Freeper Help Needed: Herniated Disc, Now What?

me | me

[FReepaholic]

I'm looking for a little info, advice, etc from my fellow Freepers here.

I have a herniated disc in my back. It's in the L5 area on the left (I don't know all the medical jargon for it)

The doc says the next step is cortisone shots and if that don't work then surgery.

Anybody been through this? Do the shots work? Does the pain go away?

What about surgery? Does it work?

Anybody know of a procedure called: Endoscopic Discectomy?

My doc says only a few docs in the country do that. It's where you have the disc bulge removed in an outpatient type of deal. Sounds good to me since I live alone and would have no one to care for me after a back surgery.

I'd appreciate any comments. Thanks for a great community.

Tony

[FReepaholic]

How did this end up in News/Activism?? I had it in the Opinions/Questions area??

Sorry.

[RichardW]

I've had this problem for 13 years. Comes and goes. I live with it.

[f.Christian]

Traction might help...a soft uneven mattress is bad.

Sleeping on the floor can straighten your spine back.

If it isn't too serious it could correct itself.

Do you have the sciatic nerve problem...pain going into your leg?

[Clara Lou]

I've been through this. Cortisone didn't work on my problem. I was in horrible (the worst) pain-- it put childbirth in the shade. I had surgery. Turned out that my herniated was about a micron from rupturing, which would have meant permanent nerve damage. Now I have NO pain-- zip. No disability whatsoever. =-)

[Spyder]

There are all sorts degrees of disc herniations, from bulges to full-blown extrusion - but usually not bad enough to require surgery. If you start getting persistent numbness or even worse weakness or bowel or bladder dysfunction, the surgery becomes more of an option if not mandatory. If there is neurological damage (the weakness, the bowel/bladder dysfunction) the longer you let it go, the less likely you'll be to get return of function.

Consider asking for a physical therapy referral. Sometimes a few exercises and advice on lifting and sitting techniques are all that's necessary. Traction works for some people... not all.

[LSAggie]

My brother-in-law had the endoscopic discectomy on his L5 last month. The operation was at 1:00 in the afternoon and he was released that evening. He said the pain was gone, and he just had a small bandage covering the wound. He was very happy he had it done. BTW, he lives in Salt Lake City, and the operation was done there. Good luck with whichever option you choose.

[knak]

My husband is getting an MRI tomorrow to HOPEFULLY find out that he has a back problem. His Dr has been treating him for two years with pain pills for assumed neuropathy from diabetes. None of them has ever tested anything. We think he has sciatic nerve damage from a back injury. I can't believe none of them have ever tested to find out. They're only doing it now at our insistence. Atleast if it's a back injury there's a little light at the end of the tunnel.

I feel for anyone that has to go through this type of pain.

[libbylu]

Physical therapy. i had one L4-5 couldn't stand up straight for a while. if you have just seen that doc and he is talking shots and surgery, go to another doc, at least get referred to PT....cured mine and i promise you won't be sorry if you don't have surgery (now sometimes it is necessary but PT first)

[mystery-ak]

I had the same thing about 10 years ago...an MRI determined that it damaged three of my disc..L3,L4,L5...My doc decided to wait and see if it would *heal* on its own.
My disc are still scarred and damaged and I will eventually need surgery.
I do not live in too much pain(a couple of advil daily) takes care of it for me.
I occasionaly have a humdinger of a back ache if I do something really stupid.
I sympathize with you....the pain seems unbearable at times....my pain shot down my legs and I could not put pressure on my heels....had to lay flat and could not sit for weeks.

All I can say is follow your doc's advice or get a second opinion on treatment.....

[Dog]

You live with it.....I herniated a disk .......L1.... you just have to rest it...

[RJCogburn]

Does the disc impinge on a nerve?

Steroid injection is the first option usually. Surgery can be considered if steroid injections fail. So your doc is suggesting the standard approach.

I trust you have had MRI or other imaging to confirm and define the problem. Endoscopic discectomy is more widely available than you suggest. The benefit is that it is a very small incision with little involvement of surrounding tissue. The downside is the operator has somewhat less visualization of surrounding structures, so it is not an option for everyone. You would want an opinion of someone who has done the procedeure several times.

