Spine Injuries and Disorders (original) (raw)

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Basics

• Summary
• Diagnosis and Tests
• Prevention and Risk Factors
• Treatments and Therapies

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Summary

Your backbone, or spine, is made up of 26 bone discs called vertebrae. The vertebrae protect your spinal cord and allow you to stand and bend. A number of problems can change the structure of the spine or damage the vertebrae and surrounding tissue. They include:

• Infections
• Injuries
• Tumors
• Conditions, such as ankylosing spondylitis and scoliosis
• Bone changes that come with age, such as spinal stenosis and herniated disks

Spinal diseases often cause pain when bone changes put pressure on the spinal cord or nerves. They can also limit movement. Treatments differ by disease, but sometimes they include back braces and surgery.

• Electromyography (EMG) and Nerve Conduction Studies (National Library of Medicine) Also in Spanish

• Lumbar and Cervical Discography (North American Spine Society)

• Spine CT (American College of Radiology; Radiological Society of North America) Also in Spanish

• Spine MRI (American College of Radiology; Radiological Society of North America) Also in Spanish

• Getting It Straight: Improve Your Posture for Better Health (National Institutes of Health) Also in Spanish

• About Neurointerventions (Society of NeuroInterventional Surgery)

• Artificial Disc Replacement (ADR) (North American Spine Society)

• Back Surgery: When Is It a Good Idea? (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research) Also in Spanish

• Chiropractic: MedlinePlus Health Topic (National Library of Medicine) Also in Spanish

• Epidural Injections (American College of Radiology; Radiological Society of North America) Also in Spanish

• Halo-Gravity Traction (Nemours Foundation) Also in Spanish

• Lumbar (Open) Microscopic Discectomy (North American Spine Society)

• Vertebroplasty for Spine Fracture Pain (American Academy of Family Physicians) Also in Spanish

• Spine Rehabilitation Exercises (American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons)

• Degenerative Changes in the Spine: Is This Arthritis? (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research) Also in Spanish

• Fractures of the Thoracic and Lumbar Spine (American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons) - PDF

• Kyphosis (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research)

• Spinal Cord Tumor (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research) Also in Spanish

• Spinal Infections (North American Spine Society)

• Spondylolysis and Spondylolysthesis (North American Spine Society)

• Whiplash and Whiplash Associated Disorder (WAS) (North American Spine Society)

• Lumbar spinal surgery - series (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish

• Spinal fusion - series (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish

• Vertebroplasty - series (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish

• Prevention: Exercise (North American Spine Society)

• Definitions A-Z (North American Spine Society)

• Kyphosis (Nemours Foundation) Also in Spanish

• Compression fractures of the back (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish

• Foraminotomy (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish

• Kyphosis (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish

• Laminectomy (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish

• Lordosis - lumbar (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish

• Spinal fusion (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish

• Spine surgery - discharge (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish

• Spondylolisthesis (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish