Radiculopathy

Radiculopathy

refers to chronic injuries of the spinal nerve roots caused by prolonged nerve irritation or compression. It is a term used to describe symptoms that are caused by nerves that are not working properly. Symptoms of radiculopathy include painful burning sensations, numbness and tingling, generally mild initially and increasing over time. As the condition progresses muscles may weaken and atrophy. Attempts should be made to identify the source of pain upon inception to rule out other problems

What Causes Radiculopathy

Radiculopathy is caused by nerves being pinched or compressed by debris or other spinal conditions, such as spinal stenosis, damaged inter-vertebral discs, degeneration of the spine, and spinal instabilities such as spondylolisthesis or scoliosis as well as a few other conditions. When this occurs there is less blood flow to the nerves, which can lead to permanent nerve damage. This is why early diagnosis and treatment for radiculopathy is essential to restore normal root function.

Treatment Options for Radiculopathy

There are many different treatments and therapies that can be used to treat pain and symptoms that are associated with radiculopathy. The most effective treatment for inflamed or pinched nerves are the most commonly used ones: physical therapy, rest, medications such as oral pain medications, anti-inflammatory drugs, and muscle relaxants. There are only a small amount of people with radiculopathy that do not respond well to these common conservative treatments and therapies

When conservative treatments fail to produce pain relief, endoscopic discectomy and/or endoscopic foraminotomy may be needed. Endoscopic discectomy is used if pain is caused by a disc tear, disc bulge, or herniated disc. Endoscopic foraminotomy is used to treat nerve pain that may be due to degenerative changes in the spine, spinal stenosis, spondylolisthesis, or failed surgery syndrome. Both are minimally invasive procedures that have low risk and short recovery times.