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Excruciating chronic left side neck pain plus lumbar issues
Spine Health | Last Active: Nov 18, 2023 | Replies (360)Comment receiving replies
Thanks jm1.
Yes you are right, that neck has been declining since the original neck pain in August 2022.
The August 2022 MRI didn't show all this damage.
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Cervical MRI report August 2022:
The cranio-cervical junction is unremarkable. Cerebellar tonsils are
normally positioned. No abnormal focal or diffuse signal identified in the
cervical spinal cord. There is normal cervical lordosis. No spondylolisthesis identified.
No destructive bony lesions. No acute or remote fractures identified.
Level by Level Analysis:
C2/C3: [No protuberant osteophyte, disc bulging, spinal canal stenosis or
neural foramina stenosis.]
C3/C4:
Minimal broad base central and bilateral lateral disc bulging with associated minimal right intervertebral foramina stenosis
C4/C5: Broad-based central and right lateral disc bulging with associated moderate right intervertebral foraminal stenosis
C5/C6: Disc bulging resulting in moderate bilateral intervertebral foraminal stenosis
C6/C7: Right lateral/foraminal disc bulging resulting in moderate right intervertebral foramina stenosis
C7/T1: [No protuberant osteophyte, disc bulging, spinal canal stenosis or neural foramina stenosis.]
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I don't know what happened, I might have done some inappropriate unintentional movements, maybe physiotherapists and osteopaths pressed too hard and I can tell you some were pretty rough. I don' t know if the cortisone injections back in December 2022 and January 2023 had anything to do with it.
I feel a massive stab as if someone is pushing a needle in anywhere between left of C6 to T7. I feel the pain in that area. I am not sure if I have occasional spinal cord compression as I bend my body. I don't know if the pain that I feel in the upper thoracic spine is referred pain. It could be nerves or facet joints, I can't tell the difference. I hope that a skilled neurosurgeon would be able to tell from the imaging.
The medications have bad side effects like total drowsiness, confusion, nausea and constipation. I made a suggestion to my pain management doctor in regards to Gabapentin, but he didn't listen. I have to follow what he recommends.
I have a phone appointment today with the pain management doctor at 1:30 PM AEST.
I tried ice but is it not helping much as expected.
If I had a C4 to C8 fusion would I get a very stiff neck with very low flexibility?
As far as surgery goes I read a lot of good things about Laminoplasty
Reference:
Cervical Laminoplasty Explained
Thank you.
Best regards
Alfred
Replies to "Thanks jm1. Yes you are right, that neck has been declining since the original neck pain..."
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Alfred, I didn't mean all cervical 4 levels, multi level is usually maybe 2, possibly 3 levels. A good neurosurgeon may want to see the images not just the report, so get a disc of your images from the MRI office to take to your appt.
You would have to ask the surgeon about laminoplasty, but I don't think that would work for retrolithesis and spondylothesis. I hope you have researched those terms.
The injections didn't cause this. Over adjustments and too frequently by a chiro or osteopath can cause issues. Continuing to exercise too hard and ride your bike with your condition could have caused this. Perhaps the first MRI was not with contrast and the second MRI used contrast dye to highlite the problems better? Was it the same machine? Did they use a new stronger MRI 3T machines like they have at Mayo. The benefit of pain relief from the meds to me outweighs the side effects at this point. Pain breeds more pain, you have to stop the pain cycle. Adapt and plan you day around it, like someone said "welcome to the club" Gabapentin is very very good drug for serious nerve pain, so don't understand your pain Dr's response at all. Wish you had time to replace him.
I already told you how to deal with the constipation so it should not be an issue any longer and keep icing consistently. And no more " might have done some inappropriate movements and stop bending , it just really worries me how much worse you have become in just 5 months! My past suggestions work for most folks with nerve pain. Good Luck with your doctor's. Just know they can never put you back together 100% . At this point there will always be tradeoffs. Prayers for you.