Cervical Radiculopathy Overview
Radiculopathy is commonly known as pinched nerve. Cervical Radiculopathy is the pain which spreads from spinal nerve roots to other body parts. We have patients throughout the areas of Dallas, Irving, Red Oak, Plano, Southlake, Grapevine, Colleyville, Duncanville and throughout the DFW metroplex. Cervical Radiculopathy occurs when spinal nerve roots are irritated or compressed. It could be caused by many conditions; such as disc herniation, spinal stenosis, osteophyte formation, or other degenerative disorders.
SYMPTOMS
The symptoms for Cervical Radiculopathy may include pain, tingling, numbness, weakness, and reflex loss. The symptoms may manifest in the neck, shoulders, arms, hands, and fingers.
Diagnosis
The spine doctors will examine your medical history and symptoms with utmost attention. They will give you a physical examination to test the limitations of your spine. They will examine the spine’s movement, your balance, signs of pain, any loss in extremity reflexes, muscle weakness, sensory loss and any other abnormal reflexes that may suggest spinal involvement.
An MRI or CT/myelography can confirm the presence of cervical radiculopathy. It can also determine where its location.
Patient Demographics
Cervical Radiculopathy can occur in patients of any age. The younger individuals (i.e. less than 50 years old) tend to get this from disc herniations. However, the older patients usually get this from arthritic conditions involving bone spurs.
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Non-Surgical Interventional Treatments
Following are some of the common Nonsurgical Interventional Treatments for Cervical Radiculopathy;
- Physical Therapy and/or exercise to help relieve the pressure on nerve root.
- Medications, such as Non-Steroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drugs (NSAIDs) to reduce swelling and Analgesics to relieve the pain.
- Epidural Steroid Injections and Nerve Root Injections to help reduce swelling and treat acute pain that radiates to the hips or down the leg.
Surgical Treatments
When the Nonsurgical treatments fail to relieve the pain, then surgical options become more attractive. To relive this pain, a surgical procedure can allow the disc to be removed from back of the neck or the front. Some surgical procedures for this nature are;
- Anterior Cervical Discectomy and Fusion (ACDF)
- Cervical Laminectomy
- Cervical Laminoplasty