By definition; bulging, protruding, prolapsed, extruding, and even sequestered discs are considered herniated discs. The more important question probably is: does the disc impinge upon a nerve root and/or spinal cord? Of coarse, whether or not the bulging or protruding disc is of significance also depends on the patient's symptoms.

A bulging disc represents degenerative disc disease. The disc is showing signs of wear-and-tear. It is losing some of its fluid content and therefore, it is drying out. As it dries out, the disc tends to decrease in height, or it starts to settle. As it does this, the wall of the disc tends to bulge or buckle outward. It generally bulges in a symmetric manner, much like the side walls of a deflated automobile tire would tend to bulge outward in a symmetric fashion.

They are all the same thing. A herniated, slipped or bulging disc is like a bubble in the sidewall of a car tire. The jelly in the center of the disc pushes the weakened part of the disc outwards creating a bulge. This bulge can press on a nerve or other delicate spinal structures.

If you have a herniated disk, you should see a spine specialist. The doctor will first diagnose the cause of the problem. Unless there is severe pain or weakness, conservative care will usually be recommended. Exercise and pain medications are used first. Chiropractic or acupuncture may be helpful. If these do not help, a steroid shot may be advised. Surgery is usually the last resort.

A weakening of the disc wall, which we call the annulus, causes a herniated disc. The defect in the disc wall allows the central portion of the disc, called the nucleus, to be displaced from the central portion of the disc out into the spinal canal. The shape or the morphology of the disc herniation can vary. It can be just a slight focal defect in the disc wall, or the herniation may go trough the entire disc wall.

No, they are not normal. The normal shape or morphology of the disc is that it should be a uniform height with an abundant fluid content without any bulging of the disc wall into the spinal canal. A bulging disc reflects degeneration, which is physiologic (normal) process of aging, but the disc itself is not normal. It is showing signs of wear-and-tear. A herniated disc obviously is not normal. It is essentially a torn or broken disc.

It is probably simplest to think of bulging and herniated as points on a continuum. When the disc between the vertebrae bulges enough to cause a tear on its surface and to put pressure on a nerve root or spinal cord, we call it herniated. That is generally the point at which patients experience back pain caused by degenerative disc disease. And that's the time to seek treatment.

Yes. Some discs bulge normally, as part of the normal variation that is part of being human (tall vs short). As we age, the surrounding supporting fibers tend to stretch. This will allow some bulging of the disc, without an injury, and without pain. Under normal conditions, our discs are designed to slightly bulge during normal activities. This allows our spine to absorb the tremendous forces we expose it to everyday.

Typically, a herniated disc causes radiating leg symptoms. Generally, this is what people refer to as sciatica or radiculopathy. The herniated disc is defined by a disc where the outer lining has been torn, and the inner soft disc material has expressed out of the tear and compressed the adjacent nerve roots. This pressure on the nerve roots tends to cause not only low back pain but leg pain, as well.