Cervical Spondylosis - Causes, Symptoms, Tests and Diagnosis

spinal stenosis

Did you know that as a person grows old, the back experiences wearing away? Yes. As you get older, the bones and other parts of your back may come to a point that becomes damage due to the wear and tear it constantly goes through. Cervical Spondylosis being one of the effects of constant degeneration.

Cervical Spondylosis, a common degenerative disorder of the spine, specifically affects the neck. It is a condition that affects both males and females who are usually ages 40 and above. Cervical osteoarthritis, another name for the specified spondylosis, appears earlier in men than in women.

What causes cervical spondylosis? As mentioned earlier, age related wear and tear is the primary cause for this condition. Ligaments become too weak or too stiff; discs lose its ability to act as cushions, and bone start to form abnormal spurs. Other factors that may cause this condition are past neck or spine injuries and severe arthritis.

How can you tell if the pain you are feeling is due to cervical spondylosis? The signs and symptoms of this condition are as follows:

• Pain on the neck, arm, or chest area.


• Neck becomes stiff or painful.


• Arms and hands become weak or numb.


• Feet, legs, arms, or hands get the tingling or pinprick feeling.


• Difficulty with coordinating your movements.


• Having abnormal reflexes.

If you have these symptoms and you go to your doctor, you can expect that different assessments will be done to confirm if you have cervical sponylosis. These include:

• Your doctor will have to assess your neck flexibility. Spondylosis affects one's range of motion. The doctor will have tilt your and rotate your head and neck towards different directions.


• Another is checking if your nerves in the spine have been affected or compressed. Your reflexes will be checked to see if your arms and legs feel the sensation and if your nerves are able to generate reactions.


• X-ray can be used to check if there are any abnormalities like bone spurs. In this case, spinal or neck X-rays are used.


• Injecting a special dye into the spinal canal and then generating images using CT scans or X-rays to see there are affected areas on spine is called Myelogram.


• MRI or CT scans are like X-rays but produces clearer images. It will help aid your doctor in finding out the severity of the damage to you cervical area.

Cervical spondylosis can be a bit scary especially if you are not informed about the condition very well. Just remember, if you have the symptoms, immediately consult a doctor so that she or he could diagnose you properly and provide a treatment plan to help you with the condition.