Lumbar spinal canal stenosis diagnosis and treatment

Abstract

Lumbar spinal canal stenosis is a syndrome of neurological symptoms that appear due to compression of the cauda equine nerve bundle and nerve roots, as a result of narrowing of the lumbar spinal canal through which the spinal nerve bundle passes, and accompanies the degeneration that occurs with aging. Specific causes related to narrowing and compression are degenerative bulging of an intervertebral disk; thickening of a vertebral arch, an apophyseal joint or the yellow ligament; and spondylolisthesis. All these factors, which are due to various diseases, cause narrowing of the spinal canal, resulting in compression of the spinal nerves inside the canal and inducing neurological symptoms. The main symptoms are sciatica and intermittent claudication that are treated with therapies based on the severity of the stenosis. These range from conservative treatment provided at pain clinics etc. and rehabilitation, to surgical treatment. Especially in recent years, lumbar spinal canal stenosis has been treated increasingly in the elderly.