Degenerative Disc Disease

Degenerative Disc Disease
Degeneration of the intervertebral disc, which is often called "degenerative disc disease" (DDD) of the spine, is a condition that can be painful and can greatly affect the quality of one's life. While disc degeneration is a normal part of aging and for most people is not a problem, for certain individuals a degenerated disc can cause severe constant chronic pain.

Causes of Degenerative Disc Disease
Everyone experiences degeneration of the intervertebral discs with age. Injuries, either large or small, are the most common cause of disc degeneration. After injury, the discs in the spine dehydrate, or dry out, and lose their ability to act as shock absorbers between the vertebrae. There is minimal blood supply to the discs so they are unable to heal or repair themselves.

Symptoms of Degenerative Disc Disease
With symptomatic degenerative disc disease, chronic low back pain sometimes radiates to the hips, or there is pain in the buttocks or thighs while walking; sporadic tingling or weakness through the knees may also be evident. Similar pain may be felt or may increase while sitting, bending, lifting, and twisting.

Treatment of Degenerative Disc Disease
Conservative treatment is the first choice for degenerative disc disease. One or a combination of treatments such as physical therapy, home exercise, osteopathic manipulation, anti-inflammatory medications such as nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs and spinal injections often provide adequate relief of these troubling symptoms. By completing diagnostic median branch blocks, doctors can evaluate how much of the discomfort is coming from the facet joints. If this is found to be one of the sources of pain, the nerves sending pain signals from those joints can be treated with radiofrequency rhizotomy.

Surgery is rarely considered unless the degenerative changes in the spine cause a progressive neurological problem and the symptoms to not respond to conservative care.

Adapted from Wikipedia

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