Damaging of the disc implies:
- discus hernia:
* protrusio - when a small swelling appears
* prolapse - when the swelling is on the verge of bursting
- rupture - when the content of the disc penetrates the annulus fibrosus.
When a prolapse occurs in the back of the spine, the spinal cord is pressed and the nerve roots are pressed at the lateral sides.
Discus hernia, just like a rupture, may occur in the cervical part of the spinal cord whereas it is not so frequent in the thorasic part because of low mobility.
31 pairs of nerves branche from the spinal cord: eight cervical, twelve thoracic, five lumbar, five sacral and one coccygeal. Depending on the place of injury, certain problems will arise.
The main symptoms with these injuries are pain, spasm of surrounding muscles, restriction of movements, as well as symptoms that depend on where the trauma occurred.
Depending on the place of impairment such as the lumbar disc between the vertebra 4 and 5, the pain stretches through the sitting part over the back of the thigh, under the knees and ending in the foot. The way of the pain is the way of ischiadicus, known to many people.
