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← Return to Chronic Back Pain for Years
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I learned a few months ago that I had severe spinal stenosis at L3-L4, and L4-L5, with no sign of a disc in that area. Ten days ago I had surgery for the stenosis. It was keeping a tight squeeze on the nerves going through the canal. The neurosurgeon said that it's possible that dealing with the stenosis could reduce the neuropathy pain in my feet and ankles, which it did for a few days, but now it's back to the level of pain before surgery. I'm trying to remain hopeful that I'll have some level of pain relief after my back has a bit more time to heal, but it's not looking good at this point.
The surgeon didn't seem to be concerned about the disc. I'm going to ask her about it at my appointment this Thursday.
Jim
Replies to "@polygons I learned a few months ago that I had severe spinal stenosis at L3-L4, and..."
Hi Jim,
I had an X-LIFT FUSION on L3/L4 three years ago.
Although it took care of my pain, it did nothing for my neuropathy.
I was told that it depends on WHY you have the neuropathy.
Did you have it before the surgery?
Could the damage be permanent?
Do you have diabetes?
There are many reasons for the neuropathy.
Best of luck in your recovery process!
Ronnie
@jimhd Jim, please let us know how your appointment goes. I’ll be thinking of you
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Hopefully things will get better. I’m guessing it is possible as you get a bit more active at home you may stir things up a bit and have some swelling in the area. Which in turn will increase pain. I would think if the surgeon saw anything resembling a ruptured disc during surgery, they would have dealt with it at that time. Just remember, the patients I would see come back for a redo were almost always the ones who didn’t listen or follow instructions for postop care! Ice/cold packs are your friends!