Neck and back pain are common, especially among people over 50. When you think about the significant wear and tear your spine endures over the years, it’s probably easy to understand why. Like many other parts of your body, the various components of your spine gradually weaken with age. For instance, your normally pliant discs that cushion your vertebrae can become dry and brittle—a common condition known as degenerative disc disease.

While you can’t stop time or turn back the clock, you don’t have to resign yourself to living with neck or back pain, either. The board-certified, fellowship-trained spine surgeons at Premier Bone & Joint Centers in Rawlins, Wyoming, offer the latest treatment options—both conservative and surgical—for painful spine conditions, including degenerative disc disease. After pinpointing the source of your pain, we can provide the effective and personalized treatment you deserve.

How Degenerative Disc Disease Can Affect You

Also known as osteoarthritis of the spine, degenerative disc disease is a common cause of neck and back pain, which may:

• Improve with rest (especially when you are lying down)
• Worsen with extended sitting or heavy lifting
• Worsen when you bend or twist your spine
• Persist for weeks or months, then resolve only to return later
• Radiate from your neck through your shoulders and arms
• Radiate from your lower back through your buttocks and thighs
• Be accompanied by numbness and tingling sensations in your extremities
• Cause muscle weakness

How Your Degenerative Disc Disease Can Be Treated

Many people are able to find effective relief from their degenerative disc disease symptoms with nonsurgical treatments, such as physical therapy, bracing, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), and steroid injections. In general, spine surgery is considered only as a last resort to address debilitating pain.

At Premier Bone & Joint Centers, we emphasize conservative treatment for degenerative disc disease whenever possible. When necessary, however, our surgeons perform the latest spinal decompression procedures, including discectomy, foraminotomy, and laminectomy, using minimally invasive techniques.

If you need help managing your neck or back pain, contact Premier Bone & Joint Centers today to request a consultation with a spine doctor at our satellite clinic in Rawlins, WY.