What is lumbar facet syndrome?
Facet syndrome is an irritation of the small joints of the spine, the so-called facet joints. The reason for this irritation is usually a pre-existing arthrosis of these joints. In principle, facet syndrome can occur at any point of the spine. The spinal column is divided into three sections: The cervical spine (cervical spine), the thoracic spine (thoracic spine) and the lumbar spine (lumbar spine) The most frequent facet syndrome occurs in the lumbar spine, the second most frequent in the cervical spine.
Causes
The pain syndrome is ultimately caused by wear and tear of the spine and its complications. This clinical picture is called arthrosis. Because the lumbar spine is located at a low level, it has to bear the greatest load in the long term, since all the weight of the body above this point has to be supported by it.
Consequently, the first signs of wear and tear are often the first to be noticed here. In most cases, there are several factors which, at the base of an existing arthrosis of the small intervertebral joints, ultimately lead to a facet syndrome of the lumbar spine. These include, above all, long-term overloading of the lumbar spine (lumbar spine). It is often found in people who have to bend down and straighten up again frequently in their job or in their everyday life, or in those who have to lift and carry heavy loads. People who are overweight also more often suffer from lumbar facet syndrome, as their lumbar spine has to bear an even greater load than that of people of normal weight.
You can recognize a lumbar facet syndrome from these symptoms
This clinical picture, also known as lumbar facet syndrome, is particularly impressive due to pain in the lumbar region. Those affected complain of so-called “low back pain“. It can happen that the pain radiates into the thighs, more rarely also into the buttocks or the groin region.
The complaints usually worsen during the course of the day and also when the facet joints are strained, for example when one enters the hollow back or walks or stands for a long period of time; however, they improve when lying down. In addition, the spine can become stiff, which restricts mobility. The pain in lumbar facet syndrome is located in the lower back.
Since nerves of the spinal cord emerge near the damaged structure, the pain may radiate. The buttocks, thighs or groin region can be affected. The radiating pain can be caused by direct entrapment of the nerve root, or by a spreading inflammatory reaction in this area.
Depending on which structure is affected, the pain radiates into different regions. As mentioned above, the pain caused by a facet syndrome is one that increases with stress. As a result, the pain is more intense at the end of the day and increases as the strain increases.
Prolonged standing or sitting leads to a particularly intensive strain on the lumbar spine and is often accompanied by pain in this area. A facet syndrome in the lumbar spine area can also lead to groin pain. This is caused by nerves exiting the spinal cord in the area of the facet joints.
From there, these nerves move to the periphery. If the facet joint is inflamed by a pre-existing arthrosis, this can lead to nerve entrapment or radiation of the inflammation onto the nerves. From the area of the lumbar spine, nerves move into the buttocks, legs, genital region and also to the groin.
