I heard that scientists have found nerves in the bones of the spine. Aren’t nerves everywhere? How does this new information make a difference?

Nerve tissue has been found in many, but not all places in the body. For example, the covering around organs such as the liver, heart, and spleen do not have any sensation. Likewise, the inner section of disc material between the bones has no nerve tissue.

Nerve tissue in the bones of animals was found in 1998. It was only recently that nerves inside the bones of the human spine were found. Within each piece of nerve tissue studied, the scientists found substance P. Substance P is a messenger in the nervous system. It signals pain.

Researchers don’t know how much back pain is caused by these nerves. Finding them and studying them are the first steps to gaining more information. It may turn out that blocking these nerve messages can help many back pain patients.