching too hard during a tennis volley, or slipping on an icy sidewalk. Any such event can cause the fibrous outer covering of the disk to break or distort to the point that it impinges on a spinal nerve. Sometimes, however, a disk swells, tears, or degenerates without any apparent cause. Disk problems are sometimes lumped together under the term degenerative disk disease. Change in the condition of the disk is a natural result of aging, and it contributes to a gradual loss of flexibility as we grow older. But disk degeneration is far more serious in some people than in others. Severe cases may be the result of a deficiency in collagen, the material that makes up cartilage. Poor muscle tone and obesity also put excessive strain on the spine and the ligaments that hold the disk in place.
DIAGNOSTIC AND TEST PROCEDURES
The classical procedure for identifying a herniated disk is the straight leg raising test. The patient lies on his or her back while the doctor holds the ankle and slowly raises the leg; pain in the back of the leg often though not always indicates a herniated disk in the lower back. The doctor will also look for weakness and loss of reflexes in legs and feet. Locating the site of the pain may be enough to identify the herniated disk. A spinal x-ray may eliminate other potential causes, but because x-rays do not shows soft tissue clearly, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), computed tomography (CT) scans, or xylography a radiological technique for viewing the spinal cord may be used to identify and determine the extent of a herniated disk.
TREATMENT
Both conventional and alternative therapies call for pain relief, rest, steps, to reduce inflammation, and measures to restore strength and normal activity. Except in severe cases of disk degenerations affecting nerves that control muscle movement, herniated disks generally heal themselves, and surgery is rarely necessary.
CONVENTIONAL MEDICINE
Doctors usually prescribe bed rest and pain killing medication such as Aspirin, Ibuprofen, or non-steroidal anti inflammatory drug, and in some cases Corticosteroids and muscle relaxants.
With herniated disk, any movement of the back can heighten the pain and potentially aggravate the injury, so full bed rest is a must, at least for the first few days after the onset. Once the patient is well enough to move, the doctor may call for back brace or neck collar to limit movement and ease the pressure on sensitive nerves while the disk heals. In severe cases, full or particle traction may be needed. If the disk is just temporarily distorted, the potential for complete recovery is excellent. If the outer membrane actually breaks or ruptures and loss some of its gelatinous center, however, the damage may be permanent unless more aggressive steps are taken. When the herniated disk causes weakness or paralysis of the nerves that control muscles of the back and limbs, the doctor may recommend epidural injections or surgery. Epidural injection consists of a combination of an anesthetic and corticosteroids injected through a long needle into the space between the affected disk and the covering of the nerve and spinal cord. Surgery may be performed to remove some of the soft core of a swollen disk with a hollow needle so that the disk no longer impinges on a nerve. Other microsurgical procedures can remove fragments of core material that have broken through the fibrous outer wall. Discectomy is the surgical removal of part of a herniated disk, and is done to relieve pressure on the nerve. In this procedure, the core of the disk is removed, leaving the tough outer casing in place between the vertebrae. Like epidural injection, it sometimes brings long term relief, but there is no guaranty of a permanent recovery. Because any invasive therapy near the spinal cord is potentially dangerous, surgery should be undertaken only in extreme cases, when the herniated disk is causing weakness or paralysis of nerves going to muscles. Just as artificial replacement for damage or worn parts are being surgically implanted in other parts of the body, intervertebral disk replacing performed in other countries. The safety and long term success of disk replacements remain to plastic heart valves, synthetic version of intervertebral disks may offer yet another medical option in the not so distant future.
ALTERNATIVE CHOICES
Besides pain relief and rest immediately following an episode of a herniated disk, alternative therapies tend to focus on relaxation and gentle exercise to restore full movement.
ACCUPRESSURE
While acupressure can be highly effective for treating lower back pain, acupressure therapists exercise caution when dealing with pain from spinal disks. Rather than applying pressure to the spine or to points on meridians next to the spinal column, an acupressure therapist may recommend preventive treatment to relax the back muscles before a problem occurs. One such recommendation is sleeping in the shrimp position, lying on your side with the back curled, and using warm compress or moist heat to improve circulation.
ACCUPUNCTURE
An acupuncturist will determine the precise location of the nerve or nerves affected by a herniated disk and will most likely treat points along the governing vessels meridian.
BODY WORK
Alternative therapists focus on the body mechanics that have led to stress on the disk. Reflexology manipulates certain areas in the hands and feet. For pain and tension relief in the lower back, advocates of reflexology cite positive result from applying firm pressure behind the anklebone and at the outer edged of the instep. After initial symptoms are under control, a practitioner trained in the Alexander technique or the Feldenkrais method may help people with chronic problems reestablish good posture and body control, which in turn can help prevent the recurrence of disk problems.
