Interesting post.
I have had this for many years, sounds like bones griding together.
I guess that was too simple for most of the doctors, and therapists
I have talked to. Most say the popping sounds are from gas being
released somewhere, muscles maybe? Even friends have told me the same thing, but I don't belive it one bit. My lumbar spine cracks and grinds and pops constantly. I think in my case it come from the facet joints, where they have denegrated, and rub together causing the grinding, and a major portion of my pain.
When I had my 5 level fusion done in 1997, all the popping stopped for a few years, but now it pops and cracks just like it did before the fusion.
Does that mean my fusion went bad, I don't know.
If my back stops grinding and popping, that is when I am in the most pain.
When I can get it to relax enough, I can get the joints to release, I will get a good crack out of it, kinda like going to the chiropractor. I don't mean one little crack, it cracks all the way my lumbar spine.
This actually provides a great deal of pain relief for me, its when they won't crack, is when the pain skyrockets.
I believe, in my case it is from the bone grinding against each other.
If I've been in bed for an extended period, my back will almost "sieze" up, and I can't crack it at all, possibly the joints are attempting to fuse together from the lack of movement, and the cracking stops that process, I don't know, I'm no doctor, but bone on bone, sounds like what it is to me.
Have you ever looked at "facett syndrome" It sounds exactly like what I have. I asked my neurologist about it once and he looked at me like I had 3 heads, and said he had never heard of such a thing, and that I must have been doing too much reading on the internet....LOL
Even though it sounds painful, cracking my spine is one of the only ways to decrease my pain sometimes. People say that I must be doing damage by doing this, but I say, how about all those people that go to chiropractors, are they hurting themselves as well?
So, cracking spine, absolutely, I am self chiropratic now, look at the money I save I should also note that I have a dozen pedicle screws, as well as 2 rods, plates, screws, wires, and assorted other crap in there, talk about a walking scrap-pile.

Peace
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