Your spine, or backbone, protects your spinal cord and allows you to stand and bend. Spinal stenosis causes narrowing in your spine. The narrowing can occur at the center of your spine, in the canals branching off your spine and/or between the vertebrae, the bones of the spine. The narrowing puts pressure on your nerves and spinal cord and can cause pain.
Spinal stenosis occurs mostly in people older than 50. Younger people with a spine injury or a narrow spinal canal are also at risk. Diseases such as arthritis and scoliosis can cause spinal stenosis, too. Symptoms might appear gradually or not at all. They include pain in your neck or back, numbness, weakness or pain in your arms or legs, and foot problems. Treatments include medications, physical therapy, braces and surgery.
National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases
- Spinal Stenosis(American College of Rheumatology) - http://www.rheumatology.org/public/factsheets/diseases_and_conditions/stenosis.asp?aud=pat
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What Is Spinal Stenosis?
(National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases) - http://www.niams.nih.gov/Health_Info/Spinal_Stenosis/spinal_stenosis_ff.asp
Also available in Spanish http://www.niams.nih.gov/Portal_En_Espanol/Informacion_de_Salud/Estenosis_Espinal/default.asp
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JAMA Patient Page: Spinal Stenosis(American Medical Association) - Links to PDF - http://jama.ama-assn.org/cgi/reprint/299/8/980.pdf
Also available in Spanish http://jama.ama-assn.org/cgi/data/299/8/980/DC1/1 -
Questions and Answers about Spinal Stenosis(National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases) - http://www.niams.nih.gov/Health_Info/Spinal_Stenosis/default.asp
- Spinal Stenosis(Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research) - http://www.mayoclinic.com/print/spinal-stenosis/DS00515/DSECTION=all&METHOD=print
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Computed Tomography (CT): Spine(American College of Radiology, Radiological Society of North America) - http://www.radiologyinfo.org/en/info.cfm?pg=spinect
Also available in Spanish http://www.radiologyinfo.org/sp/info.cfm?pg=spinect
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Glossary of Orthopaedic Diagnostic Tests(American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons) - http://orthoinfo.aaos.org/topic.cfm?topic=A00272
Also available in Spanish http://orthoinfo.aaos.org/topic.cfm?topic=A00492
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MRI of the Spine(American College of Radiology, Radiological Society of North America) - http://www.radiologyinfo.org/en/info.cfm?pg=spinemr
Also available in Spanish http://www.radiologyinfo.org/sp/info.cfm?pg=spinemr
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Myelogram
(Patient Education Institute) - Requires Flash Player - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/tutorials/myelogram/htm/index.htm
Also available in Spanish http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/spanish/tutorials/myelogramspanish/htm/index.htm
- Back Surgery: When Is It a Good Idea?(Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research) - http://www.mayoclinic.com/print/back-surgery/HQ00305/METHOD=print
- Epidural Injections(American College of Radiology, Radiological Society of North America) - http://www.radiologyinfo.org/en/info.cfm?PG=epidural
- Laminectomy or Laminotomy(North American Spine Society) - http://www.spine.org/Pages/ConsumerHealth/SpineConditionsAndTreatments/CommonProblemsCorrectiveActions/CommonSurgicalProcedures/LaminectomyorLaminotomy.aspx
- Minimally Invasive Spinal Surgery(Cleveland Clinic Foundation) - http://my.clevelandclinic.org/services/spinal_surgery/hic_minimally_invasive_spinal_surgery.aspx
- Spinal Injections(North American Spine Society) - Links to PDF - http://www.spine.org/Documents/injections.pdf
- Cervical Spine(American Association of Neurological Surgeons) - http://www.neurosurgerytoday.org/what/patient_e/cervical.asp
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Lumbar Spinal Canal Stenosis: A Common Cause of Back and Leg Pain(American Academy of Family Physicians) - http://familydoctor.org/online/famdocen/home/common/brain/disorders/256.printerview.html
Also available in Spanish http://familydoctor.org/online/famdoces/home/common/brain/disorders/256.printerview.html
- Lumbar Spinal Stenosis(American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons) - http://orthoinfo.aaos.org/topic.cfm?topic=A00329
- Cauda Equina Syndrome(American Association of Neurological Surgeons) - http://www.neurosurgerytoday.org/what/patient_e/cauda.asp
- Pseudoclaudication vs. Claudication: What's the Difference?(Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research) - http://www.mayoclinic.com/print/pseudoclaudication/HQ01278/METHOD=print
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Myelogram(Patient Education Institute) - Requires Flash Player - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/tutorials/myelogram/htm/index.htm
Also available in Spanish http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/spanish/tutorials/myelogramspanish/htm/index.htm
- Lumbar Laminectomy and Transforaminal Lumbar Interbody Fusion(OR-Live) - Requires media player - One hour program - 11/15/2006 - http://www.or-live.com/distributors/NLM/rnh.cfm?id=370
- Anatomy of the Spine(National Pain Foundation) - http://www.nationalpainfoundation.org/MyTreatment/articles/BackAndNeck_Part_2.asp
- Spinal Column(North American Spine Society) - http://www.spine.org/Pages/ConsumerHealth/SpineConditionsAndTreatments/Anatomy/Default.aspx
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ClinicalTrials.gov: Spinal Stenosis(National Institutes of Health) - http://clinicaltrials.gov/search/open/condition=%22Spinal+Stenosis%22
References and abstracts from MEDLINE/PubMed (National Library of Medicine)
- Article: When walking makes your legs hurt. We know about arthritis,... - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=AbstractPlus&list_uids=18942205&tool=MedlinePlus
- Article: The clinical value of B-type natriuretic peptide (BNP) in predicting... - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=AbstractPlus&list_uids=18806508&tool=MedlinePlus
- Article: Magnetic resonance imaging vs. electrodiagnostic root compromise in lumbar spinal... - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=AbstractPlus&list_uids=18806507&tool=MedlinePlus
- Spinal Stenosis -- see more articles - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?cmd=search&db=pubmed&term=spinal+stenosis[mh]+AND+english[la]+AND+humans[mh]+NOT+(letter[pt]+OR+editorial[pt]+OR+case+reports[pt])&doptcmdl=summary&cmd_current=Limits&pmfilter_EDatLimit=last+1+Year&tool=MedlinePlus
- Glossary of Terms(North American Spine Society) - http://www.spine.org/Pages/ConsumerHealth/SpineConditionsAndTreatments/GlossaryTerms/Default.aspx
- Find a Board-Certified Neurosurgeon(American Association of Neurological Surgeons, Congress of Neurological Surgeons) - http://www.neurosurgerytoday.org/findaneuro/
- Find an Orthopaedist(American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons) - http://www6.aaos.org/about/public/members.cfm
- Spine Care Provider Search(North American Spine Society) - http://www.spine.org/Pages/ConsumerHealth/SpineCareProviderSearch/Default.aspx
- American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons - http://www.aaos.org/
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National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases - http://www.niams.nih.gov/
Also available in Spanish http://www.niams.nih.gov/Portal_En_Espanol/
- Spinal Stenosis(American Association of Neurological Surgeons) - http://www.medem.com/medlb/article_detaillb.cfm?article_ID=ZZZ40VRYX6C&sub_cat=178
- Back Pain - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/backpain.html
- Spinal Diseases - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/spinaldiseases.html
- Bones, Joints and Muscles - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/bonesjointsandmuscles.html
The primary NIH organization for research on Spinal Stenosis is the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases - http://www.niams.nih.gov/