Herniated Disc in Spine What When and How

The vertebral disc or spinal disc is a specialised structure present between each vertebral body in the spine and it serves many functions like strengthening the spine and also as a shock absorber.  There are a total of 23 vertebral discs in the human body. As you all know spinal column is divided into various levels like cervical thoracic, lumbar, sacral and coccyx. Spinal discs are named to the corresponding levels of the vertebral column. Structure of the spinal disc Vertebral discs are composed of two parts namely annulus fibrosus and nucleus pulposus. Annulus fibrosus is the outer portion of the disc and it is a tough circular structure composed of sheets of collagen fibres. Nucleus pulposus is the inner layer of the vertebral disc and compared to annulus fibrosus it is a loose layer of tissue composed of mucoprotein gel. The annulus fibrosus seals the nucleus pulposus so that the loose layer does not get protruded into the spinal canal normally. The annular fibres ev