Treatment Plan for Intervertebral Disc Herniation Syndrome Based on Traditional Chinese Medicine

Abstract

At present, people's understanding of intervertebral disc herniation is incomplete. Intervertebral disc herniation does not mean the disc "falling out" from between two vertebrae, but rather the rupture of the annulus fibrosus, with the nucleus pulposus protruding and compressing surrounding ligaments and muscles, resulting in space-occupying compression on the spinal cord and nerve roots. The nucleus pulposus cannot be repositioned by manual manipulation. Additionally, the so-called "secondary or recurrent attacks" of intervertebral disc herniation in clinical practice are not due to repeated protrusion of the disc itself, but rather muscle contraction, tension, injury, degeneration, hardening, thickening, and adhesion, which stimulate or compress nerves and cause sciatica. This paper explores a treatment plan for intervertebral disc herniation syndrome based on traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), integrating TCM theory with modern medical insights to provide a reference for clinical practice.