Your back is one of the most complex areas in your body. It is made up of interconnecting nerves, bones, muscles, ligaments and tendons, each of which can be a source of pain. Your physician will work with you and Inova's spine experts to make an accurate diagnosis and treatment plan for your condition.
Below are some of the spine conditions expertly treated by the professionals within the Inova Spine Program.
Low back pain is by far the most common spinal complaint among adults in the United States. It affects the back anywhere below the ribs and above the legs. Causes include overuse, strain, injury, compression fracture, aging, and diseases such as arthritis and osteoporosis.
Treatments for low back pain vary according to severity and include:
Sciatica is pain, tingling or numbness caused by irritation of the sciatic nerve in the lower back. It can result from a herniated disc pressing against the nerve roots, spinal stenosis, arthritis or an injury-induced pinched nerve.
Treatments for sciatica include:
Radiculopathy is a disease of the spinal nerve roots and spinal nerves. Cervical radiculopathy affects the nerve roots near the neck and radiates through the arms and hands. Lumbar radiculopathy causes nerve irritation in the lower back that radiates through the legs and feet. Wear and tear, degeneration, herniated discs and traumatic injury are the primary causes.
Treatments for radiculopathy include:
Your lumbar spine, or low back, is made of five vertebrae separated by cushioning disks of cartilage. Degenerative conditions or trauma can damage a disk, allowing the material inside to bulge into the spinal canal.
Treatments for a herniated disk include:
The vertebrae in your spine are cushioned by soft disks. When one of the disks in your neck – the cervical area of your spine – ruptures, the result can be neck pain.
Spinal stenosis is a condition in which the spinal canal narrows and pinches the nerves, resulting in back and leg pain. Spinal stenosis often occurs in older adults, although younger people who are born with a small spinal canal may also develop symptoms.
Treatments for spinal stenosis include:
Most vertebrae are separated by flexible disks of cartilage that act like shock absorbers and allow your spine to move. With age, your disks can lose their height and ability to cushion. This process is called disk degeneration.
Treatments for degenerative disc disease include:
Arthritis in the lower back and pelvic area can cause pain and loss of motion.
Your neck is the upper or cervical part of your spine, a column of 33 bones called vertebrae. Cervical arthritis is a condition that occurs when the cartilage and vertebrae in the neck wear abnormally.
Spondylolisthesis is a forward slip of one vertebra in the spinal column and usually occurs in the lumbar region. Some people are born with a defective vertebra; in others, trauma, a stress fracture, infection or disease may cause the problem. The condition is on the rise among children and adolescents who are active in athletics.
Spondylolisthesis treatments include:
Myelopathy is the gradual loss of nerve function caused by disorders of the spine. The condition commonly results from spinal injury or spinal stenosis, a progressive narrowing of the spinal canal.
Myelopathy treatments include:
Scoliosis is a condition that causes the spine to curve sideways. It can develop during childhood or adolescence and can range from mild to severe.
Scoliosis treatments include:
Kyphosis is a progressive disorder that causes curvature of the thoracic spine in children and adults. It is most often the result of developmental problems, trauma, degenerative diseases (such as arthritis) or osteoporosis with compression fractures.
Treatments for kyphosis include:
Ankylosing spondylitis is a form of arthritis that primarily affects the ligaments and joints of the spine, especially the lower back. As the disease progresses, it can lead to a stooped posture.
A compression fracture is a broken vertebra in the spine. It usually occurs due to severe trauma, but is also the result of cancer or osteoporosis. Compression fractures are most common in the vertebrae of the lower back.
The treatment for a compression fracture is kyphoplasty.