What is Degenerative Disc Disease ?
Degenerative disc disease is one of the most common reasons for low back and neck pain. It happens when one or more discs between the vertebrae of the spinal column deteriorate. Discs act like a cushion between your vertebrae and help stabilize your spine, but when they start to deteriorate, the spinal discs start to dehydrate and shrink causing loss of disc height and less room between the vertebrae. This condition is usually found in the neck (cervical) and lower back (lumbar) regions of the spine. Degenerative disc disease is also called spinal degeneration or simply disc disease.
What causes it ?
There could be several possible reasons for degenerative disc disease. It can result from acute or chronic trauma, such as a motor vehicle accident or a fall, an infection, or the natural processes of aging. It can present with the following symptoms:
- Stiffness in low back
- Pain in the low back, buttocks, or thighs
- Pain that worsens when sitting, bending, lifting, or twisting
- Pain that feels better when walking, changing positions, or lying down
- Periods of severe pain that gets better after a few days or months
- Loss of mobility
Treatments
Treatment can vary from patient to patient but some of the options are anti inflammatory or prescription pain medications, physical therapy, spinal injections and Surgery.
At Dominion Spine and Pain, our treatment options provide excellent pain relief from degenerative disc disease with long lasting results using non surgical techniques. Call us today at (301) 659-0003 for more information.