Symptoms and Complications
A herniated disc causes pain, loss of feeling, tingling, or muscle weakness.
The symptoms either come and go suddenly or are constant and last a long time.
The amount of pressure the herniated disc puts on the spinal nerves determines
how bad the symptoms will be. Coughing, laughing, sneezing, urinating, or straining
while defecating make the pain of a herniated disc worse.
Most herniated discs are in the lower back and cause back and leg pain
that won't go away. Intense pain that radiates down from the disc through
the buttocks and down the leg to the foot is called sciatica.
Intense pain below the knee is a sure sign of a herniated disc, since other
back conditions don't cause pain below the knee. A herniated disc in the lower
back can cause weakness in the legs and trouble lifting the front of your foot
off the ground. If the herniated disc presses on nerves leading to the bladder
and bowel, the person will have trouble defecating or urinating. Weakness of
the muscles around the anus along with trouble controlling urination is a medical
emergency and may need surgery on the herniated disc.
Herniated discs also happen fairly often in the neck (cervical spine).
They cause pain in one arm, beginning with the armpit and upper shoulder blade,
and traveling down the arm to one or two fingers. The pain can also be in the
upper ridge and tip of the shoulder. Arm muscles can weaken, making it hard
for someone to move their fingers.