Reasons Why You Have a Herniated Disc in Vacaville

Your discs play an important role, particularly in supporting your spine and allowing a wide range of movement. When you have back problems, they will be in the direct line of fire. A herniated disc in Vacaville is a sample problem, in which it can lead to moderate to severe pain. Even the slightest movement can be difficult for the patient.

Since the herniated disc is the commonly diagnosed spine problem, then you should know what caused it in the first place. Through this information, you will know what to do to find relief.

The role of discs in Vacaville

To understand herniated discs, you should quickly review the anatomy of your spine. The foundational structure runs from the base of your skull to your pelvis and has a total of 33 vertebrae that are separated by 23 discs.

Each disc has a tough outer layer that contains a jelly-like substance on the inside, which provides cushioning and support for your spine.

The primary cause for herniated discs

There are many ways that your disc becomes herniated, but the exact cause for the problem is when your disc ruptures or bulges out of its space, thereby irritating the nearby nerve roots that branch out from your spine. It will lead to both local and radiating pain, depending on the location and extent of the nerve compression.

This kind of problem is common in aging and wear-and-tear. As you age, your disc starts losing its water content which results in making them drier and brittle. They will also lose some volume, thus causing your vertebrae to creep closer together.

Degenerative disc disease is also another problem that can cause discs to rupture or leak out of their spaces. These problems usually affect your lumbar spine and cervical spine, which are areas of the spine that handles most of the movement.

It is worth noting that herniated discs are rarely the result of an accident or trauma, but they develop gradually.

Risk factors of a herniated disc

Since degenerative disc disease will take away the flexibility and moisture of the disc, there are also certain factors that could cause the breakdown to develop much faster. This includes:

• Obesity or having excess weight.
• Smoking since your discs gets less oxygen.
• Gender since men are twice as likely to develop a lumbar herniated disc.
• Activities or occupations that could stress your back.

Of course, it is obvious that age is a risk factor since the years of wear-and-tear could weaken your discs.

Treating your herniated disc

If you are diagnosed with a herniated disc, the first goal will be to relieve yourself of pain and discomfort. There are clinics out there such as Absolute Integrative Physical Medicine in Vacaville, CA that can provide you with a treatment like spinal decompression. This can help decompress your spine, thereby relieving the compressed nerves. If you need more info about our treatment, just give us a call at (707) 474-5688 and set up an appointment. Apart from spinal decompression, there are also other treatments that we offer so make sure to give us a visit.