Even without endoscopic discectomy, many surgeons, particularly neurosurgeons do sort of "mini" surgical discectomy and many peole , probably most, are able go home the next day.

Good luck.

[HockeyPop]

I imagine it was disclosed by way of an MRI or CT scan. A myelogram is also emplyed whereby an amipaque dye is injected and then films are taken to determine the exact location of the affected disk. Make sure you get a neurosurgeon who is well regarded. A disc is like a jelly donut; the outside is a cartiaginous material enveloping a gelatinous material. The disc itself acts as a shock absorber and a fulcrum of sorts about which the spine rotates. Trauma, whether acute or repetetive of sufficient force and direction may cause the disk to bulge and is referred to an intra-discal herniation or bulging disk. The ramifications are that when the disk bulges it may bulge into the space normally occupied by the nerves emanating from the spinal cord which go through a tight space known as the neuroforamina. This will result in pressure on the nerve. Pain varies in degrees and left uncheck may lead to atrophy, especially to the areas of the leg which the particular nerve feeds. The herniated disc occurs when the jelly pops out of the donut. It exudes and again this gelatinous material known as the nucleus pulposis may compress the nerve. The most resourceful methods of alleviating this condition is to remove the jelly by excising it through surgery. This can be done by an ortho or a neurosurgeon. My preference is the latter. Ask your doctors about laminectomies and dicectomies. The latter is less intrusive and there are techniques whereby the "jelly" can be sucked out by needle with correspondingly less trauma. I hope for your sake it is a compensible injury ;~)

[shetlan]

Two years ago, my then 23 year old daughter had a papaya enzyme injection at Jackson Hospital in Miami Florida. (L-5 herniated disk.) Dr. Brown was the surgeon. She traveled in India 6 months later, and teaches ballet. No pain. 80% chance of full recovery.

Apparently, this procedure is used quite a lot in Canada.

[FReepaholic]

>>...Do you have the sciatic nerve problem...pain going into your leg?...<<

Yes. A good portion of the time.

[HockeyPop]

The endoscopic procedure involves sucking out the "jelly" and is not the most resourceful method in that often times all the jelly isn't removed permitting free floating fragments to eventually calcify and cause you problems later on. The laonger you hold out and the older you become, risks increase anytime one undergoes general anasthesia.

[Ben Hecks]

I had the same problem - pain became so severe that I couldn't even crawl. MRI showed particles of the disk in contact with nerve bundle. I elected to have surgery which was very successful....the MRI allowed the surgeon to perform the procedure with minimum trauma and I went home the next day. Proper rehab is important but I emerged with full movement and no pain. Every case is different but surgery worked wonders with my problem. I wish you the best.

[FReepaholic]

>>...Consider asking for a physical therapy referral. Sometimes a few exercises and advice on lifting and sitting techniques are all that's necessary. ...<<

Actually, I've been undergoing PT for serveral months. I was getting a lot better after initially injuring the back last August.

Then the leg pain started occaisionally last month. The doc prescribed the MRI. This weekend the pain got severe and I can hardly walk or sit.

Thanks everyone for the advice, suggestions, and support.

Tony

[Argus]

I found that acupuncture works really well at relieving the pain and restoring mobility, but it's possible that your problem is worse than mine. Definitely get a second opinion before surgery, though.

[Rubber Ducky]

Agreed. Have the same problem and just can't lift what I used to. Sometimes, I walk with a cane. Actually, it is a pretty handy device on airlines, not only to get waved in early, but to pull luggage off the carousel, open garage doors and a lot of other stuff to avoid bending.

What has been the most helpful to me are various exercises to strengthen the back and leg muscles in the L5 region. Usually, they give you these after you've completed the series of four cortosine shots. You can ask about them sooner if you want.

Best way to avoid unnecessary medical treatment is to threaten to see a chiropractor. Such a threat unlooses many a lip of an MD. Then, if you find the right chiropractor, you can see one on the sly anyway. Here in Japan (sadly, our last week here), the insurance system treats all forms of medical treatment roughly equally with a 20% or 30% co-payment. Even then, your average visit seldom exceeds $20 unless it is for something dramatic like eye surgery, in which case it can go as high as $400.