Degenerative spine disease, also known as degenerative disc disease, is a serious condition that comes about as part of the aging process. Just like other parts of your body weaken with age, your spine is also vulnerable to age-related decline. For instance, the soft pads in between the vertebrae, called discs, can become dry, brittle, and vulnerable to damage. In addition, the joints in between the vertebrae, called facet joints, can lose their smooth cartilage coating.
The pain of a degenerative spine issue is not, however, simply a result of disc injury or a joint injury. The pain is due to the relationship between vertebrae, discs, and nerves. Spinal nerve roots exit the spine through the space between each vertebra, and this nerve passageway is referred to as a foramen. If disc injury or joint damage results in a foramen becoming blocked, polluted, swollen, or constricted, stress is directly transferred to the nerve, which sends and receives pain impulses from all over the body. Degenerative spine symptoms, therefore, are not just relegated to the back and neck areas, but can extend through the shoulders, arms, legs, buttocks, feet, and hands.
If your doctor has diagnosed you with a degenerative spine disease, treatments are often aimed at decompressing any stress on these nerves. Contact Laser Spine Institute (LSI) to learn more about our state-of-the-art, minimally-invasive decompression procedures that can help you rediscover a life without pain. Our procedures gently remove the tiny bits of disc and bone that are pressing on spinal nerves, releasing the nerves from painful impingement. For more information about our procedures, or a complimentary review of your MRI or CT scan, contact Laser Spine Institute.
