Sneezing can induce acute lumbar disc herniation, which is the case

Text / Li Weixin

Deputy Chief Physician of the Department of Neurosurgery, Tangdu Hospital, Fourth Military Medical University

Sneezing is a small action that is normal in our daily life, but sneezing can also cause lumbar disc herniation, which makes many people feel incredible.

Get up early in the morning and sneeze,

The whole person was almost paralyzed

One morning in early August, when Xiao Li, a graduate student in Xi'an, got up to wash up, he felt that his nose was very uncomfortable and itchy, so he stood and sneezed very loudly. Then the waist was in severe pain, and he couldn't even bend down, and the whole person seemed to be paralyzed. His family rushed him to a nearby hospital for treatment, and after examination, he was diagnosed with degenerative lumbar disc lesions and acute lumbar disc herniation.

According to Xiao Li's own account, due to the heavy study tasks, he often sat from morning to night, lacked exercise for a long time, and he did not have any waist discomfort symptoms before the onset of this disease. The receiving doctor performed a minimally invasive intervertebral foraminal microscopy, and successfully removed the lumbar disc tissue that compressed the patient's nerve roots and dural sac, and his pain was quickly relieved.

Why sneeze,

Acute lumbar disc herniation will "come to the door"

According to authoritative statistics, at present, 15% of people in China suffer from lumbar disc herniation, and the trend of rejuvenation is becoming more and more obvious. Not all people sneeze will cause acute lumbar disc herniation, in general, the lumbar disc has different degrees of degeneration, such as long-term sedentary, long-standing or sitting posture, stooped posture incorrect people, pregnant or long-term stooping weight bearing is a high incidence of people.

In fact, the reason why sneezing and coughing can cause lumbar disc herniation is because the lumbar disc nucleus has changed. The upper and lower parts of the lumbar disc are the nucleus pulposus, which is composed of 75% to 90% water, which has swelling and elasticity, and can absorb concussions and bear pressure. The nucleus of the medullary cord will gradually degenerate in middle-aged and elderly people or people with lumbar intervertebral disc bulge, and the functions of balance and buffering external forces of the nucleus pulposus will decrease. Under the action of sudden external forces, such as squatting down to lift heavy objects, twisting waist, sneezing, and even defecating forcefully, the nucleus pulposus that has lost its elasticity will protrude, compress and stimulate the nerves, resulting in pain.

When patients with lumbar disc bulge sneeze or cough, because it causes severe lumbar vibrations, the lumbar spine should be protected and a strong waist circumference can be worn to tighten the waist. If you do not have a waistline, you can lie flat on the bed or sneeze or cough with your back against the wall, which stabilizes the lumbar spine and pelvis and reduces the angle of curvature of the lumbar spine when sneezing or coughing.

How to protect the lumbar spine,

Stay away from acute lumbar disc herniation

Bending over to lift a heavy object When lifting an object on the ground, no matter how heavy or heavy, people are accustomed to standing, straightening their knees, and bending down to reach out to lift. In this case, the anterior flexion angle of the lumbar spine increases, and the posterior edge of the intervertebral disc is squeezed backwards. At this time, if the force is too large and too strong, the lumbar intervertebral disc will be squeezed out to compress the nerves, and symptoms such as severe pain will occur.

Solution: If you want to lift a heavier item, you can first crouch down, straighten the waist bar at the same time, and then lift it vigorously.

The pace of urban life is getting faster and faster, especially urban white-collar workers, online game masters who are addicted to online games, and people who like to play mahjong, due to sitting for a long time to maintain a posture unchanged, resulting in an increase in the load of intervertebral discs, inducing waist muscle strain, spinal bones, intervertebral discs, etc.

Solution: This part of the high-risk crowd must straighten the waist pole when sitting, avoid bending the body forward, do not stilt the legs, get up and walk around every 40 minutes or so, twist the waist, and move the muscles and bones.

Long time half lying down Probably many people have such an experience, leaning on a quilt or a pillow, half lying on the bed to read a book, read a mobile phone, watch TV, or arch your knees and put a laptop on your legs to write. Most people who regularly use this posture have low back pain.

Solution strategy: try to lie flat and use less of this position in the semi-recumbent position.