Having a back disc problem can be serious. One way to help ensure that your back stays healthy is to visit with a trusted local chiropractor. Chiropractors are not only trained in issues relating to your back, but they work with how the back relates to your nervous system and affects every part of your body given that the nerves run through the spine.
Below are 7 possible signs that you might have a disc problem in your back. It is important that you get help as early as possible to minimize any long term back problems.
1. Localized dull back pain. You may have low-grade dull back pain for some time but then something happens, such as you sneeze or bend over to pick up your child's toy and the pain suddenly gets worse.
2. Radiating pain. You may experience a sharp, electric shock-like pain that radiates down a limb. Depending on the level of the spine involved the radicular pain will vary. In your neck, you might have pain shooting into the shoulder or down the arm into one or more fingers. If the problem is in the lumbar spine, the typical radicular symptom that we think of is "sciatica." The sciatic nerve is made up of the L4, L5, and S1 nerve roots and is a well-known for its posterior leg pain. It can shoot into the hip or buttock or down the back of the thigh and sometimes even into the lower leg and foot. Also to note: one may experience similar, radiating pain on the side or front of the leg. The distinction is that this is not the sciatic nerve but a nerve arising out of the higher level of the spine, such as L3 or L2. Usually this sharp, shooting pain affects only one limb, although it occasionally affects both.
3. Numbness / Tingling. This sensation will often occur in the same distribution as listed above. Unfortunately, once you experience this sensation (or lack of it) and even once you begin healing it is often the last thing to come back and it, quite frankly, may take some time and, possibly, never come back fully to normal sensation.
4. Increased pain with sitting and bending forward. You also might experience pain with standing, walking and twisting, but usually sitting and bending forward are the most exacerbating. Imagine it this way: think of your spine like a bagel filled with cream cheese. Obviously, the bagel has a hard fibrous quality and the cream cheese is soft and malleable. Your disc is set up much the same way. It has a fibrous outer coating that with trauma or repetitive trauma -- like sitting at a desk all day -- may break down over time. The squishy cheese substance is analogous to the nucleolus pulpous that serves as the shock absorber to the disc. It is between the discs and cushions the disc. When we undergo a trauma or repetitive trauma the fibrous outer coating (bagel) may break down and get little micro tears. As this happens, the soft, squishy inner core (cream cheese) gradually leaks out into the fibrous part and may eventually rupture and become a full blown herniation.
5. Increased pain with coughing, sneezing, and bowel movements. What happens here is you increase the intrathecal pressure within your body. The intrathecal pressure is the pressure within your spinal canal. When you cough, sneeze or exert pressure for a bowel movement you are exerting a lot of force. If you have those little micro tears in the disc you may get a protrusion into and toward the spinal canal. If you increase the pressure on the spinal canal and it pushes onto a disc protrusion you are going to get some pretty serious pain.
6. Your chiropractor tells you have a misaligned or subluxated vertebra. A vertebral subluxation is a misalignment in the vertebra that puts endangering stress onto the spinal cord and spinal nerves. Each vertebra is attached to the disc. If the vertebra is out of alignment it may cause those micro tears in the outer portion of the disc, which, as we've discussed, may lead to that herniation or protrusion.
7. Difficulty controlling bowel and/or bladder. This is a big red flag. If you have a sudden inability to control your bowel and bladder then call 911 immediately. This may indicate a full blown herniation and requires immediate medical attention. Fortunately, this is relatively rare but it is extremely serious, so get help right away.
For all of the above, with the exception of the last one, chiropractic care is often the treatment of choice. Your chiropractor will be able to determine if a chiropractic adjustment will help you or if there is another specialist you may need to see.
Please note, this article is provided as information and is not a substitute for seeking medical attention. If you are experiencing any of these conditions, please consult a medical professional.
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