Signs of sciatica or herniated disc

Pain from the lower back radiating down the buttocks and legs is often a sign of sciatica. Sitting a lot, doing heavy lifting, or walking a lot will increase the pain.

People with sciatica sometimes cough or laugh loudly, causing pain. The sciatic nerve (or sitting nerve) is the largest nerve in the body, formed by the nerve roots of the lumbar region. It runs along the back of the buttocks, thighs and down the legs.

Sciatica is often caused by lumbar disc herniation, sometimes accompanied by numbness, leg weakness or muscle atrophy. The disease can also be caused by many other factors such as spinal stenosis, spinal arthritis, discitis, sciatica, sciatic nerve tumors, etc.

The intervertebral disc is a structure located between two adjacent vertebrae. It is disc-shaped, with a thick and firm fibrous outer layer and a mucous substance inside, similar to egg whites, called the nucleus pulposus. When the fibrous layer is torn, the nucleus pulposus inside will escape, forming a mass called a herniated mass. If the herniated mass presses on the nerve roots, it will cause pain, numbness, weakness, etc.

If the hernia occurs in the lumbar region, it will compress the roots that form the sciatic nerve, causing sciatica. A hernia in the cervical region can cause neck, shoulder pain or pain, numbness, and weakness in the arms and legs. If the hernia is in the thoracic region, the patient may experience intercostal neuralgia. The discs in the cervical and lumbar regions are most commonly herniated.

The photo on the right shows a patient with a herniated disc.

When the herniated disc protrudes, it will pull the periosteum next to it. Over time, bone will grow out to form bone rings. On X-rays, people see them as sharp thorns, so they are called spinal "spurs".

Usually, when a herniated disc causes pain or numbness, weakness, or paralysis, the patient goes to the hospital for examination. In this case, the doctors will treat the herniated disc before the "thorns" form. Herniated discs that do not cause any symptoms (usually because they do not compress the nerves) have enough time to create "thorns". Therefore, the patient should not panic when they know they have spinal spurs. In fact, there are only very few spurs that need to be "removed". In addition, it should be noted: Spinal process is the name of a part of the spine, not related to spinal spurs.

Patients often ask their doctors, "Why can the nucleus pulposus escape from the fibrous sac to form a herniated mass?" This is due to the degenerative process. When people first learn to walk, the disc has already begun to degenerate, and the older they get, the faster the degenerative process occurs. Many organs in the body also degenerate like this.

Degeneration is the leading cause of disc herniation. Other factors such as arthritis, weight gain, trauma, etc. are also factors that cause the fibrous sac to weaken and crack. In addition, degeneration can also cause other parts of the spine to become rough, bulging and compressing the nerve roots similar to the mechanism of disc herniation. If the degenerated parts compress other parts of the spine, it also causes back pain or neck pain.

In short, spinal degeneration is the main factor causing disc herniation, which in turn causes spinal “spurs” and sciatica. Spinal degeneration can also cause back pain, neck pain or sciatica without disc herniation. In addition, this condition is also the cause of a number of other diseases, all of which are collectively called degenerative diseases of the spine.

Lumbar disc herniation is the main cause of sciatica. If the disc herniation is in the neck, you are often diagnosed with “neck-shoulder-arm syndrome” or a similar name. In general, each disease name has its own meaning. However, the current use of these names is not uniform, which can easily confuse patients.

To prevent and prevent the disease from recurring, people need to exercise regularly, maintain regular sports practice, especially swimming, live in a clean environment, use food and medicine that meet hygiene and safety standards. Avoid contact with toxic substances, avoid sitting in one place for a long time, do not let yourself become obese will help your spine become healthier.

According to VnExpress