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Radiculopathy is a disorder or disease of nerve roots that enter or leave the spine. Nerve roots are the lowest part of the structure of a nerve. Symptoms include severe pain and sometimes a loss of feeling in the area of the body supplied by the affected nerves. Other symptoms include weakness, wasting away of muscles supplied by the nerves, and/or paralysis (a loss of movement and/or sensation).

Radiculopathy may be caused if a disk in the spine sticks out of the bony structure that it is normally contained in. Spinal arthritis, which is inflammation of joints in the spine, can also be a cause. A joint is a place where two bones contact each other. If heavy metals, such as lead, enter the body, this can lead to radiculopathy. Thickening of the meninges, which are thin outer coverings of the brain and spine, can also lead to radiculopathy.

Diabetes mellituscan also cause radiculopathy. Diabetes mellitus is a complex, long-term disorder in which the body is not able to effectively use a natural chemical called insulin. Insulin's main job is to quickly absorb glucose (a type of sugar) into cells for their energy needs and into the fat and liver (a large organ that performs many chemical tasks) cells for storage.

Treatment of radiculopathy involves treating the cause, if possible. Symptoms may be relieved with painkillers, physical therapy, or in some cases, surgery. Radiculopathy is also known as radiculitis. Radiculopathy comes from the Latin word "radix" meaning "root," and the Greek word "pathos" meaning "disease." Put the two words together and you get "root disease."

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