Cervical Radiculopathy
Specialist
Cervical radiculopathy affects the nerves in your neck, causing pain and tingling that can radiate down to your shoulders, arms, and hands. Todd Koppel, MD, at Garden State Pain Management has decades of experience accurately diagnosing the cause of your radiculopathy and providing minimally invasive interventional treatments that effectively relieve your symptoms. If you develop signs of cervical neuropathy, schedule a full examination by calling the office in Clifton, New Jersey, or using the online booking feature.
What symptoms develop when I have cervical radiculopathy?
The pain may feel like an ache, a burning pain, or a sharp, shock-like pain. Your symptoms can radiate into your head and through your shoulder, arm, hand, and fingers, depending on the nerve root that’s affected.
Radiculopathy leads to changes in nerve function, which in turn causes symptoms such as:
- Pain
- Tingling
- Numbness
- Altered reflexes
- Muscle weakness
- Headache (if the upper two vertebrae are affected)
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What is cervical radiculopathy?
Cervical radiculopathy occurs when a nerve root in your neck becomes inflamed or damaged. Your neck consists of seven cervical vertebrae. The cervical vertebra at the base of your skull, called C1, is the smallest, then the bones get larger as they go down to the seventh cervical vertebra, C7, at the base of your neck.
Each vertebra in your neck protects nerve roots, which are clusters of nerves entering and exiting the spine. Radiculopathy can develop at any of the cervical vertebrae, but it most often affects the two bones at the base of your neck, C6 and C7.
What causes cervical radiculopathy?
Cervical radiculopathy is caused by conditions that pinch the nerve, such as a herniated disc, bone spurs, degenerative disc disease, and spinal stenosis or narrowing of the spinal canal. You may also develop radiculopathy following an injury or, less commonly, due to an infection or tumor.
How is cervical radiculopathy treated?
During your initial examination, Dr. Koppel runs a variety of tests to determine the cause of your symptoms. Other spinal conditions that aren’t related to radiculopathy, such as facet joint arthropathy, create symptoms that mimic radiculopathy.
In addition to a comprehensive physical exam, your diagnostic testing may include an MRI and electromyography and nerve conduction velocity studies to detect nerve abnormalities. A routine interventional procedure, a selective nerve root block, is also important for verifying nerve root involvement.
After determining your diagnosis, Dr. Koppel develops an individualized treatment plan. Whether you need interventional therapies, such as epidural steroid injections, to relieve your pain, or you need therapies to decompress the nerves, you can count on Dr. Koppel’s experience to provide optimal care.
When you develop pain and neurological symptoms like tingling in your neck or arms, call Garden State Pain Management or book an appointment online for a thorough evaluation.