Stage One Due to an injury or everyday wear and tear, you may experience acute back pain. As a result, you may struggle to maintain your daily routines without pain. At this point, there is little to no effect on the bony structure of the spine. The spinal disc may bulge, have painful tears, or simply lose fluid and become less soft and flexible. Stage Two The second stage of degenerative disc disease is characterized by a long, relative instability of the affected segment of your spine. You may find that you experience intermittent periods of back pain. During stage two you may lose height in your vertebral discs due to dehydration and thinning of your vertebral discs. Typically, there are little or no spinal changes of the bony structure during stage two. Stage Three During stage three, you will begin to have bony changes in your spine. Bony spurs may develop at the edge of your vertebrae, which can put painful pressure on the spinal cord. Stage three also brings further disc thinning. Stage Four In stage four, you will have minimal disc material remaining. In addition, severe bony changes of the vertebrae may be present. At this stage, your vertebrae may be almost bone on bone due to the reduced thickness of your spinal discs. Disc replacement surgery or vertebral fusion surgery may be required. For more Information Consult with Dr Om Patil Orthopedic and Endoscopic Spine Surgeon in Mumbai, we have our Orthopaedic and spine clinics in Dadar Chembur Sion.