Herniated Disc Treatment & Herniated Disc Symptom
Diagnosed With a Herniated Disc?
By: Dr. Robert Duvall, DPT, ATC, MGFI
You've probably heard people say they have a "slipped" or "ruptured"
disc in the back. Sometimes they complain that their back “went out”.
What they're most likely describing is a herniated disc. This
condition is a common source of back and leg pain.
Discs are soft cushions found between the vertebrae that make up the
spinal column (your backbone). In the middle of the spinal column is
the spinal canal, a hollow space that contains the spinal cord. The
nerves that supply the arms, leg, and torso come from the spinal
cord. The nerves from the neck supply the arms and hands, and the
nerves from the low back supply the butt and legs. The discs between
the vertebrae allow the back to move freely and act like shock
absorbers.
The disc is made up of two main sections. The outer part
(the annulus) is made up of tough cartilage that is comprised of
series of rings. The center of the disc is a jelly-like substance
called the nucleus pulposus. A disc herniates or ruptures when
part of the jelly center pushes through the outer wall of the
disc into the spinal canal, and puts pressure on the nerves. A
disc bulge is when the jelly substance pushes the outer wall but
doesn't completely go through the wall.
Herniated Disc Symptom - What Do You Feel?
Low back pain will affect four out of five people during their
lifetime. The most common symptom of a herniated disc is “sciatica”. Sciatica is best described as a sharp, often shooting pain that
begins in the buttocks and goes down the back of one leg. This is
most often caused by pressure on the sciatic nerve that exits the
spinal cord. |