Spinal steroid injection for lumbar herniated discs

Hi artsy,

Sorry for the pain of sciatica you're going through. I had trouble with it twice, each time affecting a different leg. The first time I got it I had severe shooting pain in my hamstrings and calves, and leg numbness. It resolved after about one month, but I didn't do anything special beyond icing my lower back.

The second time I had difficulty standing for more than 30 seconds. Walking was ok. The disc at L5/S1 had ruptured and a piece was loose in my spinal canal. I was also diagnosed with stenosis, scoliosis, and listhesis - and overall disc degeneration. Lumbar disaster area......

The first surgeon would only do a fusion while removing the disc fragment. I got another opinion, and that surgeon did laminotomies at S1/L5/L4, no fusion. Basically, he drilled holes in the back of those veterbrae to make more space for the sciatic nerve, trimmed back some arthritis spurs, and removed the disc particle.

That was 15 years ago and I haven't had another occurrence of sciatica. I am in the gym everyday now and I do a lot of work for my core muscles. My current surgeon said if I develop sciatica again, he'll have to fuse some of the lumbar vertebrae, and probably S1. He did say that my very strong core is literally holding my lumbar spine together.

My suggestion - hire a PT and go through core exercises that you can make part of your weekly routine. Please clear this with your Dr first as I don't know the specifics of your case.

I'm 70 y/o and this has worked for me. I wish you all the best! (I also maintain a normal body weight for my height, and my percent body fat is around 20, right in the normal range.)

Joe

I couldn’t agree more and building up your core muscles is so essential for back health. Planks, crunches and leg lifts are just a few that come to mind. If you incorporate them into your daily routine and combine them with walking you will feel so much better over time.
It is actually fun to watch your core strength grow over time.

Had similar and steroid shot did not help me. Made me sick in fact, but back healed over time on its own.

I had those shots too and also have a panic disorder. when I was in my early 40's. I was put in twilight felt nothing till the numbing agent wore off. And then major pain the next day. Have it all lined up to have ice packs ready when you get home and the next day too. Then heat pad to get moving. I am now doing ablation.

Hello, I’ve had a few, which did help but didn’t after a while. I ey up years later with a 3 level cage surgery, bulging disc, and arthritis was the problem.
The injections aren’t bad. It’s just kinda looks scary but the doctors and the crew were very nice and it really was painless so don’t be afraid and it’s better to try everything before getting surgery. You should put surgery off as long as you can , who knows it might work one or two times for you or it may work indefinitely for you, which would be awesome

Yes! I have had quite a few steroid epidurals in my lower back. They help and it doesn’t hurt.

I have successfully avoided double spinal fusion surgery with the lumbar steroid injections. It's like magic to my body. I've had them for 10 years, combining with Twice weekly Yoga classes, core strengthing, and modified weights (with a trainer). I see the head of a well known Pain Management Clinic. If you trust the doctor- you will be fine. It hurts for 30 seconds as I feel the medication enter my body and go down my leg. I strongly suggest trying it- Best of luck!( I am 76)

When you have numbness around the front of your legs, you might wanna try a radio frequency, ablation or injection called RFI/RFA that helped me immensely. The first time for 15 years and then when we did it again, it wasn’t as helpful. The Cortizone injections were helpful until they weren’t. Then it was time for surgery. Herniated discs, generally mean that your discs are falling out between your vertebrae‘s, and your vertebrae‘s are now compressing into the space where the discs were supposed to be. What this means are your nerves are getting crushed exiting your spine And so that is why you’re having numbness in your legs. You need to see an orthopedic surgeon to see how far along you are in this process. After suffering for 18 years, I finally got to a great orthopedic surgeon, but it was too late for my nerve endings which had been crushed for far too long. I did surgery immediately when I met my Prince charming surgeon, and I got my life back and no longer had lumbar pain, but the damage was done to my nerves. It’s been six or seven years, and I suffer with degenerative disc disease, which means my spine is constantly in a state of degeneration And disc herniation. I am probably close to another surgery. As long as you are with the finest orthopedic spine surgeon, giving you the best opinion and advice. I think you will have the best chance for the best outcome. We only did a small section of my lumbar spine in 2018 now it’s getting time to go back and do the exterior sides. I am not afraid because I know I will get my life back and I am literally in good hands!

Who is the person you are seeing at your clinic?

Did you have a spinal fusion?