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 Cervical degenerative disc
disease can be caused by a twisting injury to a disc space in the cervical
spine. This can begin the degenerative process and lead to chronic neck
pain. This degenerative condition is less common in the cervical spine than
in the lumbar spine because there is substantially less torque and force
across the cervical section of the spine.
It should be noted that the term degenerative disc disease is somewhat
misleading. Although the disc will be likely to continue to degenerate with
age, that does not mean the pain will worsen. In fact, the pain will
usually diminish over time. Also, it is not really a disease, but instead
it is a condition that will sometimes (but not always) cause pain resulting
from a damaged disc or natural aging.
This disc degeneration is very common and will occur in most people as
they age; however, not all will experience symptoms. In addition to natural
occurrence of disc degeneration due to aging, other factors that can
contribute to degenerative disc disease are:
·
Poor nutrition
·
Smoking
·
Atherosclerosis
·
Physical activities
·
Genetics
Symptoms
The main symptom of cervical degenerative disc disease is neck pain. Of
course, there are many things that can cause neck pain, so having this
symptom does not automatically indicate this condition. A patient with this
condition can also experience some radicular pain in the arm and shoulder.
Most people will experience some degree of degeneration of their discs
as they grow older, simply as a function of aging, sometimes exacerbated by
their lifestyle. However, not everyone with degenerative disc disease will
experience symptoms.
Diagnosis
Degenerative disc disease can often be seen with a Magnetic Resonance
Imaging (MRI) scan. The MRI is very specific for diagnosing degenerative
disc disease. A CT
myelogram may sometimes also be ordered if nerve root pinching is suspected
from a disc herniation/stenosis, but is not well visualized on the MRI
scan.
An imaging scan may show degeneration of a disc in a patient who isn't
experiencing any symptoms. Seeing normal degeneration due to aging is very
common, and does not indicate a problem unless neck or shoulder pain or
stiffness is being experienced. Therefore, a diagnosis of this condition
must include a good history of the patient's symptoms and a physical
examination in conjunction with the imaging scan. As a matter of fact,
myofascial pain syndromes such as fibromyalgia are more likely to cause
chronic neck pain than degenerative disc disease of the cervical spine. The
symptoms have to be well correlated with any imaging findings before a
diagnosis can be confirmed.
The physician will probably also do a neurological examination to
determine if there is any neurological damage, and also a study of the
shoulders to be sure the pain isn't originating there instead of in the
spine.
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