Spondylosis: Wear and Tear of Your Spine is a Common Cause of Neck Pain

It is often found in neck pain sufferers that they have cervical spondylosis

Spondylosis is a condition where the vertebrae of the spine are degenerated. When it occurs in the neck or cervical region, it called Cervical Spondylosis. In the lower back or lumbar region, it is known as Lumbar Spondylosis.

This degeneration is a result of wear-and-tear. The bones and cartilage wear down, narrowing the spaces between the vertebrae. This reduction of space between the vertebrae is what causes the pain sensations.

It is through these gap-spaces that nerves from the spine exit out to the rest of the body. Nerves exiting near the neck, spread out to the upper body including the arms and fingers. As the gap narrows, it impinges on the exiting nerves.

This mapping of the location of the nerve impingement and where the pain is felt is related to something known as the Dermatome pattern.

When a structure is unstable such as degenerating vertebral joint, the body does its best to stabilise it but growing bone spurs as supporting anchor points. These growths of bone spurs is known as osteophytes.

Unfortunately, these bone spurs can sometime further aggravate the spondylosis condition by pressing onto a nerve themselves.

Degeneration on its own does not causes pain. It is only when nerves are pressed on do we feel pain. So it is possible to have spondylosis but have no pain symptoms.

It is common to find cervical spondylosis or lumbar spondylosis in older adult as they age given the wear-and-tear they experience. However, it is increasingly common to find spondylosis in the younger population in their 20s and 30s.

As a result, it is quite common to find some spondylosis degeneration when x-rays or MRIs are taken of young working adults.

Computer-related desk work today has exacerbated the wear-and-tear of the spinal joints from long poor static postures and highly repetitive movements.

Learn more about Spondylosis. Stop by Core Concepts’ site where you can find out all about physiotherapy treatment and what they can do for you.

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