Aa
Aa
A
A
A
Close
Avatar universal

L4 bulging disc and nerve damage

Ok I'm not sure if this is where I ask questions or not but here it goes; starting with my back story.

I am a 29yo F. I used to be in the navy and my job required me to do a lot of heavy lifting, up and down five flights of stairs, two-three times a day, for three years. About five years ago I began having lower right back pain. If i would lay on a hard flat surface on my back it would really act up. There were times it would almost cause me to become "paralyzed" it hurt so bad. I would get stuck in this laying down position and would have to have help getting up or slowly, without causing more pain, roll to my side to get up. I avoid laying on hard surfaces to prevent this from happening. I don't get shooting pain down my legs (only when I was pregnant with #2 did that happen) but if I sit or drive for extended amounts of time my butt and right leg go numb. It is a constant stabbing pain and NEVER goes away.

I recently finally went to get my back looked at and was told to do therapy (I had no releif). My doctor then decided to order an xray, it only showed that my lower spine was still "open from pregnancy" and looked normal otherwise; i am currently 7 months post partum. Then because PT offered to relief she sent me to a "pain management specialist" where I was finally given an MRI.

The MRI showed that I have a "slight" bulging disc  and "old" nerve damage (both L4)(I have never been in an accident or had any other major trauma). The pain doctor wants to do cortisone injections but I honestly don't want to do it. I'd rather jump straight to fixing the issue rather than masking it and potentially making it worse. Is surgery even an option for me? Should I go back to my primary care do for to be referred to a neuro surgeon? I have two kids 2 and under so I can't exactly "take it easy" for it to heal itself.
2 Responses
Sort by: Helpful Oldest Newest
Avatar universal
What is the treatment for the blogging disk
Helpful - 0
1331804 tn?1336867358
Hi Stacy,

First and foremost, I would like to thank you very much for your service to the United States of America.

Conventional Surgery is only 50% successful at reducing or eliminating back pain.  Conventional surgery is more so done to stabilize the spine and prevent paralysis.  Many times the pain gets worse after surgery.  Consider researching "Endoscopic Spine Surgery".  It is minimally evasive surgery that is done under a local anesthetic.  They use lasers and other tiny instruments for drilling.  The lasers vaporize the bulging disc so that it contracts back into inbetween the vertebrae.  The drilling is to open the canals that the nerve roots exit from if the canals are narrowed.  This effectively alleviates pressure from the nerve roots and reduces or eliminates the pain.  This type of surgery is 90% successful.

You can go to my profile page by clicking my username to see all of the spinal conditions I am dealing with.  I plan to get Endoscopic Spine Surgery next year after we buy our home.  It will cost $70,000 and my insurance covers $60,000 so I will have to finance $10,000.  But it is so worth it to have piece of mind that the surgery has a high chance of being successful at eliminating most or all of my pains.  

I would consider getting a nerve conduction study completed to see how extensive the nerve damage is to know whether or not you are at risk for paralysis or not.  The numbness you are experiencing concerns me and I think you should get that checked out.  However, feeling often returns within 6 months of eliminating the nerve compression and is not permanent.

I have had 7 epidural steroid injections and they have been very helpful for me.  I have also taken a four day burst pack of oral steroid (prednisone) that helped reduce the inflammation and pain.  Make sure they use dye and visual guidance (either an X-ray machine or fluroscopy to guide the epidural needle).  This makes sure the medicine is injected in the right spot and not a major artery.  If numbing medicine is injected into a major artery, it can cause cardiac arrest resulting in death so make sure that your doctor is not injecting the needle blindly.  The procedure takes 15 minutes which includes prep time.  The needle phase takes about 5-7 minutes.  There is sedation available to ease the discomfort of the procedure but you have to ask for it.

Neurontin (generic Gabapentin) or Lyrica, and Cymbalta are great nerve pain medicines that reduce sciatica pain.  Opioid pain meds are not very good at treating nerve pain.  I am on 1800 mg of Gabapentin a day and it helps A LOT.  I take 600 mg in the morning, along with two OTC Aleve, and one Oxycodone and the sciatica pain is completely gone within an hour and doesn't come back until late afternoon.  I admit, I am also on the Fentanyl patch but I have been taking Gabapentin well before I started the patch and I know it was very effective for my nerve pain prior to starting Fentanyl.

Good luck to you.  Surgery to be a last resort option.  Personally, I don't think the results from your MRI indicate surgery as a possibility right now but I could be wrong.  Conservative treatments such as physical therapy, massage, accupunture, epidural steroid injections, and medications should be exhausted BEFORE considering surgery as that is the only way the risk is justified.  So ask yourself before consenting to surgery, can I get any worse than I am right now? and have I tried all medicines and therapies without results?  If you answered no to the first question and yes to the second question, surgery should be considered.

femmy
Helpful - 0
Have an Answer?

You are reading content posted in the Back & Neck Community

Top Pain Answerers
Avatar universal
st. louis, MO
Learn About Top Answerers
Didn't find the answer you were looking for?
Ask a question
Popular Resources
Find out how beta-blocker eye drops show promising results for acute migraine relief.
Could it be something you ate? Lack of sleep? Here are 11 migraine triggers to look out for.
Find out if PRP therapy right for you.
Tips for preventing one of the most common types of knee injury.
Here are 10 ways to stop headaches before they start.
Tips and moves to ease backaches