Herniated Disc Specialist

Advanced Spine Care and Pain Management

Pain Management Physicians located in Staten Island, NY & Hartsdale, NY

Herniated discs are a common source of back or neck pain. The knowledgeable pain management team at Advanced Spine Care and Pain Management offers new, advanced therapies for herniated discs, including PRP therapy, nerve block injections, and epidural injections, at two convenient locations in Staten Island and Hartsdale, New York. To find relief from a herniated disc without surgery, call or book an appointment online today.

Herniated Disc Q & A

What is a herniated disc?

Your spine is made up of vertebrae (backbones) stacked on top of one another. Between each bone is a soft, rubbery pad called a disc. These discs absorb shock and allow your back to flex and bend.

Discs are made of a thick outer ring of cartilage and filled with a gel-like substance. A disc herniates when gel from the inside pushes through a tear in the outer ring. This may put pressure on your spinal nerves, which causes pain, numbness, or weakness in the limbs closest to the affected disc.

 

What are the risk factors for a herniated disc?

Degeneration that comes with aging is one of the most common causes of a herniated disc. As you age, discs shrink and become less flexible, increasing your chances of damage. Other factors that can weaken a disc include:

  • Smoking
  • Heavy lifting
  • Obesity
  • Repetitive strenuous activities

 

Having a job that requires frequent heavy lifting and repetitive motions, such as construction, may increase your risk of a herniated disc.

 

How do you diagnose and treat a herniated disc?

First, your expert provider at Advanced Spine Care and Pain Management performs a physical exam and reviews your medical history. To confirm the diagnosis of a herniated disc, they may take an MRI scan to examine the soft tissues of your back.

The team at Advanced Spine Care and Pain Management offers advanced, regenerative therapies to treat herniated discs, such as:

Epidural injections

Your provider at Advanced Spine Care and Pain Management might recommend an epidural injection to relieve the pain of your herniated disc. Your provider injects a medicine like a steroid, anesthetic, or anti-inflammatory medication into the space surrounding your spinal cord -- the epidural space -- to provide pain relief and to help with any inflammation.  

Nerve blocks

Like an epidural injection, a nerve block is also an injection of medicine like a steroid, anesthetic, or anti-inflammatory, except it’s not injected into the epidural space. Rather, your provider administers the injection on a specific nerve root to identify the exact location of your pain. Nerve blocks are used to eliminate the pain from a specific nerve root.

To learn more, call Advanced Spine Care and Pain Management or book an appointment online today.