Slip Disc

What is Slip Disc?

Our spine is composed of tough bones called vertebrae, and soft cushioning discs support absorb pressure and allow free spine movement. When the outer layer of the intervertebral disc ruptures and cracks such that the internal content of the intervertebral pushes out through cracks, it is called a slipped disc. The slipped disc compresses and irritates nerve roots causing several other interrelated problems. 

Slip disc either may cause or may be caused by many other interrelated spinal complications. Typically, slip disc is felt with tingling pain. Most spine problems may subside on their own, but delaying slip discs may trigger more slip discs. Therefore, you must seek consultation before it is damaged.

How Is It Caused?

To understand how slipped disc is caused, we must understand the structure of the spine in detail.

The spine starts right where the medulla oblongata ends. The spine is classified into four parts, depending on its location,  structure, and function. Those are the cervical spine, thoracic spine, lumbar spine, and sacrum, the base part.  

The cervical spine (C1-C7) is thin, strong, and flexible to allow free movements of the neck and hands. The thoracic spine(T1- T12) in the middle and longest section, is flexible, absorbs and distributes spine pressure. The lumbar(L1-L5) is the third or the lowest and the strongest part of the spine that ends in sacrum bone that provides the base’s structure where the spine merges and terminates. 

The spinal canal is made of vertebrae (the bones) stacked one on the other. These bones are cushioned by soft intervertebral discs. The outer core of the intervertebral disc is harder than the inner core, which is the soft nucleus pulposus. 

With aging, the discs dry and become hard and brittle, and due to some sudden trauma, jerks, or degenerative changes, the disc suffers minor cracks or fractures through which the nucleus pulposus pushes out. This condition is called a slipped disc or herniated disc. 

You can have slipped discs at any part of the spine, but the middle and lower spine are at a greater risk because they bear most of the body’s weight.

Risk Factors

Aging increases the risk of a herniated disc; however, anybody can suffer from slip disc. The risk also increases with jobs that involve sudden movements, twisting and turning, heavy weight lifting, and repetitive motions.

 It happens when the disc is subjugated with extra pressure, which it cannot bear. Weak muscles and a sedentary lifestyle too contribute to slip disc episodes.

What Are Symptoms Of Slip Disc?

The spinal canal is an intricate part containing exiting nerves and surrounding muscles. Therefore, any spinal injury may cause stress to nerves and muscles, showing symptoms.

Some of the common symptoms of slip disc are:

• Pain and numbness, usually in one side of the body
• Back Pain worsening at night
• Pain extending to arms and legs 
• Unexplained muscles weakness
• Pain in walking short distances
• Tingling burning sensations in the back

Complications Of Slipped Disc

An untreated slipped disc may trigger more slipped disc or nervous problems. Few noted complications of the slipped disc include:

Cauda Equina Nerves: A rare condition when the nerve impulses are cut off from the receptor organ or body parts. In this, the person may lose bladder or bowel control.

Saddle anesthesia: In this, the slipped disc compresses the nerves, and the person loses sensations on the inner thighs, back of legs, and around the rectum.

Sciatica: If the herniated disc is in the lumbar region, the risk of sciatica may increase. If the herniated disc pinches the sciatic nerve, it causes Sciatica.

Diagnosis

With the persistent symptoms, you can visit our clinic for a proper diagnosis. Our doctor would first like to learn about the origin of symptoms to suspect the root cause. Then, the doctor might ask a few questions about previous spine injury or spine condition and the symptoms felt. Finally, if necessary, the doctor will ask for few scanning and imaging tests such as X-rays, MRI, and discograms to better see through the condition and plan treatment.

The diagnosis is a step-wise process that may require time. However, in some cases, the doctor may not ask for detailed diagnostic tests, but you must be prepared both mentally and financially to have those diagnostic tests.

Slipped Disc Treatment

The slipped disc treatment varies with the intensity of protrusion of slipped disc and the pain caused by it.

Most people can seek help from a restorative back healing exercise program. Under close supervision of our spine specialist , you will be assigned an exercise program that strengthens and stretches a particular set of muscles to improve flexibility and relieve muscle stress due to herniated disc.

If alternate therapies such as exercises and chiropractic do not give substantial relief, you may turn to our slip disc doctor in Hyderabad to provide some pain-relieving and muscle-relaxing medications. Typically, the doctor will provide strong medications for 

• Muscular relaxations
• Pain relief( narcotics medication)
• Nerve soothing medications

If the symptoms do not subside in six to eight weeks, we do recommend surgery. The surgery will aim at removing the extra prolapsed part of the disc and relieve the nerve from pinching. The surgery may also include

• MISS surgery- MISS surgery stands for Minimally Invasive Spine Surgery. The MISS surgery needs a small incision with very less blood loss. It is very effective and useful for multiple reasons, such as nerve distension, smoothening of vertebral joints, and clearing bone spurs. 
• Fusion Surgery–  Barbing prolapsed part of a herniated disc may increase the vertebral gap, which may cause a vertebral collapse in the near future, requiring another surgery. Therefore our spine surgeon opts for a fusion surgery in which the two or more vertebral bones are conjoined into a unit structure, giving it the required stability.

The surgeries may also be necessary in cases where though no damage is caused to the spine due to slip disc, but it may cause potential damage to the spine in the near future, requiring surge