Welcome to Neuro Talk. Most of us arn't doctors, or professionals, we look up alot of information and learn from each other. I know what an annular tear is. It is the
annulus Fibrosis, which is a barrier between the verterbre, it helps the center of the disk to bear the weight of a person. When that tears, you get discogenicic pain, which can be quite severe. Disk protrusion is when the center of the disk squeezes. How much of this compression occurs is what your concerns are, and of course your doctor. In your MRI, if you google each individual word, you can get more knowledge of the structure of the spine. when you doctor starts talking that doctor lingo, you won't be thrown off, but will be able to understand him better.
Before you consider any interventional therapy, surgery etc. get a second and a third opinion if you can. I can't stress this enough, as it is something I didn't do, and paid a price for that 6 years later, with a more severe surgery C3-7. If you need help in any way, or have more quesitons, don't hesitate to post. Also if you see the words, "Severe" in your MRI, that is also a reason to seek another opinion. No matter what happens there is hope, and there can be a good resolution. My second surgery helped me alot. ginnie