Your spine is an amazing part of your body. As your backbone, it provides support for your body and allows you to stand upright.
That backbone takes on a lot of wear-and-tear over the years. With the twisting and turning and pressure we put on our spine during our everyday lives, it’s no surprise we occasionally have an issue such as a herniated disc.
In fact, up to 2% of our population experiences a herniated disc each year. To help you determine if you’re one of those people, here are a few signs and symptoms from Dr. Shoeb Mohiuddin and our team at Regenerative Pain & Spine.
What is a herniated disc?
The support your backbone gives you comes courtesy of 33 vertebrae stacked on top of each other from the base of your skull down to your tailbone. Between each pair of vertebrae is an intervertebral disc that cushions your spine from the stresses it undergoes each day.
These discs include a hard outer shell (annulus) and a jellylike substance inside (nucleus). A herniated disc occurs when there’s a tear, leak, or damage to the annulus, allowing the nucleus to spill out into the spinal canal. This damage can occur through an injury or through wear, tear, and stress over time.
What are signs of a herniated disc?
Herniated discs can occur in any part of your spine, but they’re most common in the lower back, or lumbar region. Symptoms will vary based on the location of the disc and how severely it’s herniated, but here are a few common signs that you have a herniated lumbar disc:
1. Pain in your arms or legs
You’ll often feel pain in your lower back that can radiate out through your arms and legs. With a lumbar disc, the pain will more likely go down through your buttocks, thighs, and calves. The pain can occur from the nucleus pushing through the outer layer or from pressure the herniated disc puts on nearby nerves.
2. Tingling or numbness
Speaking of the nerves near a herniated disc, when they’re affected by the disc injury, they can also cause tingling and numbness in your limbs — this can even extend all the way down to your feet.
3. Weakness
The muscles that are served by the affected nerves will also tend to weaken. This can make it difficult to hold or lift items with your arms, and it can make you stumble as you try to walk.
If you’re currently experiencing the symptoms of a herniated disc, our team at Regenerative Pain & Spine will be happy to examine you and recommend an effective treatment plan. To make an appointment, call one of our four Chicago-area locations or use our convenient online schedulers for each office today!
