Low back pain (LBP) is the primary cause of disability worldwide, resulting in severe societal burden. It is highly associated with progression of intervertebral disc degeneration (IDD), but its mechanism still needs to be further studied. In recent years, it has been shown that hypoxia inducible factor 1α (HIF1α) is widely involved in regulating the pathological process of IDD and is one of the important genes leading to the occurrence and development of IDD. In this paper, we analyze the mechanisms of HIF1α in IDD in previous studies and summarize the potential mechanisms and trends.