CHIROPRACTIC
Today’s chiropractic treatment for chronic disk problems is likely to include manual examination or x-rays diagnosis to determine the location of the affected vertebra. Hands on procedures to correct muscle and joint malfunction with due caution not to exacerbate the disk strain are likely to be followed by a regimen of massage the surrounding muscles.
PREVENTION
Yoga is a well established, long term approach to relaxing and conditioning both the body and the mind. The exercise at left is recommended for strengthening the back and neck as well as for relieving overall bodily stress.
DISK PROBLEMS
SYMPTOMS
Many cases of damage spinal disks have no physical symptoms. However, if your disk problem directly affects spinal nerves, you may have one or more of the following symptoms:
• Sharp pain in the back, sometimes going down the back of one or both legs, immediately upon or shortly after exertion or injury.
• Inability to bend or straighten your back, accompanied by severe pain.
• Gradual development of neck or lower back pain, possibly intense on arising or when sneezing or coughing.
• Numbness or tingling in an arm or leg, and possibly a progressive loss of strength in one or both legs.
WHAT IS DISK PROBLEMS
Only a person who has experienced it understands the agony and helplessness that come with damaged spinal disks. The pain is excruciating, and every movement makes it worse. Like most kinds of pain, however, it is actually a valuable warning signal. If you heed the warning and take proper action or, more appropriately, inaction the discomfort usually stops and the problem can be corrected. If you ignore the warning, you could suffer permanent physical and neurological damage. As children, some of us may have heard parents or relatives grumble about the pain of a sleep disk. We may have a pictured a wobbly stack of pennies with one sticking out enough to tip the rest over. As with order myths and mysteries of childhood, there was a little truth in the image, but not much. Intervertebral disk are actually flexible pads tightly fixed between the vertebrae the specialize bones that make up the spinal column. Each is a flat, circular capsule roughly an inch in a diameter and perhaps one quarter inch thick, made of a tough, fibrous outer membrane called the annulus fibroses, surrounding an elastic core called the nucleus pulpous. The disks are firmly embedded between the vertebrae and are held in place by the ligaments connecting the spinal bones and by the surrounding sheaths of muscle. There is a really little if any room for them to slip or move. The points on which the vertebrae actually turn are called facet joints, which stick out like arched wings on either side of the vertebrae and keep the vertebrae from bending and twisting far enough to damage the spinal cord, the vital network of nerves that runs through the center of each bone. The disk is sometime described as a shock absorber for the spine, which makes it sound more flexible or pliable than it really is. White the disk separates the vertebrae and keeps them from rubbing together, they are far from pneumatic or spring like. In children they are actually gel or fluid filled sacs, but they begin to solidify as part of the normal aging process. By early adulthood, the blood supply to the disk has stopped, the soft inner material has begun to harden, and the disk is less elastic. In middle aged adults the disks are tough and quite unyielding, with a consistency similar to that of a piece of hard rubber. Under stress, it is the possible for the inner material to swell and herniated, pushing through the tough outer membrane of the disk. The entire disk becomes distorted, and all or part of the core material actually protrudes through the outer casing at a weak spot, causing pressure against surrounding nerves. If further activity or injury causes the membrane to rupture or tear, the disk material can injure the spinal cord or the nerves that radiate from it, producing extreme, debilitating pain an unmistakable signal to stop all movement immediately. Such damage to a disk can be irreversible. By far the majority of disk injuries occur in the lumbar region of the lower back, with less than 10 percent affecting the neck and shoulders. Not all herniated disks press on nerves, however, and it is entirely possible for a person to have deformed disks without any pain or discomfort. For that reason, an x-ray or MRI scan showing a distorted disk can sometimes misdiagnose pain that has an entirely different cause. Herniated disks are most common in men under 50, although they can occur in active children and young adults. Older people, whose disks no longer have fluid cores, are much less likely to encounter the problem. People who do regular, moderate exercise are much less likely to suffer from disk problems than their sedentary counter parts. They also tend to stay flexible considerably longer, without the annoying stiffness that many people take for granted as they grow older.
CAUSES
Although a violent injury can damage a disk, problems with disks are often brought on by everyday activities lifting heavy objects the wrong way, stretching too hard during a tennis volley, or slipping on an icy sidewalk. Any such event can cause the fibrous outer covering of the disk to break or distort to the point that it impinges on a spinal nerve. Sometimes, however, a disk swells, tears, or degenerates without any apparent cause. Disk problems are sometimes lumped together under the term degenerative disk disease. Change in the condition of the disk is a natural result of aging, and it contributes to a gradual loss of flexibility as we grow older. But disk degeneration is far more serious in some people than in others. Severe cases may be the result of a deficiency in collagen, the material that makes up cartilage. Poor muscle tone and obesity also put excessive strain on the spine and the ligaments that hold the disk in place.
