Severe spinal stenosis: Would you do surgery?

I have spinal stenosis and can walk slowly, mostly with a slight limp for about 10-15 minutes but have to stop and sit or take the weight off my feet by hanging on a shopping cart. The stamina is less when walking.

Sound similar to my diagnosis of many years ago. I had a top Neurosurgeon and had relief for several years . Now back on same meds as you. Back to the severe Neuropathy. Not sure it will ever go away, whatever the treatments that evolve. That sounds so negative but I think I am mostly angry that the Medical Community, or most of it, have not come up with something better. Janice

I agree with you

I was unable to walk (or stand) for more than a few minutes due to right hip pain from stenosis. for six months I tried several treatments including, chiropractic, physical therapy, dry needling and acupuncture, all with no relief from the discomfort. I eventually tried an inversion table and was back walking within three days. That was over a year ago and I only use the table occasionally at this point. The table is not for everyone, but it works for me.

What is an inversion table?

Amen

My advise is to hold off on surgery until you experience severe pain. last year, I was suffering from severe nerve pain shooting down both shoulders. Having Parkinson's Disease and falling often, dislocating my shoulders etc., I wasn't sure if it was from my injuries incurred or what. An MRI indicated it was a pinched nerve (cervical stenosis at level 5-7). I was so fortunate to be living in
Maryland where we have great hospitals such as Hopkins, University of Md Hospital etc in Baltimore. Living on the Eastern Shore near Easton, I heard good things about a local surgeon named Dr. Kurtom who specializes in spinal surgery. I also heard he was a very conservative practitioner who believes that surgery is the last resort. My, who works in Baltimore, researched this field was pleasently surprised to tell me that Dr. Kurtom was considered the very best everywhere he looked. I went to him at once; only to hear him say he must schedule me asap for surgery. He verified the fact that he usually considers surgery as a last resort, but my case involved a very dangerous spinal cord pinching that, should I fall, it could be very devastating! I was never so pleased to consider surgery in my life! Two weeks later, I went under the knife! It is at minimum a 6-8 week recouperation period; totally worth it though. Not only has the pain subsided, but I must say that Dr. Kurtom saved me from paralysis or, perhaps dying since I had a pretty bad fall again around 3 weeks post surgery. Had it not been for my doctor recognizing the urgency of my situation, and installing a metal plate to reinforce my vertebrae, the fall would definitely have severed the cord. Praise The Lord!
So, first, make sure you pick the best surgeon in your area; if surgery is necessary, be sure to follow through with all P.T. sessions etc. Work hard on your recovery; stay positive; and go forward. Good luck with your plans!

Correction > second paragraph/ fourth sentence should read as follows:

"My son,"

Well, bless your heart

@bazzinga1234 I understand your frustration with pain and the reluctance for surgery. Spine surgery does help a a lot of people, and I am one of those. I had significant pain all over my body from cervical spinal stenosis, and decompression surgery took away all of that crazy pain. It took 2 years of going to surgeons with my unusual symptoms before I came to Mayo and got help. I was loosing the ability to control my arms, and being an artist, that was becoming a disability that would affect my ability to paint. Having spine surgery and some rehab gave me back that ability and I will be forever grateful to my surgeon.

Spinal stenosis and neuropathy are often the result of injuries and added wear and tear of aging. Surgery is a choice that hopefully improves quality of life although there are compromises and choices to be made. Not everyone is a surgical candidate and not everyone would choose surgery if it was offered. I do know from my personal experience that fear increases pain a lot and can escalate pain. These are some of the lessons I learned on my journey, and I had to learn to talk myself out of an angry reaction to pain that was beyond my control so I could stay calm in spite of the pain. Mayo does have a program for understanding and lowering the emotional response to pain. It was mentioned to me at the time of my surgical consult. If it is fear holding you back, there are ways to get past fear. I never thought I could do it, but I did.

My choice was either loose my ability to paint and my artistic talent or face my fear and do the surgery. Choosing surgery also meant a commitment to the physical rehab to be active again. Since my spine surgery, I broke my ankle and I still have trouble with it. If I don't walk enough, I get stiffness in my leg and hips, my pelvis can shift out of alignment, and very recently that has caused sciatic pain and tingling in my feet. I have a bulging lumbar disc. Doing the stretching I learned in therapy and strengthening some muscles to help hold my pelvis in a better position helped, and I was able to fix that sciatic pain. I can also tell you that the pain from breaking my ankle and the disability that goes with it was far greater than my experience of spine surgery and for a much longer period of time.

Had you seen this response I wrote to you in another discussion?
https://connect.mayoclinic.org/comment/800658/

There is a lot of medical research going on, and a surgeon at Mayo has even had some success with regenerative medicine for a spinal cord injury patient who can now walk again because of his stem cell research. Research takes time, and repeated methods to try to reproduce results. Breakthroughs come after years of study and time invested in the goal.