Study reveals 30% of "pain free" volunteers have herniated discs

You have lower back or neck pain and your doctor orders an MRI. You think he is getting down to business, now!

However, that MRI, that you eagerly await, oftentimes lead your doctor to a wrong diagnosis that will delay your recovery or worse... lead you into spine surgery you never needed.

In 2016, I gave a presentation “The Earliest Detection, Intervention and Prevention of Compression Syndromes, TOS, Herniated Discs and Degenerative Joint Disease” at the World Congress of Anti-Aging and Longevity, Mexico City, Mexico.

Did I talk about the latest diagnostic tests? Yes! Here is the scientific study that confused the doctors in the audience.

I presented three individual studies, conducted by Japanese researchers who performed MRI scans on volunteers who were completely pain free. The volunteers had never had pain in their necks or backs in their life.

Japanese researchers at the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Keio University, Tokyo, Japan, did MRI scans on 94 volunteers who had never had neck or back pain. The average age of the people tested was 48 years old. Here are the surprising findings on the MRI scans of the patients who had absolutely no pain. 3

• 46% of the patients had degenerative changes between the discs at one or more levels
• 37.2% had degenerative changes between the discs
• 30% had disc protrusion (slipped disc, bulged disc, herniated disc)
• 29% of them the discs were pressing on the covering of the spinal cord
• 4% had visable disc narrowing

Surprisingly, more than 30 percent of these volunteers had herniated discs in their necks they didn’t know they had. (1) So what if you are one of those patients who had a herniated, bulged or slipped disc for years that never caused you pain? The doctor does an MRI scan, sees it, blames the numbness and pain on it and recommends neck surgery to remove your disc when it never was and isn’t the cause of your pain.

Another study done at the Keio University School of Medicine, Tokyo, Japan studied degenerative changes in the cervical (neck) intervertebral discs, posterior and anterior disc protrusion, narrowing of the disc space and foraminal stenosis in 497 asymptomatic subjects by MRI scan. (2)

None of these volunteers had neck pain and none of them had a previous history of neck pain, disease or trauma to the neck or brain, which had needed medical care.

• Degenerated discs were found in the younger patients in their twenties
• 17% of men in their 20s who had no history of pain had degenerated discs
• 12% of women in their 20s who had no history of pain had degenerated discs
• 86% of men in their 60’s who had no history of pain had degenerated discs
• 89% of women in their 60’s who had no history of pain had degenerated discs

So degeneration of the discs is a common concequence of aging but you cannot say it is normal because there were many in their 60’s who did not have degeneration of their discs.

Disc protrusions, bulged, slipped or herniated discs were found on these pain free subjects.

• 27% of the patients had posterior disc protrusions
• 17% had anterior disc protrusions

The finding that was shocking was that 7.6% or 38 of the 497 pain free subjects had a Grade-2 posterior disc protrusion, with spinal cord compression.

Posterior disc protrusion with spinal cord compression means that the spinal disc has bulged so much that it has dented or compressed the spinal cord.

If a doctor found a grade 2 herniated discs with visible spinal cord compression on your MRI you would be hospitalized immediately and prepped for emergency spinal surgery in many cases. So many of you are walking around with a severely herniated disc or two and you have no pain.

What if the real cause of your symptoms was a compression of the thoracic outlet but the doctor did an MRI scan and found a severely herniated disc compressing the spinal cord? Do you think the doctor would be recommending surgery? Of course! This is when diagnostic tests can lead a doctor to do medical procedures that are not medically necessary.

Also, don’t forget, after you have your neck surgery for the herniated disc that was not the cause of your symptoms you still have the original symptoms plus maybe a few more from the surgery you didn’t need.

Doctors know that with an MRI scan, they have a greater than 30 percent chance of finding a herniated disc. If you had this herniated disc before you had the onset of thoracic outlet syndrome or pinched nerve symptoms, this is not the cause of your pain. But they will probably tell you it is. Are they trying to trick you or do they just not know?

For more than 30 percent of you, the MRI will reveal a herniated disc you had before the onset of pain. That finding of a herniated disc will confuse even a well-meaning doctor. The difference is that now you are face to face with a neurosurgeon.

Again, this huge misunderstanding of the results of MRI scans and other diagnostic tests, can lead to a misdiagnosis, mistreatment, and a lifetime of suffering you don’t need. Because you don’t know fully understand these tests, a doctor can tell you anything and you believe him.

Knowing doctors this is not a good strategy to take without a second opinion.

Call me and lets talk this out 312 858 0800

This passage was taken from the book, The Human Spring Approach to Thoracic Outlet Syndrome by Dr James Stoxen DC., FSSEMM (hon) FWSSEM

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References

Matsumoto M1, Okada E, Ichihara D, Watanabe K, Chiba K, Toyama Y, Fujiwara H, Momoshima S, Nishiwaki Y, Hashimoto T, Takahata T. Age-related changes of thoracic and cervical intervertebral discs in asymptomatic subjects. Spine (Phila Pa 1976). 2010 Jun 15;35(14):1359-64. doi: 10.1097/BRS.0b013e3181c17067. Abstract: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20505574

Matsumoto M1, Fujimura Y, Suzuki N, Nishi Y, Nakamura M, Yabe Y, Shiga H. MRI of cervical intervertebral discs in asymptomatic subjects. J Bone Joint Surg Br. 1998 Jan;80(1):19-24. Abstract https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/9460946 Pdf https://www.bjj.boneandjoint.org.uk/content/80-B/1/19.long Study in Keio University School of Medicine, Tokyo, Japan

Teresi LM, Lufkin RB, Reicher MA, Moffit BJ, Vinuela FV, Wilson GM, Bentson JR, Hanafee WN. Asymptomatic degenerative disk disease and spondylosis of the cervical spine: MR imaging. Radiology. 1987 Jul;164(1):83-8. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/3588931

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