What to do during the acute stage of lumbar disease

In the eyes of most people, lumbar spondylosis is a chronic disease, so its impact on the human body is gradual. But in fact, lumbar spondylosis also has an acute stage, and lumbar spondylosis in the acute stage is much more serious than lumbar spondylosis in normal times. It will cause edema of other nerves around the lumbar spine in the human body, leading to numbness of the lower limbs and other conditions. There are many reasons that cause the acute stage of lumbar spondylosis. So what should we do when lumbar spondylosis is in the acute stage?

1. Traction therapy

If you walk, ride in a car, etc. immediately after traction, the high pressure state in the intervertebral disc will be restored, making the traction ineffective. Traction is only suitable for patients with intervertebral disc bulging. If the intervertebral disc has already caused protrusion and herniation, traction is completely ineffective and may even aggravate the patient's symptoms. It is contraindicated for patients with lumbar disc herniation, prolapse, accompanied by spinal stenosis, and patients in the acute stage of lumbar disc herniation. But the Bone and Spine Therapy Bed can be used by anyone with a herniated disc, and the effects are long-lasting.

2. Massage therapy

(1) Relieve muscle spasms in the waist and buttocks: The patient lies prone and is treated with gentle rolling and pressing techniques on the affected waist, buttocks and lower limbs to speed up the circulation of qi and blood in the affected area, thereby accelerating the absorption of water in the herniated nucleus pulposus, reducing its pressure on the nerve roots, and at the same time relaxing the tense and spasmodic muscles, creating conditions for the next step of treatment.

(2) Widen the intervertebral space and reduce interdiscal pressure. The patient lies on his back and uses manual or instrumental pelvic traction to widen the intervertebral space, thereby reducing the pressure within the intervertebral disc and even creating negative pressure, which makes it easier for the protrusion to return. At the same time, it can expand the intervertebral foramen and nerve root canal, reducing the pressure of the protrusion on the nerves.

(3) Increase extradiscal pressure: The patient lies prone and uses both hands to rhythmically press the waist to make it vibrate. Then, while fixing the affected part, use the lower limbs to extend backward to hyperextend the waist. This method can cause the protrusion to retract or change the position of the protrusion and the nerve root.

(4) Adjust the posterior joint and loosen adhesions: Use lumbar oblique lever or rotational reduction techniques to adjust the posterior joint disorder and relatively expand the nerve root canal and intervertebral foramen. During oblique pulling and rotational reduction, the lumbar vertebrae and their intervertebral discs generate rotational torque, thereby changing the position of the protrusion and the nerve root. Repeating this process several times can gradually loosen the adhesion between the protrusion and the nerve root. Then, in the supine position, use forced straight leg raise to stretch the sciatic nerve and hamstring muscles, which can play a certain role in loosening adhesions.

(5) Promote the recovery of damaged nerve roots: Use massage, pressing, kneading, and grasping along the damaged nerve roots and their distribution areas to promote the circulation of Qi and blood, thereby gradually restoring the normal function of atrophied muscles and paralyzed nerves.

3. Surgical treatment

The surgical principles for lumbar disc herniation are strict aseptic operation, preserving bone and soft tissue structures that do not need to be removed as much as possible, achieving adequate exposure with minimal trauma, and carefully and thoroughly removing the diseased tissue to achieve the treatment goal. Traditional discectomy methods include fenestration, hemilaminectomy and total laminectomy. The fenestration method involves less soft tissue separation, limited bone resection, and less impact on spinal stability. This method can be used for most intervertebral disc herniations. For patients with intervertebral disc herniation and obvious degenerative changes who need more extensive exploration or decompression, hemilaminectomy can be used.