Spine conditions
Plain-language guides to the conditions that bring most patients to a spine surgeon: what they are, what helps, and when surgery is actually the right answer. Most are treated without an operation.
Herniated Disc
A herniated disc is one of the most common reasons people see a spine surgeon, and one of the least likely to need surgery.
Read the guide →Low back and legSciatica (Lumbar Radiculopathy)
Sciatica is a symptom, not a diagnosis.
Read the guide →Low back (lumbar) and neck (cervical)Spinal Stenosis
Spinal stenosis is narrowing of the channels that the spinal cord and nerves travel through.
Read the guide →Neck and armCervical Radiculopathy (Pinched Nerve in the Neck)
Cervical radiculopathy is a nerve root in the neck being compressed or inflamed, usually by a herniated disc or a bone spur.
Read the guide →Neck (spinal cord)Cervical Myelopathy (Spinal Cord Compression)
Cervical myelopathy is different from the other conditions on this site.
Read the guide →Neck and low backDegenerative Disc Disease
Degenerative disc disease is one of the most alarming-sounding diagnoses in medicine and one of the most common findings on an MRI.
Read the guide →Low backSpondylolisthesis
Spondylolisthesis means one vertebra has slipped forward on the one below it.
Read the guide →Whole spineAdult Scoliosis and Spinal Deformity
Spinal deformity in adults is either a curve that has been present since adolescence and is now wearing, or a new curve created by uneven degeneration of the discs and joints.
Read the guide →Mid-back and low backVertebral Compression Fractures
A vertebral compression fracture is a collapse of the front part of a vertebra, most often in the mid or low back.
Read the guide →