As all of us age, it is well known that the discs that act as shock absorbers begin to lose their water content. They also start a degeneration process that continues throughout life. Luckily, this does not cause pain for most of us. The body forms bone spurs to stabilize these degenerating shock absorbers. As always, a few patients are unlucky. Those patients who are born with a small canal for the nerves and spinal canal may have spinal stenosis - a condition created when the combination of spurs and bulging of the disc squeezes the nerves.

Patients who have spinal stenosis can present with a variety of symptoms. Simple backache...