Cervicothoracic Junction Disc Herniations Respond to Ashburn Chiropractic

Thoracic disc herniations. They’re not very common. They’re not mentioned much. But thoracic disc herniations do exist. The C7/T1 disc herniations are even more unusual and are shared in the spine literature more due to their unusualness. Poulin Chiropractic of Herndon and Ashburn embraces unusual! Unusual merits care and attention. Poulin Chiropractic of Herndon and Ashburn tends to unusual presentations like thoracic disc herniations, especially those at the C7/T1 level of the spine which is also known as the cervicothoracic junction where the neck connects with the upper back.

C7/T1 disc herniations are unusual from their neighbors, cervical disc herniations (neck) and thoracic disc herniations (mid-back). Why? They have a habit of herniating laterally (out to the side) rather than centrally. What makes that unusual? The C7/T1 disc level does not typically have Luschka joints. These joints secure the intervertebral discs in place and reduce the risk of herniation. They permit flexion and extension and limit the amount of lateral flexion in the neck. One medical report documents a rare existence of a central C7/T1 disc herniation that instigated lower extremity numbness and weakness as well as gait disturbance though in a patient who had no or very little hand-related symptoms that would otherwise be anticipated. (1) Know that your Ashburn chiropractor will do a careful examination and uncover the source of your pain with familiarity of unusual occurrences like this.

C7/T1 disc herniations make up 3.5% to 4% of all herniated cervical discs. (2,3) They are likely to be misdiagnosed owing to their unusual neurological findings. C7/T1 disc herniations (aka herniations of the C8 disc) cause weakness in hand muscles.  The C8 nerve roots extend outward between the C7 vertebra and the T1 vertebra. (4) These nerves lie above the C8 disc making it unusual for a disc herniation to compress the C8 nerve. (5) But when it does, a C7/T1 disc herniation usually fires pain down the arm into the ring and pinky fingers (which may be confusing as pain here is also indicative of ulnar neuropathy). (3,4) It will not confuse your Ashburn chiropractor though! Poulin Chiropractic of Herndon and Ashburn is ready with the tests to do and questions to ask to determine the diagnosis.

Listen to a podcast about neck pain helped with Cox Technic.