The cause of cervical and lumbar vertebrae diseases.

•  Retrograde affection

The fundamental reason of cervical and lumbar vertebrae diseases are retrograde affection. To mike it simple, it means aging. Retrograde affection of the spinal column including that of spinal vertebrae and intervertebral disc.

Symptoms of the retrograde affection of spinal vertebrae is spinal canal stenosis. Symptoms of the retrograde affection of intervertebral disc is the prolapse and protrusion of the intervertebral disc.

•  aseptic inflammation

Bone spur and the protrusive intervertebrae disc press its surrounding nerve root, blood vessels and spinal cord. The pressed tissues

produce congestion and hemorrhagic focus which conglutinate the pathological changes. It is

called aseptic inflammation which is the most important reason for those symptoms.

•  spasm of sacrospinal muscle

Bone spur and the protrusive intervertebrae disc press posterior branch of nerve root and lead to the spasm of sacrospinal muscle ,which causes heavy pain, and aggravates the prolapse and protrusion of the intervertebral disc.

Attention: strain, trauma, wind ,damp and coldness are the factors that cause cervical and lumbar vertebrae diseases.

Do I belong to the high risk group of cervical vertebrae disease?

Cervical vertebrae disease is high in disease incidence.

The high risk of patients are classified into the following types.

1)the middle aged and the elderly

As age went by, more and more abrasion to the cervical vertebrae, causing a series of retrograde affection ,eg ,the intervertebrae is distorted and its springiness is lessened .Fringe spur of the vertebrae is shaped .Small arthrosis is disordered. Ligament is thickened. Also calcifying. That is the reason why the middle aged and the elderly are vulnerable to such disease.

2) People with the improper working posture

Those people such as clerk, computer operator, writer, teacher, accountant , scientific researcher, typist , driver, athlete, chemical analyst and heavy laborer etc, always work in a fixed gesture, so their neck extensor is always in spasticity. As time passes, the neck extensor will lost their balance, which leads to unbalance of the spine and finally causes cervical vertebral disease.

3). People with bad sleeping posture

We spend one third of our life in bed. The thickness of the pillow should bear scientific reason. If the pillow is too thick, the muscles ligament and small arthrosis will be unbalanced, which will accelerate the retrograde change of the cervical vertebrae.

4). People with bad life habit

People with bad habits as playing mah-jong, playing card, watching TV program and reading newspapers always keep their cervical vertebrae in flexion , which makes the muscles and ligament in the back of the neck overloaded and causes strain.

5). People with trauma history or hereditary deformity

People with cervical vertebrae damage which is caused by trauma history or those of hereditary deformity belong to the high risk group of cervical vertebrae disease.

Is it cervical vertebrae disease if my hand is numb?

Cervical vertebrae disease of nerve root has symptoms of

figure numbness and radiating pain. That is why some patients or even doctors equate hand numbness with cervical vertebrae, which is not correct. Many disease may lead to hand numbness. The X-ray can approve that the cervical vertebrae of those patients is normal. So when you got the symptoms of figure numbness and pain or grasp weakness, you should go to see the doctor. The doctor should examine that whether it is because of other disease, such as,

? External humeral epicondylitis will cause numbness and pain in the outside of forearm and lifting weakness.

? Carpal tunnel syndrome: will cause numbness in the proximal end of middle finger .

? Internal humeral epicondylitis will cause numbness and pain in the inside of forearm.

? periarthritis of shoulder （ biceps tendon inflammation ） will cause numbness and pain in the inside of upper arm. Triceps tendon inflammation will cause numbness in the back of upper arm and shoulder lifting weakness.