The Most Common Reasons Which May Lead to Pain in Spine and Neck

In most of the cases of spine and neck pain, you feel better after some time. You do not need to get yourself checked by a spine and neck specialist. However, at times, things do not go better as anticipated and you may need to get yourself checked for prolonged pain in the spine and neck region.

Let us have a look at the reasons behind the pain.

Lumbar Spine Issues

Lumber spine causes lower back pain in patients which can last longer than three months. If you have lower back pain which continues for more than three months, you need to get yourself checked by an orthopedic doctor. Sometimes, there is a pain in the leg which may also point to lumbar spine problem.

Reasons for lower back pain in patients aged 20 to 60 years old.

Lumbar Disc Herniation

Annulus fibrous of a vertebral disc is torn causing a lumbar disc herniation. The lumbar disc herniation pain can radiate from the neck to the arm and down to the fingers. The common lumber disc herniation occurs between lumbar vertebrae L4 and L5 or between lumbar vertebrae L5 and S1.

Degenerative Disc Disease

A damaged vertebral disc can cause chronic pain in the spine area. This pain can radiate to the leg and even lower back. The degeneration results in gradual loss of normal structure and poorly impacts the spine’s functioning over time because of arthritis, tumors, or infections.

Isthmic Spondylolisthesis

The slipping of one vertebra over the other is known as isthmic spondylolisthesis. Some of the reasons possibly behind the isthmic spondylolisthesis include a fracture, a defect, or problem in the bone’s connecting upper and lower joints.

Reasons for spine and neck pain for over 60 years of age.

Facet Joint Osteoarthritis

The breaking down of cartilage between the facet joints is called osteoarthritis. The condition of facet joint osteoarthritis causes extreme pain once the joints move. Facet joint osteoarthritis causes stiffness and resultingly reduces the normal range of motions for the patient.

Degenerative Spondylolisthesis

Degenerative spondylolisthesis is a condition in which the top vertebra slips forward of the vertebra below it. The main reason behind degenerative spondylolisthesis is usually aging. Aging causes the spinal discs to weaken and dry. Degenerative spondylolisthesis can lead to weakness of the spine joints and ligaments.

Neck Pain Because of Cervical Spine Conditions

These are the common cervical spine conditions causing neck pain.

Foraminal Stenosis

A swollen joint causes the cervical disc space to narrow, resulting in foraminal stenosis. The foraminal canal becomes clogged because of debris which can cause degenerative spine conditions. This spine condition leads to development and deterioration of the spine like spinal arthritis, herniated disc, or bone spur.

Stenosis with Myelopathy

When the nerve or spinal cord function gets disturbed, it may cause myelopathy symptoms. Cervical stenosis refers to narrowing of the canal. Cervical myelopathy may also indicate an injury to the spinal cord and badly impact its full functioning.

Cervical Osteoarthritis

Cervical osteoarthritis is a disease and one of the main reasons for pain in the neck. The abnormality of one or more spinal discs causes cervical osteoarthritis. A patient suffers severe neck pain when one of the discs gets damaged because of muscle spasms or inflammation.

Cervical Degenerative Disc Disease

The damaged vertebral disc can cause cervical degenerative disc disease. One of the main symptoms of cervical degenerative disc disease is chronic pain. Sometimes the pain can radiate to the lower back, lumbar spine, or neck pain.