A herniated disc can happen in your neck, upper or lower back. The injury can cause crippling pain, but our team can help. We provide advanced treatments for this common cause of pain so you can live a high quality of life. If your herniated disc interferes with your work and life,
At Endoscopic & Minimally Invasive Spine Specialists, we have extensive experience and expertise in surgical and non-surgical treatment of herniated discs at all levels of the spinal column.
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Herniated Disc Q & A
Question: What is a herniated disc?
- Between each bone in your spine (the vertebra) are rubbery pads called discs. These discs cushion, absorb shock, and allow your spine to be flexible. The discs consist of a firm, rubbery outer layer containing a softer, jelly-like interior. When damaged, the inner part of the disc leaks out and irritates surrounding nerves, causing pain and dysfunction.
- Herniated discs most commonly show up in the lumbar (lower) spine and cervical (neck) spine.
Question: What are the symptoms of a herniated disc?
- Your symptoms will depend on where your herniated disc is. If the herniated disc is in your lower back, expect to feel pain, numbness, and tingling in your buttocks and legs, sometimes all the way down to your toes. These often result from irritation of specific nerve roots.
- The sciatic nerve is the largest nerve in the body, running from the lower back through your hips and down your legs. It is made up of a number of smaller nerves from the lumbar spine. All herniated discs do not cause sciatica, and all sciatica is not caused by a herniated disc.
- A herniated disc in your neck can cause pain, numbness and tingling, and weakness in your shoulders, arms, and fingers.
Question: What causes a herniated disc?
- A herniated disc can be caused by an injury or the natural aging process. The wear-and-tear your discs experienced throughout your life causes them to lose flexibility. This stiffness puts them at greater risk of a hernia.
- It doesn’t take a lot to herniate a vulnerable disc. Simply twisting and bending can injure your discs when they’ve lost their suppleness and flexibility.
- Having a family history of disc herniation, smoking, and being overweight put you at greater risk of experiencing a disc herniation. If you have a physically demanding job with lots of pulling, bending, lifting, and pushing, you’re more likely to experience a back injury that herniates a disc.
Question: What is the treatment for a herniated disc?
- Conservative treatments for a herniated disc include:
- Pain-relieving medications
- Corticosteroid epidural injections
- Muscle relaxers
- Physical therapy
- Even painful disc herniations usually heal on their own with rest, time, and noninvasive treatments.
- In a small percentage of cases, disc herniations don’t heal on their own and require surgery. The herniated disc continues to cause weakness in your limbs. The pain is often so severe that your quality of life is seriously affected.
- The exact course of surgery depends on your particular case. Our surgeons may remove just the offending portion of the disc or the entire disc, or may just need to stabilize the segment to reduce compromise on the nerves.
- When the whole disc is removed, spinal fusion or artificial disc replacement is typically performed.
To learn more about the our expertise and patient-centered care of herniated discs, call Endoscopic & Minimally Invasive Spine Specialists today, or book an appointment online.
