M48.21: Kissing spine Occipito-atlanto-axial region

The spinal processes at the junction between your head and your cervical spine are very close together.

The spine consists of several sections. The cervical spine begins below the head. The cervical spine is very mobile. Below that is the thoracic spine. The ribs are attached to the thoracic spine. Below the thoracic spine is the lumbar spine. The lumbar spine is also very mobile and it bears a large part of the body’s weight. After the lumbar spine, the sacrum and coccyx join.

The bony spine is made up of individual vertebrae. Most vertebrae consist of a vertebral body and a vertebral arch. There are bony outward projections on the vertebral arches. These bony projections are the spinous processes. You can feel the spinous processes with your finger when you touch your spine. The spinous processes are usually at a certain distance from one another.

In your case, the spinous processes of more than one vertebra are very close to each other. With this disorder, the spiny processes may even be touching. This can damage muscles and ligaments. You may get back pain. The pain can particularly be felt if you lean your upper body backwards.

There are different reasons why the spinous processes of multiple vertebrae are very close to each other. The spiny processes may be very large, for example, or the spine may have changed due to aging. The condition can also occur when someone has done heavy physical work for a long time.