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• Cervical Disc Pain

Cervical Disc Pain

Cervical disc pain involves the neck and upper back, two extremely sensitive areas of the body. While the cervical spine keeps the head erect, it also allows the head and neck to move in several different directions.

There are seven cervical vertebrae, labeled C1-C7, and between most of these vertebrae, there is a pliable intervertebral disc. When healthy, a disc can rebound from the thousands of motions the head and neck make each day. Through a lifetime of wear and tear, however, discs can deteriorate and become extremely prone to damage.

If a cervical disc weakens and bulges or breaks open, disc matter can press upon the nerve roots exiting the cervical spine, or can impinge upon the spinal cord itself. Any pressure on this sensitive nerve tissue can result in neck pain, shoulder pain, and pain that travels down the arms and to the hands. There also is some evidence that the nerve endings in the disc itself can become irritated, leading to localized pain.

Remember, however, that what you believe is cervical disc pain may actually be something else entirely. For instance, pain, numbness, and tingling in the hands could be caused by a bulging disc or herniated disc in the neck, or those symptoms could be caused by nerve damage in the elbow or wrist. Only a doctor and medical imagery (MRI or CT scan) can make the final determination of whether you suffer from a disc pain or another issue.

Once a doctor can see that a cervical disc is damaged, what happens next? There are several treatment options to try in the beginning such as rest, pain medications, and anti-inflammatory medications. Your doctor also might recommend a physical therapist to help you with specific exercises. The physical therapist also might suggest massage and a neck brace to relieve your pain. In most cases, a cervical disc can heal; it just takes time since the disc does not have a blood supply, which makes the healing process very slow.

If cervical disc pain does not subside in several months, there are surgical options. Surgical approaches include disc removal, the fusion of vertebrae, and possibly artificial disc replacement. These surgeries are major undertakings, however, and the patient should expect a large incision, months of recovery time, and the chance that the surgery does not help the pain.

There is an alternative to the risks of open spine surgery. Laser Spine Institute (LSI) offers a procedure called endoscopic percutaneous discectomy. During this procedure, the damaged part of the disc is extracted through a small incision that typically measures less than an inch. We are able to perform this procedure with the latest endoscopic methods, which means we insert a small camera and tools through a narrow tube. This minimally invasive method allows us to perform the procedure on an outpatient basis, so there’s no hospital stay, the risk of infection is greatly reduced, and muscle trauma is eliminated.

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Contact Laser Spine Institute (LSI) today for more information about cervical disc pain, and for a free review of your MRI or CT scan. Take the first step to rediscovering a life without pain.

Please note: Laser Spine Institute currently does not perform endoscopic procedures on the thoracic spine.