What is Spinal Stenosis?
Spinal Stenosis is a narrowing of the spinal Canal. The diagram above shows the vertebra and the canal located in the center. The canal is really a long tube created by the hole or canal in the middle of each of the vertebrae. These vertebrae that form your spine are stacked on top of one another.The canal gets smaller because parts that make up the front, back or sides of the canal start to grow, thicken or bulge into the open canal space.Similar to you standing on a garden hose the whole or space inside the hose gets smaller or stenotic (stenosis).
The spinal nerves that go to your legs are located in your canal and when the space becomes smaller it can pinch them. Patients complain of low back pain, along with pain, numbness and weakness in one or both legs with spinal stenosis. Commonly their pain is worse with standing and walking and relieved by bending over or sitting. The pain can become unrelenting and the mental and physical toll this puts on those who suffer with spinal stenosis should not be understated.
The parts of the Spine that can be involved with Spinal Stenosis
Before
There is the large part of the vertebra (body) in the front, there is also shock absorbing material that sits between each body of the vertebra like a sandwich. This shock absorbing marterial is shaped like the body and we call it an interverbral disc. Your disc is like a strong jelly donut; it has a tough outer portion and a soft jelly like inside. Your disc can get injured or degenerate (become thin and worn out), they can bulge, protrude or herniate.
The majority of the time someone has one of these problems the disc will move into the space in the spinal canal, contributing to the stenosis.
The back part of the spine is made up of the facet joints. The bones that make up the Facet Joints can grow or become larger due to stress or degeneration, wear and tear (arthritis).
Please, if you believe you have Spinal Stenosis don’t give up and settle for a lifetime of epidural shots, surgery or just living with the pain.
