The vertebral column’s most important physiologic function is protecting the spinal cord, which is the main avenue for communication between the brain and the rest of the body. The spinal cord is ...

Bones called vertebrae make up your spine. Muscles and ligaments connect your vertebrae to each other. Between the vertebrae lie soft, flat discs that provide cushioning and support. Each vertebra ...

The lumbar vertebrae are the largest movable bones of the backbone. Their large size and bone strength is necessary because these vertebrae support more weight than the upper two segments of the ...

The spine (aka backbone) is a linked column of bones running from the head down to the lower back. Bone segments form the column. One bone segment is a vertebra, and multiple bone segments are ...

Northwestern Medicine scientists have uncovered new details about how the spinal column forms in developing vertebrates, according to a study published in Developmental Cell. While it has been ...

Over 60% of us will suffer from lower back pain at some point in our lives. Without question, it's the leading cause of disability across the globe. But many conditions can cause the spine to curve ...

The thoracic spine is part of your spinal column and is composed of 12 bones that are stacked one upon another. The thoracic spine is located between your cervical and lumbar spines, and it serves as ...

There is a serious condition that I see in my practice every single day – Osteoarthritis, Disc, and Spinal Degeneration. Believe it or not, it usually has a start ...

Our spinal column is different from that of apes because — yes, you guessed that right — we walk upright on two feet. But when did our distinctive back structure first evolve? The skeleton of an early ...

Bones from a spinal column discovered at a nearly 1.8-million-year-old site in central Asia support the controversial possibility that ancient human ancestors spoke to one another. The new discoveries ...

Snakes, fish, chickens, and humans all begin life in much the same way. Early in their transformation from an amorphous blob of cells into a fully developed animal, growing cells pinch off into a ...

Thoracic ossification of the posterior longitudinal ligament (TOPLL) is a rare condition associated with ectopic bone formation in the thoracic spine. A long-term follow-up study from Japan shows ...