What is radiculopathy?
Radiculopathy is the term that spine experts use to refer to any symptoms produced by a pinched nerve root located in the spinal column. Such symptoms include:
- Sharp back, leg, arm, or shoulder pain that worsens with activities, including coughing and sneezing
- Trouble using or weakness in the arms or legs
- Abnormal sensations in the arms or legs, including tingling, skin numbness or “pins and needles”
Your symptoms vary based on the location of your pinched nerve root. In some cases, you only experience radiculopathy during flare-ups.
Radiculopathy is divided into different categories, based on the location of the pinched nerve root. These categories are:
Lumbar radiculopathy
Lumbar radiculopathy refers to symptoms located in the lower back. This is the most common type of radiculopathy. Some people also refer to lumbar radiculopathy as sciatica, because the sciatic nerve is so often affected in this area. Though the pinched nerve may originate in the low back, oftentimes, the symptoms manifest only in the leg, not the back.
Cervical radiculopathy
Cervical radiculopathy describes the symptoms of a pinched nerve root in the neck, also known as the cervical spine. Typically, you experience these symptoms as sensations in your hands and arms, since cervical spine nerve roots originate in the neck and run down the arms and into the fingertips.
Thoracic radiculopathy
Thoracic radiculopathy refers to symptoms caused by a compressed nerve root in the upper back, or the thoracic area of the spine. Of all the types of radiculopathy, this is the least common. Most often, you experience thoracic radiculopathy as numbness and pain that wraps around your body from front to back.
What’s the treatment for radiculopathy?
To treat radiculopathy, your Polaris Spine & Neurosurgery Center team typically starts with conservative, nonsurgical procedures and strategies, such as:
- Steroid injections to reduce pain and inflammation
- Facet injections to reduce pain from facet joints, which help the vertebrae move against one another
- Physical therapy in order to strengthen muscles and prevent future damage
- A spinal cord stimulator (SCS) trial if the above treatments do not provide relief.
For more complicated cases, or if you don’t respond to conservative treatment, the practice also offers minimally invasive surgery.
Radiculopathy doesn’t have to rule your life. To learn about the freedom you can attain with Polaris Spine & Neurosurgery Center, reach out online or over the phone today.
