Degenerative Disc Disease and Its Causes

WHAT EXACTLY IS DEGENERATIVE DISEASE?

WHAT EXACTLY IS THIS DEGENERATIVE DISC DISEASE???

When one’s spine ages, especially the intervertebral discs, the chances for the degenerative disc disease to develop are very high. 

However, this is not to say that only old people get to experience this particular physical condition. Even young adults can experience the same as a result of an injury to one’s back. Such illness could also develop whenever that part of the body has been weakened due to wear and tear of one’s spine. To know more about what cause this disease, read the information below.

CAUSES :

One of the causes of degenerative disc disease as stated earlier is age. When this particular cause is involved, you can think of degenerative disc disease as a process. When one ages, there will be changes to his intervertebral discs. The same will later on affect his vertebrae’s other motion segments. 

As the time passes by, the disc’s outer portion called the annulus fibrosus will also change. This would result to the reduction molecules that attract water, which also reduces the ability of the disc to have back movement handled. This will make the disc thinner and less spongy. This causes problems to the stability of the spine, resulting to the wear and tear condition. 

Another cause of said disease is hypermobility. This causes the growth of osteophytes or bone spurs, which are small bony elements that stops movement. Said elements actually pinch the structures of one’s nerves sometimes, which cause pain. Another cause of such condition is one’s genes. It could be that a person is pre-disposed to disc and joint wear and tear that is excessive.

Degenerative disc disease could also develop in a person when his lifestyle is not exactly healthy. For instance, smokers are said to be vulnerable to said disease because such vice has adverse effects on the one’s discs. The same has the result of having the disc’s water amount decreased.