Other characteristics make an anatomic problem less likely to cause pain.  They are:

  • Minimal or no motion between vertebrae
  • Completely collapsed disc space
    • The vertebrae have essentially fused on their own.
      • It is illogical to consider a disc that has minimal or no motion a source of pain.
  • Narrowing around a nerve without pain or neurological problems in the pattern of that nerve.
  • Deformity that is:
    • Balanced  (your head is centered over your pelvis
    • A deformity of the spine that is stable between the lying down to the upright position
    • A spinal deformity that has not changed for many years
  • A spine fracture
    • Documented to be healed
      • Repeat X-rays
      • MRI with STIR images that show no fluid in the body