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Disk herniations are a common problem for which patients will seek medical care. However a ruptured disk is a mechanical problem therefore farmaceuticals can only temporarily alleviate symptoms. Understanding the causes will demonstrate clearly what the best treatment is for disk herniations, and in which order to best proceed. Addressing the underlying cause of a disk herniation is precisely why in most cases Chiropractic care is the wisest choice. Let's take a look at it.
The intervertebral disk is a like a fat washer that separates the two vertebrae providing a protective cushion against forces. It acts as a buffer and a separator to make the spine into a series of segments so that we can move. The disk height ( and therefore health) determines the size (diameter) of the foramen (hole) through which the nerve roots pass.
We want the foreamen to be wide so that the nerve root and its blood supply are free of compresive forces. The disk itself has two parts, a concentric outer portion and a gel like inner portion called the nucleus. The disk is hydrated thru proper spinal movement, if the vertebrae lose their normal range of motion, then the outer part of the disk dehydrates and will crack allowing the inner gel portion to slip out.
A disk protrusion is the same thing except that the gel has not completely broken through and it is just causing the outer portion of the disk to bulge.
Think of it like a sandwich that is being compressed and the mayonnaise is bulging at the sides. So the disk herniation itself is an "effect". To treat effects without addressing the underline cause is asking for more trouble down the line. What kind of trouble? Spinal degeneration and more disk herniations. Why? Because the compression on the spine is a cumulative effect and the disk that herniates is just the weakest link in the chain.
If you have a disk herniation or disk protrusion, you can be sure that the other disks are also suffering compressive forces. Which is why even after surgery many patients will experience another disk herniation. The surgery "cleaned up" the disk that burst but the causative compressive forces cannot be removed thru surgery, massage or physiotherapy. Chiropractic care should be the first treatmet in the vast majority of cases. In my office I specialize in treating disk problems with a high success rate and have avoided many patients the need for surgical procesures.
The cause of the herniation is compression and abnormal biomechanics. The medical doctor will prescribe pain relievers, anti-inflammatories, and muscle relaxants, none of which correct the "cause" of the problem. (They offer temporary relief, yet are destructive to your organs).
Chiropractic will restore proper function of the body so that the disk can heal, and it will heal just like any other tissue in the body, if the "causes" are corrected, without the need for surgery. It takes longer, but then again correcting something is far better than covering it up.
It is important to understand that long term compressive forces on the spine will further dehydrate the disk until it becomes very thin and worn down, no longer able to do it's job. The altered mechanics in the spine create a degenerative process which give rise to bone spurs and a weakening of the bones internal architecture. This weakening is characterized by loss of minerals of which calcium is a main component. This condition is called Osteoporosis and it is closely linked to spinal degeneration. Furthermore, because the disk has lost it's height then the hole (intervertebral foramen) thru which the nerve roots pass will decrease. This decrease coupled with the bone spurs from the degeneration will cause the nerve roots to be damaged, and the micro arterial blood circulation (around the nerve root itself) to be compromised. That process is irreversible so it makes sense to address the causes now.
Spinal degeneration cannot be reversed. Chiropractic care can halt it. (or in advanced cases, slow it down) Medication cannot provide anything other than symptomatic relief, all the while the problem is getting worse.
To fully understand the importance of this you must realize that the nerve roots bifurcate again and again until they provide innervation to all the muscles, organs and tissues at their corresponding spinal levels. The condition of your spine determines to a large extent if you can enjoy your life with health, vigor and vitality. What else matters?
