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Will epidural spinal injection weaken my spine more?

Spine Health | Last Active: Feb 2, 2022 | Replies (4)

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@dappy

Thank you so much @colleenyoung. I did ask the dr. at the last appt. when he mentioned it as a possibility. He said it should not be a problem- only if I was to get multiple injections in a short span of time. I will look at the discussions you mentioned. I am very fearful of a fracture in my spine with the osteoporosis.

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Replies to "Thank you so much @colleenyoung. I did ask the dr. at the last appt. when he..."

@dappy I want to add some more to Colleen's post. I found several links about steroid injections with osteoporosis and one is a Mayo News Network story.
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29304236/
https://journals.lww.com/md-journal/fulltext/2019/06280/effect_of_medications_and_epidural_steroid.30.aspx
https://www.spineuniverse.com/professional/news/osteoporosis/epidural-steroid-injections-osteoporotic-fracture-risk
https://newsnetwork.mayoclinic.org/discussion/occasional-cortisone-injections-unlikely-to-have-negative-affect-on-bones/
I understand your concerns about osteoporosis and spine fracture. That has happened to my elderly mom with a spine compression fracture, and she is now undergoing injections of Evenity because she has severe osteoporosis. You may want to consider a consult with an endocrinologist to make sure that you are getting good treatment for building bone. It can be a complex problem, and my mom had exacerbation of thinning bones because of a problem with parathyroid glands that were pulling calcium out of her bones, so the damage was done, and it is hard to try to catch up at her age. The endocrinologist specialist will understand the complex issues that can affect bone quality. Bone quality is important for spine surgery that could be in the future. Sometimes spinal hardware is screwed into the bone, and it is possible for screws to pull out or migrate if there is poor bone quality. That could affect what procedure a surgeon can do with these risks. My mom had been under the care of her primary care physician for years, but they didn't understand the complexity involving the parathyroid disease with the drugs prescribed for bone building.

I am a spine surgery patient and I have had a cervical epidural injection that I had a bad reaction to. It caused me to have stabbing burning nerve pain for several weeks in my hand and nerve sensitivity for a year and a half. It has some real risks, so make sure they are explained to you if you are considering an injection. It won't fix anything, but it can reduce pain by reducing inflammation. Doctors sometimes use these injections to postpone surgery.

I would also recommend discussing any possible chiropractic treatment with your spine specialist. If you have a bulging disc, it can be very easy to rupture it with a forceful chiropractic maneuver. I ruptured a disc in my neck simply by turning my head, and herd a pop and my head suddenly turn further. It didn't hurt, but it felt weird and it then caused bone spurs to grow because of the inflammation from the jelly like disc material that was extruded.

My physical therapist was very beneficial in buying me time and reducing pain by gently keeping my neck aligned. She also was using a Dolphin Neurostimulator that would inhibit the neurotransmitters for the pain impulses and it reduced pain for about a week. I was working with a PT for the 2 years before my spine surgery and it helped a lot.

Are you currently undergoing treatment for your osteoporosis?