Slip/Slipped Disc
An injury or trauma to the spine can cause the forward bulging of the inner portion of the vertebrae causing a condition referred to as slipped disc. A slipped disc causes severe pain and discomfort affecting the daily activities resulting in numbness and weakness. Each vertebrae bone is cushioned by a protective shock-absorbing gel like fluids. Due to various causes, the surrounding cartilage and disc may get damaged allowing the inner gel portion to escape and protrude and place pressure on the spinal cord or a nerve resulting in numbness and weakness.
Symptoms
A slipped disc can occur in any part of the spine symptoms of the condition include:
- pain and numbness to the arms or legs
- pain with movements
- stiffness with prolonged standing or sitting
- tingling, aching, or burning sensations
Causes
Slipped disc is usually cause by disc degeneration associated with aging. Other causes include:
- Certain swift motions like twisting or turning to lift an heavy object
- Overweight
- Weak muscles
- Low physical activity
Diagnosing
The doctor conducts a clinical examination to locate the cause of pain and through nerve function and muscle strength test and imaging tests to view the bones and muscles of the spine in detail and to identify any damaged areas and include X-ray, CT scan, MRI scan and discograms.
Treatment and pain management
At Kovilpatti Venkateswara Hospital, we provide invasive and minimally invasive treatments and pain management techniques with a customized program. Physical therapy becomes a major part in pain management under the supervision of an expert physical therapist that enables to stretch and strengthen the back muscles and tissues to ease the pain. The doctors prescribe pain relievers and provide instructions to avoid activities that trigger the stress and pressure on the back bone, disc and ligaments.
Surgical procedure such as transforaminal endoscopic surgery, interlaminar endoscopic surger, microdiscectomy and in some cases conventional surgeries are suggested for severe cases of slipped disc. The procedure involves removing the damaged or protruding portion of the disk from the affected spinal area. In this method, only the protrusions are removed preserving the entire disk. For more severe conditions, the entire disk may be removed and replaces with an artificial disk or the two vertebrae bones are fuses together.
At Kovilpatti Venkateswara Hospital, we offer minimally invasive surgical treatment procedure for a safe and effective treatment approach with advantages of faster recovery. To know more about slipped disc treatment services, book an appointment now.
