Spondylolisthesis can be put into 5 different groups:

• • Dysplastic

• • Traumatic

• • Pathological

• • Degenerative – the most common as it’s a result of degeneration / wear and ear of the intervertebral discs and ligaments. Usually occurs in people over 60 years young or if ups babe osteoarthritis of the facet joints.

• • Isthmic – more often seen in younger adults. It is caused by a defect in an important bridge bone, the pars interarticularis, of L5.

How is it graded?

Depending on how much it’s slipped from the vertebrae below, it’s graded from 1-4, when it’s more than a 100% slip it’s called Spondyloptosis.

• • Grade 1: Less than 25% slip

• • Grade 2: 25-50% slip

• • Grade 3: 50-75% slip

• • Grade 4: 75-100% slip.

Symptoms

Sometimes people can live with Spondylolisthesis for a while without having any symptoms. Or they may have some back pain / backache which usually eases when you lie down. Other symptoms are weakness, numbness, pins and needles and/or pain in the leg, usually only in one leg.

If there’s a loss of control of the bladder and/or bowels then that’s a trip immediately to A&E because that’s extremely serious.

It’s normally detected by an X-ray and the impact it’s having on your nerves and disc can normally be seen on an MRI.

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It can happen in either your lumbar spine (lower back) or cervical spine (neck). Mine is at L4 therefore I will share my spondylolisthesis journey for what I feel in my lower back, hip and legs.

What is Spondylolisthesis?

First off, it’s pronounced Spond-uh-low-lu-thee-sis.

 

“Spondylitis’ means vertebrae

‘listhesis’ means slippage.

 

Spondylolisthesis can be put into 5 different groups:

• • Dysplastic

• • Traumatic

• • Pathological

• • Degenerative – the most common as it’s a result of degeneration / wear and ear of the intervertebral discs and ligaments. Usually occurs in people over 60 years young or if ups babe osteoarthritis of the facet joints.

• • Isthmic – more often seen in younger adults. It is caused by a defect in an important bridge bone, the pars interarticularis, of L5.

How is it graded?

Depending on how much it’s slipped from the vertebrae below, it’s graded from 1-4, when it’s more than a 100% slip it’s called Spondyloptosis.

• • Grade 1: Less than 25% slip

• • Grade 2: 25-50% slip

• • Grade 3: 50-75% slip

• • Grade 4: 75-100% slip.

Symptoms

Sometimes people can live with Spondylolisthesis for a while without having any symptoms. Or they may have some back pain / backache which usually eases when you lie down. Other symptoms are weakness, numbness, pins and needles and/or pain in the leg, usually only in one leg.

If there’s a loss of control of the bladder and/or bowels then that’s a trip immediately to A&E because that’s extremely serious.

It’s normally detected by an X-ray and the impact it’s having on your nerves and disc can normally be seen on an MRI.

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