A certain Ms Chen, aged 39, recently sought treatment at an orthopedic clinic, saying that she had a pain in the area extending from her left buttock to her calf that had lasted for more than three weeks, and she had no idea what had caused it. She was diagnosed with a herniated disc causing severe low back pain. Hu Yu-feng, an orthopedic surgeon at the Ministry of Health and Welfare’s Taipei Hospital, said that frequent heavy lifting and sedentary office work are both risk factors for herniated discs.
Hu said that low back pain is a commonly seen condition in orthopedic clinics and that, according to research, more than 90 percent of people have suffered from it at some time in their lives. In most cases, it is caused by a bulging disc pressing on nerves. It is three times more common in men than in women, and obesity, smoking, frequent bending down to lift heavy objects, sitting for long periods in an office and carrying children are all risk factors.
Hu said that, as well as low back pain, pressure on nerves leading to pain and numbness in the lower extremities is another common symptom of disc herniation. Patients with unexplained symptoms are advised to first see if physical therapy helps. For those with severe symptoms or who see no improvement after six weeks of physical therapy, or who feel so much pain after walking a few steps that they have to stop and rest, or even suffer from urinary or bowel incontinence, it is necessary to arrange to have an MRI scan and then seek decompression surgery to relieve their symptoms.
Photo: Chou Hsiang-yun, Liberty Times 照片:自由時報周湘芸
Hu explained that decompression surgery can be performed in a minimally invasive way, with only a small piece of bone needing to be removed to draw out the intervertebral disc that is pressing on the nerves, and that patients can be discharged and go home the next day. He recommended that people should routinely maintain proper sitting and standing posture and regularly get an appropriate amount exercise to help train the core muscles, so as to avoid spinal deformation and compression.
(Translated by Julian Clegg, Taipei Times)
三十九歲的陳小姐日前於骨科求診,表示左邊臀部延伸到小腿範圍莫名疼痛超過三週,經診斷為椎間盤突出導致嚴重下背痛。衛生福利部台北醫院骨科醫師胡御風表示,經常搬重物、久坐辦公室都是椎間盤突出的好發因子。
胡御風表示,下背痛為骨科門診常見的病症,根據研究統計,百分之九十以上的人都曾有過此症狀,多數原因是椎間盤突出造成神經壓迫,男性好發機率是女性的三倍,肥胖、抽菸、經常性彎腰搬重物、久坐辦公室、揹孩子等因素都是好發原因。
胡御風指出,除了下背痛外,神經壓迫導致下肢出現痛麻感也是椎間盤突出常見症狀,症狀不明顯患者建議先接受復健改善,症狀嚴重或復健超過六週未改善者,常有走沒幾步路就痛到必須停下來休息,甚至出現大小便失禁的情況,須安排核磁共振檢查,再透過減壓手術改善症狀。
胡御風說明,減壓手術可用微創方式進行,只需破壞一小塊骨頭,就可以把壓到神經的椎間盤掏出來,隔天就可以出院返家休養。建議民眾平常應保持正確的坐姿與站姿,並定期進行適量運動幫助訓練核心肌肉,避免脊椎變形與壓迫。
(自由時報)
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