Foraminal stenosis is a condition similar to spinal stenosis in that an opening in the spinal vertebrae become smaller not allowing anything to pass through or at a constricted rate cause the patient periods of extreme pain. The patient may experience a period of pain including numbness or possible weakness. People may feel a tingling sensation in parts of their body that are affected with the spinal cord being pressed on or restricted from being able to send signals to nerve endings. The pressure on the nerves is what is actually cause the pain and it difficult to repair without involving some kind of medical professional in helping the situation.
Many people with this condition do not know that they have it and would not know that they need to seek aid until permanent damage has already taken place. Others will just think the pain that they are experiencing is just common at first when the pain they are experiencing is minuter than it will be without treatment. The patient will just treat the condition as a common form of pain which will not help the condition in some cases worsening the pain as they treatment being undergone being over the counter medication or simple at home exercises are in conflict with what the proper treatment should be. Only a doctor can diagnose you with this condition and will have a difficult time doing so if the patient is not describing specific problems, areas of intense pain or not answering questionnaires being asked by the physician honestly.
The pain associated with foraminal stenosis can affect other areas of the body opposed to just the spine because of how the nervous system runs through the entire body and being centralized at the back where the root problem is located. Many problems can be solved with knowing what to look for and seeking professional advice and following it. The nerve endings mostly that will be most affected and where other pain throughout the body will be spread to is in the extremities or the arms and legs. The nerve endings in the arms and the legs both go back to the spine more so than any other as they have the largest of cords tying into the spine.
Treatment can include some medications but these will only temporarily relieve the pain will another form of treatment is being undergone typically by a doctor or chiropractor and will not fix the problem. Simple exercises will loosen up the muscles and slowly at mobility as the openings in the spine that were tightened open back up again. Surgery is an option in some case but rarely chosen as an option. Though in most cases the condition can not necessarily be cured or completed fixed the use of exercises on a daily basis by a chiropractor or a physical therapist will greatly reduce the pain over time as the condition will not worsen. Foraminal stenosis will become more manageable with the use of prescribed exercises and the routine needs to be kept up to be most effective.
