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Facet Joint Symptoms

Facet joint deterioration can lead to a number of symptoms in an individual, including back and neck pain and nerve irritation. In a healthy spine, each vertebra includes two pairs of symmetric joint surfaces (a pair on the top and a pair on the bottom) that adjoin the vertebrae together. These synovial joints are coated in a layer of cartilage to facilitate motion and are encapsulated with a thick lubricating liquid called synovial fluid – ensuring the flexibility and extension required from the back and neck. Unfortunately, the facet joints can degenerate due to aging, injury, overuse, and poor body mechanics. These factors can lead to facet joint malfunction and pain.

Symptoms related to facet joint problems are typically localized to the arthritic joint at first. Over time, however, facet joint osteoarthritis can lead to a breakdown in the joint cartilage. Once joint cartilage breaks down, there will be bone-on-bone contact and friction between the facet joints which can lead to the formation of bone spurs. And, if bone spurs grow in an area where they are able to pinch nerve roots or the spinal cord, pain and other symptoms can easily hop on your spine’s nerve highway and travel to the extremities.

Painful facet joint symptoms can originate in the cervical spine (neck), thoracic spine (mid back), and lumbar spine (low back); it all depends on the segment of the spine experiencing an arthritic or damaged facet joint. Symptoms also can include:

• Chronic or acute pain
• Traveling pain along a nerve
• Stiffness or soreness
• Poor posture
• Muscle spasms
• And more

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Treatment of these symptoms is typically handled conservatively with a non-surgical approach. This can include heat and ice application, pain killers, the use of braces, injections, exercise, and more. Occasionally, a patient’s pain will be extreme enough to warrant surgical intervention.

In this case, the patient should contact Laser Spine Institute (LSI) to learn about our endoscopic alternative known as facet thermal ablation. This outpatient procedure cleans the facet joint with a gentle laser. The laser is also used to deaden local nerves on the facet joint so that the joint stops hurting and the patient is on the way to a fast recovery. To learn more about problematic facet joint symptoms and how endoscopic spine procedures can treat them, call LSI today.

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