DIAGNOSTIC AND TEST PROCEDURES
The classical procedure for identifying a herniated disk is the straight leg raising test. The patient lies on his or her back while the doctor holds the ankle and slowly raises the leg; pain in the back of the leg often though not always indicates a herniated disk in the lower back. The doctor will also look for weakness and loss of reflexes in legs and feet. Locating the site of the pain may be enough to identify the herniated disk. A spinal x-ray may eliminate other potential causes, but because x-rays do not shows soft tissue clearly, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), computed tomography (CT) scans, or xylography a radiological technique for viewing the spinal cord may be used to identify and determine the extent of a herniated disk.
TREATMENT
Both conventional and alternative therapies call for pain relief, rest, steps, to reduce inflammation, and measures to restore strength and normal activity. Except in severe cases of disk degenerations affecting nerves that control muscle movement, herniated disks generally heal themselves, and surgery is rarely necessary.
CONVENTIONAL MEDICINE
Doctors usually prescribe bed rest and pain killing medication such as Aspirin, Ibuprofen, or non-steroidal anti inflammatory drug, and in some cases Corticosteroids and muscle relaxants.
With herniated disk, any movement of the back can heighten the pain and potentially aggravate the injury, so full bed rest is a must, at least for the first few days after the onset. Once the patient is well enough to move, the doctor may call for back brace or neck collar to limit movement and ease the pressure on sensitive nerves while the disk heals. In severe cases, full or particle traction may be needed. If the disk is just temporarily distorted, the potential for complete recovery is excellent. If the outer membrane actually breaks or ruptures and loss some of its gelatinous center, however, the damage may be permanent unless more aggressive steps are taken. When the herniated disk causes weakness or paralysis of the nerves that control muscles of the back and limbs, the doctor may recommend epidural injections or surgery. Epidural injection consists of a combination of an anesthetic and corticosteroids injected through a long needle into the space between the affected disk and the covering of the nerve and spinal cord. Surgery may be performed to remove some of the soft core of a swollen disk with a hollow needle so that the disk no longer impinges on a nerve. Other microsurgical procedures can remove fragments of core material that have broken through the fibrous outer wall. Discectomy is the surgical removal of part of a herniated disk, and is done to relieve pressure on the nerve. In this procedure, the core of the disk is removed, leaving the tough outer casing in place between the vertebrae. Like epidural injection, it sometimes brings long term relief, but there is no guaranty of a permanent recovery. Because any invasive therapy near the spinal cord is potentially dangerous, surgery should be undertaken only in extreme cases, when the herniated disk is causing weakness or paralysis of nerves going to muscles. Just as artificial replacement for damage or worn parts are being surgically implanted in other parts of the body, intervertebral disk replacing performed in other countries. The safety and long term success of disk replacements remain to plastic heart valves, synthetic version of intervertebral disks may offer yet another medical option in the not so distant future.
ALTERNATIVE CHOICES
Besides pain relief and rest immediately following an episode of a herniated disk, alternative therapies tend to focus on relaxation and gentle exercise to restore full movement.
ACCUPRESSURE
While acupressure can be highly effective for treating lower back pain, acupressure therapists exercise caution when dealing with pain from spinal disks. Rather than applying pressure to the spine or to points on meridians next to the spinal column, an acupressure therapist may recommend preventive treatment to relax the back muscles before a problem occurs. One such recommendation is sleeping in the shrimp position, lying on your side with the back curled, and using warm compress or moist heat to improve circulation.
ACCUPUNCTURE
An acupuncturist will determine the precise location of the nerve or nerves affected by a herniated disk and will most likely treat points along the governing vessels meridian.
BODY WORK
Alternative therapists focus on the body mechanics that have led to stress on the disk. Reflexology manipulates certain areas in the hands and feet. For pain and tension relief in the lower back, advocates of reflexology cite positive result from applying firm pressure behind the anklebone and at the outer edged of the instep. After initial symptoms are under control, a practitioner trained in the Alexander technique or the Feldenkrais method may help people with chronic problems reestablish good posture and body control, which in turn can help prevent the recurrence of disk problems.
CHIROPRACTIC
Today’s chiropractic treatment for chronic disk problems is likely to include manual examination or x-rays diagnosis to determine the location of the affected vertebra. Hands on procedures to correct muscle and joint malfunction with due caution not to exacerbate the disk strain are likely to be followed by a regimen of massage the surrounding muscles.
PREVENTION
Yoga is a well established, long term approach to relaxing and conditioning both the body and the mind. The exercise at left is recommended for strengthening the back and neck as well as for relieving overall bodily stress.
No comments:
Post a Comment