Glossary
Spine terms, in plain English
Every term used across this site, defined without the jargon. Where a term has a dedicated page, it's linked.
- Annulus fibrosus
- The tough, fibrous outer ring of a spinal disc that contains the gel-like nucleus. Tears in the annulus allow disc material to bulge or herniate. See: Herniated discs →
- Bulging disc
- A disc whose outer ring extends beyond its normal boundary without tearing. Often a precursor to herniation; many bulges cause no symptoms until they contact a nerve. See: Herniated & bulging discs →
- Cauda equina syndrome
- Compression of the nerve bundle at the base of the spinal cord, causing saddle numbness and bowel or bladder changes. A surgical emergency — never a decompression case. See: Contraindications →
- Centralization
- When radiating limb pain retreats toward the spine in response to treatment or movement — a good prognostic sign. The opposite, peripheralization, is a warning to stop.
- Cervical spine
- The neck region (vertebrae C1–C7). Cervical disc problems refer pain into the shoulder, arm and hand.
- Degenerative disc disease (DDD)
- Age-related thinning and dehydration of the discs. Common and often painless; treated only when it becomes symptomatic. See: Degenerative disc disease →
- Dermatome
- The strip of skin served by a single nerve root. Where your numbness or tingling appears tells the examiner which disc level is involved. See: Sciatica & radiculopathy →
- Epidural fibrosis
- Scar tissue that forms around a nerve root after spine surgery. One possible driver of persistent post-surgical pain. See: Failed back surgery syndrome →
- Facet joints
- The small paired joints at the back of each spinal segment that guide motion. A common pain source, especially with extension and twisting. See: Facet syndrome →
- Failed back surgery syndrome (FBSS)
- Persistent or recurrent pain after spine surgery. Candidacy for decompression depends heavily on which procedure was performed. See: Failed back surgery syndrome →
- Foraminal stenosis
- Narrowing of the opening (foramen) where a nerve root exits the spine, usually from disc height loss and joint arthritis. See: Spinal stenosis →
- Herniated disc
- When the disc's inner nucleus pushes through a tear in the outer ring. Also called a slipped or ruptured disc — though discs don't actually slip. See: Herniated discs →
- Intradiscal pressure
- The pressure inside a spinal disc. It rises with sitting and loading and drops with lying down — and during the pull phase of decompression. See: How decompression works →
- Lumbar spine
- The low back (vertebrae L1–L5). Bears the most load and is where most disc herniations treated with decompression occur.
- Nerve root
- The point where a nerve exits the spinal canal. Compression here produces the radiating pain, numbness and weakness of radiculopathy.
- Nucleus pulposus
- The gel-like center of a spinal disc that absorbs and distributes load. Loses water content with age and degeneration.
- Radiculopathy
- Pain, numbness, tingling or weakness caused by an irritated nerve root, traveling along the nerve's path. Sciatica is the lumbar version. See: Sciatica & radiculopathy →
- Sciatica
- Pain radiating along the sciatic nerve from the low back into the leg, usually from a lumbar disc pressing on a nerve root. See: Sciatica →
- Spinal stenosis
- Narrowing of the spinal canal or nerve exit holes, most common after 60. Classically causes leg symptoms that ease with sitting or bending forward. See: Spinal stenosis →
- Traction cycle
- The alternating pull-and-release pattern used in decompression. Cycling prevents the muscle guarding that defeats sustained static traction. See: How decompression works →
Find out if you're a candidate for decompression
Elevation Spine Center offers a consultation and exam in Bend to review your imaging, symptoms and history before any table time is scheduled.