Annular Tear
An annular tear is a tear of the annulus of a spinal disc. Spinal discs are similar to jelly doughnuts in that they have a soft center (called the nucleus) surrounded by a tougher/ligamentous exterior (called the annulus) that contains the nucleus.
Usually as the result of some kind of trauma, the annulus can become injured and tear. Sometimes the tear is so severe that nucleus squirts out of the disc; this is called a “herniated disc”. If the annulus does not rupture, nucleus becomes entrapped in the pain-sensing part of the annulus causing chemical inflammation and subsequent irritation of nerve endings in the annulus.
Facet Cyst
A fluid filled cyst in the facet joint of the lumbar spine that can cause compression and or irritation of the nearby spinal nerves.
Tarlov Cyst
An outpouching of the membrane of the nerves creating a pressurized, fluid cavity that can compress and or irritate the sacral nerves.
Herniation Nucleus Pulposus (HNP)
A protrusion or extrusion of the gel portion of the intervertebral disk (called the nucleus) that can irritate the nearby nerves in the cauda equina.
Spinal Stenosis or Spinal Disc
Narrowing of the spinal canal causing compression and or irritation of the nearby spinal nerves.
Spondylolisthesis
A spondylolisthesis occurs when a vertebra slips out of alignment. A forward slip is usually most painful. This forward shift of the vertebrae causes the spinal canal to narrow (stenosis), which puts pressure on the spinal cord and nerves within the spine.Liken this to the stacked ring analogy: if rings are stacked one on top of the other and one of the rings slips forward, the space in thse center of the rings (where nerves would be in the spine) is narrowed. Spondylolisthesis can be caused by trauma (such as a motor vehicle accident or fall) or can be due to age-related changes like arthritis.
