Daily activities, sports injuries, even the passage of time can cause painful wear-and-tear to your spinal discs, bones, ligaments, and muscle attachments. This is called degenerative disc disease.
At Endoscopic & Minimally Invasive Spine Specialists, we have extensive experience and expertise in back pain treatment and provide the highest-quality care in surgical and non-surgical treatments for degenerative disc disease
If you think your back pain is being caused by degenerative disc disease and to learn more about surgical treatment, call the office today or request an appointment online.
Degenerative Disc Disease Q & A
Question: What is degenerative disc disease?
- Despite its name, degenerative disc disease is not a disease, but a progressive condition caused by wear-and-tear or injury to the intervertebral discs in your spine.
- Discs act as shock-absorbing cushions between the vertebrae that make up your spinal column.
- These discs help us stand up straight, twist, and bend over.
- Each disc has a tough outer layer and a soft, gel-like interior.
- Over time, nearly everyone’s spinal discs show signs of wear.
- There are 33 bones of the spinal column, and degenerative disc disease can occur between any or several of them. The cervical and lumbar spine are more common locations for degeneration than the thoracic spine, although degeneration occurs there as well.
- When a damaged disc causes pain, it’s called degenerative disc disease, or sometimes spinal arthritis.
- Without treatment, degenerative disc disease can lead to progressive spinal breakdown, worsening of symptoms, sometimes progressive deformity, and frequently disability.
Question: What causes degenerative disc disease?
- Many things can contribute to degenerative disc disease. Discs dry out and shrink with age, which means they don’t absorb shock as well.
- Repetitive activities and exercise can gradually cause small tears in the outer layer of a disc.
- Back injuries, falls, and cumulative micro traumas can also lead to degenerative disc disease as well. If you have arthritis in other joints of your body, you likely have some degree of spinal arthritis too.
- Genetics is not a silent contributor to degenerative disc disease. Many people have familial similarity of their spinal anatomy, problems, and rate of degeneration as their family members.
- Some diseases called spondyloarthropathies (inflammatory arthritis) such as rheumatoid arthritis, psoriatic arthritis, ankylosing spondylitis, and enteropatahic arthritis can cause premature and often severe spinal degenerative disc disease.
Question: How do I know if I have degenerative disc disease?
- Most people with degenerative disc disease are healthy, active adults in their 30s or older. Common symptoms of degenerative disc disease include:
- Back pain that gets worse when sitting, bending, twisting, and lifting
- Pain that goes away when walking or running
- Numbness and tingling in the legs and/or arms
- Muscle weakness in the legs and/or arms
- If any of these symptoms worry you, call Endoscopic & Minimally Invasive Spine Specialists. We can diagnose degenerative disc disease based on medical history, and physical exam. Our team can review imaging ordered by your primary doctor or order new imaging, including magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and/or computed tomography (CT) to find out how much disc damage is present and your treatment options.
Question: How is degenerative disc disease treated?
- At Endoscopic & Minimally Invasive Spine Specialists, consideration for both non-operative and surgical treatments are considered. Non-surgical treatments for degenerative disc disease include:
- Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory medications
- Pain-relieving medications
- Physical therapy
- Yoga and Pilates
- Exercises to strengthen your back
- Weight loss
- Hot or cold therapy
- Neck or Back bracing
- Alternative treatments like acupuncture
- Massage therapy, postural training, and electrical stimulation
- Injection therapy
- If your condition is severe or your pain continues despite treatment, our team may recommend surgery. There are a wide variety of surgical procedures to treat degenerative disc disease with minimally invasive, open, and hybrid techniques to perform decompression, disc replacement, and spinal fusion. The specific operation that may be the most beneficial for you will be determined by our surgeons depending on your symptoms, the severity of the anatomic problem, your general heath, the location of your spinal problem, and the goals of treatment.
To learn more about the our expertise and patient-centered care of degenerative disc disease, call Endoscopic & Minimally Invasive Spine Specialists today, or book an appointment online.
