Degenerative spine diseases, also known as aging spine diseases, usually include what we usually call spinal osteophytes, herniated discs, cervical spondylosis, low back pain, neck and shoulder pain, and other diseases. Many people do not know much about the process and mechanism of spinal degenerative diseases, so the following is a brief introduction to help you. First, we should understand the importance of the spine to our body. The three most important functions of the spine are: 1) to bear the weight of the body; 2) to perform the appropriate activities; and 3) to protect the nerves that travel from the spinal canal. The common cause of these diseases is degeneration (aging) of the normal joint structures of the spine, resulting in spinal arthritis, ruptured and herniated discs, and nerve compression or irritation, which can cause a range of discomfort. Most spinal joint structures are made up of intervertebral discs and small spinal joints. The process of spinal disease in most patients consists of the following stages: 1. Poor posture or trauma results in malpositioning of the small joints of the spine, strangulation of the small joints, dysmotility of the joints, and abnormal tension of the muscles and ligaments around the spine. This may cause localized pain and even affect the nearby vascular nerves, causing corresponding symptoms, such as dizziness, neck and shoulder pain, upper limb pain caused by the cervical spine, lower limb pain caused by the lumbar spine, etc. 2, sometimes poor posture or trauma can also directly lead to lesions in the disc, another important area of the spine. 3. When the small joints of the spine are locked and cannot be corrected for a long time, the overall mechanical movement of the spine is not coordinated, slowly causing inflammation of the small joints and causing joint osteophytes. Sometimes minor osteophytes do not cause symptoms, but rather help to recoordinate the small joints. However, if the osteophytes of the small joints become more and more serious, it can lead to compression of the peripheral nerves and even cause severe spinal stenosis, which is caused by nerve damage or nerve irritation caused by neck and shoulder pain or lumbar and leg pain, numbness or weakness of the limbs, etc. 4. When the small joints of the spine are locked, or the movement is not coordinated, the mechanical conduction of the spinal segments is not normal, which will cause the intervertebral discs to undergo abnormal stress. In the past, the discs are easily injured by accidents during uncoordinated movements, and the accumulation of undesirable stresses will slowly cause the discs to rupture and protrude more, which will further aggravate the nerve compression and cause nerve damage or lead to increasingly severe symptoms of nerve irritation. As a result, symptoms such as neck and shoulder pain, lumbar and leg pain, and numbness and weakness of the limbs may occur. 5. As spondylolisthesis continues to progress, the rupture of the intervertebral disc gradually worsens, resulting in ligamentous laxity or even rupture around the spine, and the muscles around the spine gradually lose strength, and the spinal segments may lose their normal stability, have an excessive range of motion, or even slip backward or forward. When this occurs, many patients may experience neck pain and low back pain, and nerve damage and nerve irritation may become more frequent due to abnormal stimulation or dynamic compression of the nerves as a result of the excessive range of motion. At the same time, when the spine loses stability, the body itself increases the degree of osteophytes in order to increase stability, hoping that this will compensate for the stability of the spine. In a small percentage of patients, the spine compensates itself and slowly becomes less of a problem. In some cases, the spine becomes more and more unstable, which can lead to spinal joint dislocations, and the spine loses its ability to bear weight. Briefly, degenerative (aging) spinal diseases have the following characteristics: 1) induce pain (neck and shoulder pain, chest and back pain, low back pain); 2) stimulate or damage nerves (numbness or weakness in the extremities, nerve radiating pain in the upper extremities, sciatica in the lower extremities, etc.); 3) gradually progress and become more severe in some patients, while some patients may gradually reach their own compensation and be able to gradually tolerate the pain. However, once nerve damage occurs, most of them cannot achieve good results simply by conservative treatment. The above mechanism is my opinion as an orthopedic spine surgeon, and I hope it will be helpful to you. If you have any questions, please feel free to communicate with me.