treatment of lumbar herniated disc (subtitled)

One to 2 days of bed rest will usually help relieve back and leg pain.
Do not worry that you will do yourself harm by being active, activity will do you good.
When you resume activity, try to do the following:
Take rest breaks throughout the day, but avoid sitting for long periods.
Change your daily activities to avoid movements that can cause further pain.
Make all your physical activity slow and controlled, especially bending forward and lifting.
Maintain good posture. This reduces pressure on your spine and disks.
Keep your back straight and aligned, particularly when sitting for long periods.
Lift heavy objects properly, making your legs - not your back - do most of the work.
Quit smoking and avoid the use of any tobacco products.
losing weight can also help you reduce the stress to the spinal column.
applying hot packs can help to relieve pain.
using painkiller and muscle relaxants to control pain.
non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) are the most common form to stop the pain and reduce inflammation.
a combination of vit b1 b6 v12 is clinically proven to nourish the nerve cells, help improve nerve function and improve neurological symptoms.
stronger neuropathic drugs including gabapentin or pregabalin can be prescribed for chronic.
Your doctor might refer you for physical therapy to help with your pain.
which may include ultrasound, massage, conditioning, and exercise programs.
In addition, a machine called lumbar traction that helps relieve the pressure on your spinal nerves may also be useful in the short term.
Specific home exercises will help strengthen your lower back and abdominal muscles.
Light aerobic exercise, like walking or swimming, can help alleviate muscle spasms and relieve some of the pain you are experiencing.
If you immobilize your spine with a back brace, it actually may take longer for your back to heal in this case.
Also, consistent use of a back brace can weaken your spinal muscles and make it more prone to getting injured.
If you are about to do an activity that will cause a lot of exertion,
and potentially pain to your back,
it may be a good idea to wear it.
In this case, you can put it on and take it off as needed.
If your pain doesn't improve with oral medications, your doctor might recommend a corticosteroid that can be injected into the area around the spinal nerves.
that may provide short-term pain relief by reducing inflammation.
Spinal imaging can help guide the needle.
It is important to note that these nonsurgical treatments do not heal the herniated disk.
Rather, they can help relieve your symptoms while your body works to heal the disk.
In many cases, the disk herniation naturally dissolves over time and is reabsorbed by the body.
For the majority of patients, a herniated lumbar disk will slowly improve over a period of several days to weeks.
Typically, most patients are free of symptoms by 3 to 4 months.
However, some patients do experience episodes of pain during their recovery.
If you have persistent disabling pain lasting more than 6 weeks that have failed nonoperative options and epidural injections,
or you have cauda equina syndrome,
you need surgery to remove the herniated disc.
Studies suggest that at around 9 to 12 months, the surgical outcomes are not as beneficial as if you have surgery prior to 9 months.
Treatment for Cauda Equina Syndrome in contrast is emergent microdiscectomy within 48 hours.
In nearly all cases, surgeons can remove just the protruding portion of the disk.
Rarely, the entire disk must be removed.
In these cases, the vertebrae might need to be fused with a bone graft.
To allow the process of bone fusion, which takes months, metal hardware is placed in the spine to provide spinal stability.
Rarely, your surgeon might suggest the implantation of an artificial disk.
Some bone from the back of the spine called the lamina (a thin bony plate that protects the spinal canal) may be removed to gain access to the disc.
the results of surgery are generally very good.
Patients tend to see more improvement of leg pain than back pain.
Complications :
Recurrence:
Epidural fibrosis:
failed back syndrome
Dural tear:
Wound infections:
epidural abscess
Pyogenic discitis