extra lumbar segment
(7 discussions)
Why do I have an extra lumbar segment and how common is it?
Will I need surgery? Can I still Participte in soccer and band at school.
Why did I just find out that I have 6 lumbar vertebra instead of 5?
Please answer soon. I am confused.
7 comments
steve
so… I am investigating the “claim” that I as well am “gifted” with this anomily of a sixth lumbar. This information comes from an X chiropractor who I no longer trust !Any information would be appreciated as I am stratingto think this is a chriopractor’s scam !thank yousteve
tina-renee
Beth, you have ask a question I would like to have answered my self. I also have 6 lumbar vertabre, and can’t get an answer from anyone???
Mark bissonnette
I have been told that a small percentage of the population have this bone. We of course are the lucky…or unlucky ones to have it. I was told some of it has to do with heritage. Latin or Italian. I don’t buy that one. I was told about 1 to 3 percent of people have it. Yes it is very painful and without having it removed most times it will only get worse with age, since it will try to fuse with other bones in thee back. This is all the info I have true or not this is what I was told. Hope it helps
Terri Brown
I, too, have just been diagnosed with a sixth lumbar, as well as extra bone material pushing against my spine causing my spine to curve. The pain is horrible. I excelled in sports when I was in school and had to go through countless screenings for sports, I can’t figure out why no-one found this until I was 40.
John Taylor
I just discovered I have an L6 at the age of 43. It isn’t surprising they didn’t find it sooner. It’s not as though someone inventories your entire body!! I had x-rays done as a result of a horseback riding injury 3 years ago. Even then, no one noticed the L6. A doctor recently noticed it in the old x-rays. I have pain, probably because of the L6 rubbing against the sacrum (of which the L6 SHOULD have been a part).From an evolutionary standpoint, those of us with L6’s are a throw back to more primitive humans.
Pete Selby
:Will I need surgery?
Only if it becomes a serious problem down the road and even then think twice – the fix may be as worse as the problem and it may very well be elective surgury (as in you pay up front).
:Can I still Participte in soccer and band at school. Sure, why not. Unless your a really bad player, then find a new hobby.
:Why did I just find out that I have 6 lumbar vertebra instead of 5?
Because almost all Drs and nurses only take the one required anat. courseand are taught front a “normal skeleton”. Basically, no one really looks and those who do get selectively blind and confused – learn one thing and see another.
:Please answer soon. I am confused.
Don’t be. There are many stories (most made up by proffesionals who can’y possibly be seen as unknowingly stupid) of why you, me and a whole lot of other people have this. “It broke off the pelvic bone”. “It’s an evolutionary thing”. It’s devolution”. “That’s impossible”. “There is clinically, nothing wrong with you”. “There’s only 5 – your missing some ribs. Everyone has the same number of bones”(you need to think about this one). “It’s God’s will”(this is the dumbest). And my favorite is “Because your Catholic(insert your religion here)”. Believe the one that makes most sense to you and get on with your life. It will not go away, it may never be an issue or it may become a problem in your 40’s. There are Drs who will prescribe passive treatments – exercise, adjustments, etc, and those who will write lighning fast prescriptions. Then there are the engineer drs who will cut you open and lay in some rusty bolts and bits of Studebaker car bumpers. You will eventually meet them all. Take everything you hear with a grain of salt. Take care of yourself and don’t get too hung up on this.
Chrissy Barker
I’m studying anthropolgy and also take osteology courses. What I have learned is that it is a very uncommon occurance- not a disease, but as an infant, of the five bones that fuse to create the sacrum the first did not. It probably took a while to be noticed because there is cartilagenous material there that has yet to ossify (so as a kid is seems everything is fine, but when the cartilage turns to bone, you’re left with a 6th lumbar vertebrae) so it isn’t detected until later. It doesn’t always cause problems or pain, but in many cases it does, because it affects how your pelvis articulates, and how the rest of your spine aligns.As far as I know, there isn’t any surgury that they can preform- as it poses the risk of paralysis below the waist if there are complications. As far as sports and the like go- I can’t tell you if it will affect this, as it is different for everyone- some don’t notice it until late in life, some have constant pain. I hope that this can at least help a little- there is not a lot of literature on the topic.