Herniated Disc Treatment Options, New York, NY:
Herniated Disc Treatment New York City
A Spinal Disc has two main components that make up it’s structure. There is an outer later made up of fibro-cartilage known as the annulus fibrosis. This is comparable to the dough in a doughnut. There is also an inner layer known as the nucleus polposus which is a jelly like material which would be the jelly inside the doughnut. The nucleus portion of the intervertebral disc is a shock absorber that also acts as a fulcrum for movement that redistributes the impact from daily stress and movement as well as spacing between two adjacent vertebrae.
To better understand how a disc functions we often compare it to a jelly doughnut. If you put pressure on one end, say the front end, of a doughnut you could imagine that the jelly would migrate towards the back. If you put pressure on the back end, the opposite would occur, and the jelly would migrate towards the front. The same holds true for your intervertebral disc since it functions as a fulcrum. When the jelly starts to protrude from the confines of the annular fibers this is known as a prolapse. This can cause symptoms of sciatica or radiculopathy such as numbness and tingling down an extremity.
As we get older our tissues dehydrate and this limits the shock absorbing capacity of the disc. The annular fibers get weaker with age and begin to tear more easily when subjected to repetitious stress. In many cases this doesn’t cause pain, while in some is does.
The medical term for disc which have begun to dehydrate is known as degenerative disc disease and if severe enough may be accompanied by bony changes termed spondylosis.
Once a tear has arisen within the annular fibers it is highly likely that the inner nuclear material will begin to make it’s way through that tear. This is termed a herniation. All along the sides of the spine are nerve roots and spinal nerves that make their way to organs, tissues and other body parts and they are at high risk of being infringed upon by herniated disc material. A pinched nerve is when this herniated disc material begins to make contact with one or more affected nerve roots and may cause severe radiating pain, numbness, tingling and reduced ranges of motion. One can also suffer pain as a result of a ‘leaky’ disc where the jelly simply oozes out of the tear and begins to cause inflammation in the adjacent soft tissues. If the pain is nerve related it’s usually deemed a radiculopathy.
Different Types of Herniated Discs
Herniated discs are often referred to by any of the following names such as a slipped disc, ruptured disc, or a bulging disc. In medical terms there are three degrees of disc injury:
1. Disc Protrusiton
2. Extrustion
3. Sequesteration
Herniated Disc Treatment Options
Until recently surgery was one of the only options for such a condition other then therapy. There has been a therapy gap – ‘no mans land’ – in spinal care since many people who are not surgical candidates do not respond to conventional therapy. Spinal Decompression Therapy has helped thousands of New York back pain sufferer’s bridge that gap.
If you’ve failed conventional therapy at that point surgery is usually investigated as an option. However, the presence of incontinence, weakness and numbness of genital regions or function is known as cauda equina and considered an emergency situation requiring surgical intervention.
A meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials by the Cochrane Collaboration concluded that “limited evidence is now available to support some aspects of surgical practice.” Recently, additional randomized controlled clinical trials have refined the indications for surgical interventions.
Only after all other means have been exhausted should surgery be considered as an option.
