“What happens if a herniated disc goes untreated?”
I am a 43 year old male. I was diagnosed with a herniated disc. What happens if a herniated disc goes untreated?
8 Answers
This is complex question that requires an evaluation because doctors should treat people and not imaging findings. That is, if this herniation has corresponding clinical evidence of nerve injury the answer would be different if on exam you are neurologically intact. Sometimes, disc herniations are present and cause no pain but some physicians focus on this rather than the physical exam. What happens also depends on whether the disc herniation is the pain generator.
If the pain is excruciating or interferes with your ability to perform normal tasks, you should seek the advice of a chiropractor. Your herniated disc will eventually worsen; it’s just the nature of the disease. If you leave a herniated disc untreated, you may experience pain that radiates down the buttocks, legs, and feet (also known as sciatica), pain that radiates down the shoulders, arms, and hands, tingling or numbness in the legs or feet, muscle weakness or spasms intense, sharp pains, partial paralysis, or the inability to control bowel movements in relatively dire situations.
Without treatment, the disc herniation will most likely continue to degenerate, leading to more severe arthritis, and possible fusion of the spine.
It’s likely to get worse and give you bigger problems down the road (more pain, numbness, weakness). I’d highly suggest going to the chiropractor for a consult.
To answer your question about a herniated disc. If left untreated, depending on the type of herniation, it can get worse over time. Seventy percent of males over 30y.o. have some type of HNP. Depending on the severity and your activity level the hernia can stay the same or worsen, with resulting symptoms of leg pain or numbness and tingling.
It heals, but incorrectly.
Herniated discs should be confirmed with an MRI, if no MRI was taken, that is your first step. Sometimes the body will resorb the disc and no further issues occur. Sometimes the disc herniates further and causes worse pain or numbness or muscle atrophy. around age 50 the disc becomes solidified and surgery is necessary to take pressure off of the nerves. I recommend taking action now to prevent worse outcomes in the future.
The body is always trying to heal. Many people have herniated disc and don't even know they have an injury because they have no symptoms. Therefore the treatment is because of the symptoms (pain, numbness and/or tingling, weakness etc.) and directed at the symptoms. The body does the healing. However that doesn't mean healing gives the patient a new disc. The healing of a disc is Degenerative Joint Disease (DJD). Like healing of a cut that is through the skin is healed with scar tissue.
