Video: Causes of Spinal Stenosis

To help you understand the causes of spinal stenosis, SpineUniverse brought in Dr. Jeffrey Wang, an orthopaedic spine surgeon and professor at University of Southern California at Los Angeles. In this video, he review the typical causes of back and neck pain related to spinal stenosis, such as arthritis and bone spurs.

As we age, parts of our spine change and can start to wear out. For example, Dr. Wang talks about the low back's facet joints, which are the parts of the vertebrae that help our spine move so well. Dr. Wang says that these joints “articulate,” which essentially means that they help us move. As a natural part of aging, the cartilage on the facet joints can wear away, making movement quite painful. In response, your body may form bone spurs, which are bony overgrowths.  Unfortunately, those bone spurs can take up extra room in your spinal canals, narrowing them and making it difficult for the nerves to get through.

If you want to read more, try this article about the causes of spinal stenosis.