Pinched Nerves
A pinched nerve is a term used to describe the following symptoms:
- Pain
- Numbness
- Tingling
- Weakness
- Spasm
The pinched nerve can make it difficult to sit, stand, bend, or even sleep in certain positions. But research shows that most nerves are never actually pinched.
Instead, it is an irritation of the nerve.
The nerve becomes irritated by a perfect storm consisting of:
- Muscles
- Tendons
- Cartilage
- Nerves
- Bones
- Inflammation
Chiropractic calls this perfect storm a subluxation.
Subluxations can cause two types of nerve irritation.
- A Compressive lesion. This is when pressure placed upon a nerve causes injury.
- A Facilitative lesion. This is when a nerve becomes twisted, stretched, or rubbed against.
So where does a nerve get pinched?
Nerves become pinched anywhere along the nerve’s path from its start to its finish. But usually, it occurs where the nerve exits the spine on its way heading to another part of the body.
Where the nerves exit they are susceptible to small misalignments of the vertebrae. The nerves are also susceptible to improper movement of the bones.
When either occurs the nerves get encroached upon. This causes irritation of the nerve and symptoms.
There are several names for pinched nerves
Cervical radiculopathy
This occurs when a nerve in the neck becomes irritated. This causes symptoms in the neck, shoulder, upper back and arm (sometimes to the fingers).
Thoracic outlet syndrome
When a nerve leaves the neck and travels through the shoulder region it can become irritated. This again can cause symptoms down the arm to the fingers.
Carpal tunnel syndrome
This occurs when the nerve in the tunnel of the wrist becomes irritated. For example, if a problem develops in the neck, it can cause swelling to occur in the tunnel of the wrist. The swelling then presses on the nerve in the tunnel. This causes nerve irritation felt in the wrist, fingers of the hand, and forearm.
Sciatica
When a nerve root in the low back becomes irritated it causes back pain, buttock pain, or hip pain. If that nerve root makes up the sciatic nerve, the pain can travel down the leg even to the toes.
The Unnamed pinched nerve
The nerves in your spine send and receive signals throughout your body. Because of this function, symptoms might not be what you would expect. For example, the nerves related to the fifth vertebra in the neck. These nerves influence the function of the heart and thyroid gland. This can be important for some people with heart or thyroid conditions. Irritation of these nerves could make such health conditions worse.
Chiropractic is often an excellent choice in treating this condition. Chiropractors have a lot of experience recognizing, finding, and treating nerve problems.