Most people think a “spinal emergency” means excruciating pain or being unable to walk. But the most dangerous one I see in neurosurgery rarely starts that way. It’s the moment when the nerves at the base of the spine — the ones controlling leg strength, bladder function, and sensation — become acutely compressed. This is the emergency I’m talking about. And it often begins with symptoms people dismiss: • numbness in the groin or inner thighs • sudden difficulty controlling urination • weakness