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C5-C6 issue affecting my shoulder?
Spine Health | Last Active: Feb 29, 2020 | Replies (42)Comment receiving replies
@jenniferhunter thanks for the response! Yes, I had knee surgery yesterday. There was a band of scar tissue in the area that was causing pain and then some in other areas. All of the tendons and ligaments looked good though. I am now just sitting around hooked up to the ice machine and hating it. LOL. Sitting in the recliner and bed is aggravating the nerves in my neck (assuming), as the pain meds I have help with the knee but do nothing for that area in my upper shoulder blade. Also have the left hand tingles and today, I woke up to find the tip of my index finger is numb. That hasn't been the case up until now. I suspect it's from bad positioning and then using the walker to get around. I put pressure on my arms when using it so the surgical leg isn't weight bearing. I image this is funneling up to the neck. The walker has a seat on it and I have been trying to scoot around instead. I have crutches but don't like using them. Hoping to be walking without any of this by Monday. The tip of the finger thing is frustrating.
I did meet with the spine doc and he is recommending ACDF surgery. He would add a spacer to the C5-C6 and then move the vertebrae above it back in place so I have the curve back in my neck. He does not think the issue is coming from my left shoulder, which is a relief since I will need to get the right shoulder fixed. I wasn't prepared for the surgery recommendation so I didn't have a list of questions. I scheduled another appointment in about two weeks to see him again and ask the 12+ questions I have. I need reassurance he is 100% confident that's my issue and surgery will fix it.
The ankle...had a MSK done on it. That doc said my ligaments and tendons are in pristine condition. He thinks it's a neuropathy. I am not sure how that would explain the snapping noise it makes sometimes. And, it's not one snap. It snaps with every step for a while and then stops. I know the physical therapist that looked at it prior to the MSK said both ankles weren't all that stable. He noted a little fluid in the ankle joint as well. He suggested an ankle brace and a few stretchy band exercises, noting it should be better in 5-6 weeks. I see a different therapist on Monday that will be doing my knee PT. I've gone to her for many other post ops and she has 20+ years in the profession. I plan to get her take on the ankle as well. I almost laughed though when the doctor said everything was in pristine condition. Having been a runner and then into weight lifting for two decades I doubt anything in my body is in pristine condition. LOL. Oh and he said that he thinks all of my issues are related to something and named a few diseases (can't remember the names). He asked if I have been tested for them, which I haven't. He doesn't think my cervical spine is an issue and is putting it on whatever these diseases are. It should be noted he is the radiologist who did the MRI review on the cervical spine. His report wasn't detailed and i remember being disappointed in it. So Monday I saw the spine doc who said I need surgery and then that afternoon I saw this other doctor that said I do not. I was so confused. I will do whatever blood tests he thinks I need if my primary care doctor wants me to. I don't think that's it though. The spine doctor explained my MRI in detail, showing what was touching what, etc. I tend to believe him over the radiologist but who knows. If I have cervical spine surgery I will do that first and then the right shoulder. I did let the two physical therapists who have been working on me and doing dry needling know about those appointments and my confusion afterwards. They discussed my email and both said if they were in my shoes (having seen me over the months) they would have the ACDF surgery. Like I said, I have lots of questions for the spine doc first. I see the shoulder doc that same day just as a follow up, as he wanted to know what the spine doc had to say.
This upper back shoulder blade discomfort and hand tingles/tip of the finger numbness is frustrating. I can't believe the pain meds aren't touching it. I hope once I am more mobile in a few days the nerves or whatever the issue is will calm down some so that at least the tip of my index finger has feeling again. Sorry this is so long. 🙂
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@amywood20 I would encourage you to get several opinions about your C spine. Surgeons use different spaces, cages,etc, and plates on the front of the spine. If it is only one level to be fixed, it can be done with a bone graft and no hardware, and not all surgeons would offer that, but mine did at Mayo which is what I wanted. Hardware brings the possibility of complications if something is dislodged or a screw backs out. Patients can feel the plate in their neck. With my asthma, I didn't want anything extra in my neck taking up space, so I had only a bone graft. I stayed in a neck brace until fused at 3 months, and it as worth it to not have hardware. My neck also used to be straight, but since surgery, and my therapy, I have my normal curve back without a surgeon rebuilding it for me. I don't get pain with weather changes like a lot of C spine surgery patients with hardware do. It's better without rods because my range of motion is normal except that I cannot touch my chin to my chest, but it is darn close. My head turning is normal. If you have hardware placed on your spine to put a curve in, you probably will not have normal ranges of motion, and the longer the fused portion is, the greater the stress it will put on the adjacent segments that can move which raises the risk of spine surgeries in the future. Plates also do this and the fusion shrinks as it heals, so the plate gets longer in relation. If the plate rubs on the adjacent disc, it can cause injury and wear a lot sooner. There are immune reactions to foreign materials too, but none with a bone graft and my surgeon said it heals best with just bone. You can always elect to do the curve rebuild later if you think it is necessary after your recovery. My physical therapist advised against surgical intervention for the lordotic curve, and my curve is normal as long as I don't trigger muscle spasms in my chest and neck with over exertion. I also now how to fix it if it happens, and most of the time I feel normal without being aware that I did have surgery.
I think you are right that bearing weight on your hands will cause pain because it's compressing everything and you already have tightness between your chest and neck. Just the muscle spasms from a spine issue will do that. It would bother me too to do that because of TOS, and I am not as strong as I was before my spine injury and the muscle atrophy that came with it.
I still think you could have TOS issues, and your doctors are not even thinking about that possibility, as they are mentioning other diseases as a cause without you having a test to confirm that. That is just guessing. Also the the snapping in your feet and ankles happens to me too. I've had plantar fasciitis, and that starts with tightness in the hips, thighs or pelvis that translates down to the feet. I get snapping in a knuckle on my thumb, and my therapist has me pull on the joint and twist first in the direction is goes easily, and then in the opposite direction. I hold that with a gentle pull, and it reseats the joint . That is the same thing that happens in lower limbs, so myofascial release will probably help as it loosens everything. It's the tightness and twisting in the body that causes alignment issues, and over time, wear and tear on joints. When you subconsciously brace against something it gets worse too. I still guard my left shoulder and raise it, and I have to learn to stop doing it.
Your neck might feel better with a microwaved heat wrap to relax the muscles and it can act like a neck brace. I did that a lot before my surgery. Topical Arnica gel helps too calm nerves and inflammation. I have a list of questions I can find for the spine surgeon if you want it. Take it easy and don't push too hard for a faster recover. You body needs to take the time that it needs.