| Intervertebral disc | |
|---|---|
| Median sagittal section of two lumbar vertebræ and their ligaments. (Intervertebral fibrocartilage labeled at center left.) | |
| Costotransverse articulation. Seen from above. (Intervertebral fibrocartilage labeled at top center .) | |
| Latin | disci intervertebrales |
| Gray's | subject #72 289 |
| MeSH | Intervertebral+Disk |
Intervertebral discs (or intervertebral fibrocartilage) lie between adjacent vertebrae in the spine. Each disc forms a cartilaginous joint to allow slight movement of the vertebrae, and acts as a ligament to hold the vertebrae together.
Contents |
Discs consist of an outer annulus fibrosus, which surrounds the inner nucleus pulposus. The annulus fibrosus consists of several layers of fibrocartilage. The strong annular fibers contain the nucleus pulposus and distribute pressure evenly across the disc. The nucleus pulposus contains loose fibers suspended in a mucoprotein gel with the consistency of jelly. The nucleus of the disc acts as a shock absorber, absorbing the impact of the body's daily activities and keeping the two vertebrae separated. The disc can be likened to a jelly doughnut: whereby the annulus fibrosis is similar to the dough and the nucleus pulposis is the jelly. If one presses down on the front of the doughnut the jelly moves posteriorly or to the back. When one develops a prolapsed disc the jelly/nucleus pulposus is forced out of the doughnut/disc and may put pressure on the nerve located near the disc. This can give one the symptoms of sciatica.
There is one disc between each pair of vertebrae, except for the first cervical segment, the atlas. The atlas is a ring around the roughly cone-shaped extension of the axis (second cervical segment). The axis acts as a post around which the atlas can rotate, allowing the neck to swivel. There are a total of twenty four discs in the human spine, which are most commonly identified by specifying the particular vertebrae they separate. For example, the disc between the fifth and sixth cervical vertabrae is designated "C5-6".
As people age, the nucleus pulposus begins to dehydrate, which limits its ability to absorb shock. The annulus fibrosus gets weaker with age and begins to tear. While this may not cause pain in some people, in others one or both of these may cause chronic pain.
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