Symptoms of a Herniated Disc

Symptoms of a herniated disc (sometimes written as herniated disk) may include dull or sharp pain, muscle spasm or cramping, weakness, tingling, or referred pain.

Referred pain means that you have pain in another part of your part as a result of the disc problem. For example, if you have a bulging disc or a herniated disc in your low back (lumbar spine), you may have referred pain in your leg. This is known as sciatica—a shooting pain that can extend from the buttock into the leg and sometimes into the foot. Usually just one leg is affected.

If you have a herniated disc in your neck (cervical spine), you may have referred pain down your arm and into your hand. Leg and arm pain caused by a herniated disc is also called radiculopathy.

It's very rare, but herniated discs can cause you to lose bowel or bladder control. If this happens, seek medical attention at once.