I have a herniated disc, can I go back?

The most concerning question for many patients with "lumbar disc herniation" is "Can the herniated disc go back?"

Current research and case statistics show that it is difficult to completely reduce a herniated disc.

The intervertebral disc in our human body is like a mooncake. When the mooncake skin is broken, the filling will flow out. Obviously, it is difficult for the protruding filling to go back by itself (the mooncake is still under constant force and squeezed up and down).

So is manual massage okay? Let's look at the anatomy. Under the skin on the back of our body is 5-6 cm of muscle. Under the muscle is a spinal canal made up of more bone tissue. The protruding intervertebral disc is located in this bony canal. Obviously, you can't make the protruding intervertebral disc retract by squeezing and massaging the skin surface.

Imagine if pressing on the surface of the skin can affect the intervertebral disc, wouldn’t it be very dangerous if we accidentally hit our waist?

Although it cannot be reduced, the protruding intervertebral disc can atrophy to varying degrees or even be completely absorbed. There are cases showing that magnetic resonance imaging after lumbar disc herniation showed that the protruding intervertebral disc was completely absorbed. Unfortunately, the probability of such absorption is very low, which is related to the patient's own bone structure, anatomical characteristics and protrusion type.

When we treat diseases, we not only treat the imaging manifestations, but also the patient's own symptoms and signs. Take me for example, I also have "lumbar disc herniation", but I can run marathons and play ball. In a sense, am I also "cured"? (Although MRI will show the presence of a herniated disc).

It must be emphasized that maintaining this "cured" state is due to maintaining a "healthy lumbar spine" lifestyle: standing more and sitting less, standing at work, and doing back muscle strength exercises regularly. If you give up this healthy lifestyle, for example, sitting in the "Ge You lying" position for several hours, you will also experience symptoms of back pain and leg numbness.

To sum up, a herniated disc cannot go back, but it will atrophy to varying degrees or even disappear completely (the probability is very low). However, this is not important. What is important is that we maintain a good "lumbar health" lifestyle, which will not allow the herniated disc to produce symptoms, and at the same time allow us to maintain a high quality of life.