Diagnosis and treatment of cervical disc herniation Cervical disc herniation is a condition in which the nucleus pulposus of an intervertebral disc protrudes posteriorly or posteriorly laterally, compressing or irritating the adjacent spinal cord and nerve roots, causing neck pain, arm pain (radiculopathy), or weakness of the lower extremities (myelopathy). This condition is generally associated with aging and degenerative changes in the cervical spine, affecting the spine and nervous system. The difference between it and cervical spondylosis is that it is common in young adults, with an acute onset, sometimes with a history of trauma, and because of the short course of the disease generally osteophytes (bone spurs) are not obvious; of course, if it remains untreated for a long period of time, it becomes a standard cervical spondylosis. Treatment Most patients can be treated non-operatively. However, patients whose symptoms are not relieved after 4 to 6 weeks of non-surgical treatment and whose condition gradually worsens, or patients who manifest spondylosis, or patients with obvious motor defects (limb weakness and numbness) should be selected for surgical treatment. Attention must be paid to the presence of progressive motor weakness or bowel or bladder dysfunction, the presence of which indicates that the patient has symptoms of paralysis and requires early surgery, otherwise he or she may spend the rest of his or her life in a wheelchair. If non-surgical treatment is satisfactory, the patient should be informed of the natural history of degenerative disc disease and smoking cessation should be emphasized.