Can I only lie down or crawl if I have a lumbar injury?

The lumbar vertebrae of many people are often damaged due to the fast-paced life and high-intensity pressure. When the lumbar vertebrae are damaged, the first thing everyone does is to go to the hospital for examination. The same answer is to let us rest more and lie down more, because only lying down can we get relief. However, many people are unwilling to lie down, and they think they will feel very tired after lying down for a long time. In this case, we need to look at specific care methods.

Why does pain and numbness occur in the lower limbs?

The protruding intervertebral disc compresses and stimulates the nearby sciatic nerve root, causing the patient to feel pain on one side of the waist, which radiates through the buttocks and the back of the thigh to the calf and foot, accompanied by numbness in the calf or foot. In severe cases, lameness may occur, and symptoms may worsen with coughing or straining during bowel movements. This symptom is called sciatica.

Nerve root pain is mainly caused by the stimulation of chemical substances released by the rupture of the annulus fibrosus, and the feeling of numbness is caused by physical compression of the nerve root. When both exist, pain is generally the main symptom. When the inflammation has basically disappeared or is not obvious, the main symptom is numbness.

Will it cause incontinence?

Some patients may suffer from urinary and fecal incontinence if they suffer from lumbar disc herniation for a long time and are not treated properly! This is because the protrusion is the L4-5 or L5-S1 intervertebral disc. The protrusion is large and central, which severely compresses the cauda equina nerve. Numbness of the perineum will occur in the early morning, followed by loss of control of urination and defecation. Such patients often have varying degrees of paralysis of the lower limbs.

But don't panic! Currently, most clinical treatments for intervertebral disc herniation are effective, and few patients develop urinary and fecal incontinence. If present, it is often a sudden onset, in which case surgical treatment should be performed immediately to avoid irreversible damage caused by prolonged compression.

Will it cause paralysis?

The protruding intervertebral disc compresses the nerve roots. If the compression worsens, nerve paralysis and muscle paralysis may occur. This condition is more common in L4-5 intervertebral disc herniation and L5 nerve paralysis which leads to paralysis of the tibialis anterior, peroneus long and brevis, extensor hallucis longus and extensor digitorum longus. The main manifestations are foot drop and weakened muscle strength. Local paralysis of the ankle and toes may occur, and complete paralysis of the lower limbs may occur in rare cases.

Why are the lumbar 4th and 5th intervertebral discs always injured?

Lumbar disc herniation can occur in any lumbar disc, but it is more common in the L4-5 disc, which is mainly determined by the anatomical structure and biomechanical characteristics of the lumbar spine. Anatomically, the width of the posterior ligament of the lumbar spine gradually decreases from top to bottom, and the width at L4-5 and L5-S1 is only half of the upper part.

These two lumbar vertebrae bear 60% of the body's weight and have the greatest mobility. They are most susceptible to strain and degeneration. They are also the areas with the highest incidence of developmental variations, and the possibility of intervertebral disc herniation is greatest.