Degenerated Disc Treatment In San Antonio

Degenerated Disc

What Is Degenerative Disc Disease?

Degenerative disc disease in the lower spine can create a number of symptoms, including back pain, sciatica, numbness or tingling in the legs and feet, weakness, difficulty standing up straight, and possibly even sexual dysfunction or bladder control problems. In the neck and upper spine, symptoms may include neck pain, upper back and shoulder pain, arm pain, tingling, and weakness, and headaches.

Degenerative disc disease can involve one or more of the spinal discs, sometimes effecting all of the discs in a region of the spine more or less equally, and other times only effecting a single disc.

The discs are the soft-tissue "shock absorbers" between the spinal bones. The discs have a center composed of a semi-liquid gel. Due various injuries over time, the discs may become damaged and begin to gradually lose fluid and degenerate. Oftentimes, degenerative disc disease is seen in association with a bulging or hernated disc. As the fluid loss continues, the discs become thinner and no longer provide shock absorption.

As degenerative disc disease progresses, the thinner the discs become, and the more pressure there is on the spinal joint surfaces. This increased pressure on the joints causes the body to lay down additional bone to reinforce the area. Over time, this extra bone forms ridges and spurs which sometimes start to close off the openings that the spinal cord and spinal nerves pass through (which is called spinal and neural stenosis).

How Is Degenerative Disc Disease Treated?

Degenerative disc disease is usually treated with anti-inflammatory and other medications, cortisone injections, physical therapy, and, in some cases, surgery. These forms of treatment can be helpful in many cases, at least short-term, but statistically they are much less effective in the long-run.

At South Texas Non-Surgical Spinal Center we treat degenerative disc disease on a caseby case basis, because each patient is different. Our treatment recommendation take into consideration the patient's overall health and individual lifestyle factors. Our goal is to not only alleviate pain, but improve the individual's ability to be active and enjoy life. We don't consider treatment successful if it only works to keep the patient out of pain when they aren't doing anything!

In the vast majority of cases, we are able to provide an effective non-surgical solution to allow patients to remain active and enjoy life.

For a FREE consultation and evaluation to discover what South Texas Non-Surgical Spinal Center can do for you, please...

Call us today at (210) 408-7888!

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