My husband has protruding L5 on Sciatic nerve.(Severe)

[cadkins2]

About 2 months ago my husband started having severe leg and ankle pain to the point that walking was unbearable.
He found out the L5 disc is protruding on the sciatic nerve and 2 different nuorosurgeons suggested surgery right away because the nerve is really damaged. My husband is only 27 years old and in great shape. He has a very physical job and has been on short trerm disability for 5 weeks and the money from that ends next week. He has been working really hard at physical therapy and at home to get better but it's not helping. If he goes ahead w/ surgery then he will have to be off work for 6-8 weeks with no pay. Does anyone have any suggestions in helping with this problem.I have never seen my husband in pain like this and it's almost unbearable to watch and all the pain medications are not even helping

[catelynnw3]

My daughter used to cheerlead and remembered doing frog jumps one day and feeling and hearing a pop.  She went for an MRI which showed that she had a herniation at L5-S1, but the report said it was only coming close to contacting the right S1 nerve root.  She went for PT but wasn't getting any better.  She went to an orthopedist who suggested that the disc wasn't hitting the nerve, but she definitely felt it.  He referred her to a surgeon and suggested she have a discectomy.  She was only 16 at the time.  I took her to the chiropractor who strongly urged me not to do it - thank God!  The chiropractics with stretching and exercises helped to get her spine back in place and help keep the disc from hitting those nerves, but it was only temporary relief.  The pain kept coming back.  She got to the point of chronic, debilitating pain.  She had trouble walking because her hip and leg also were affected.

After a lot of reasearch and prayer we found out about something called Prolotherapy.  We discovered that most likely her ligaments were overstretched, (probably from cheerleading) and that allowed her spine to basically move and shift more than it should.  When your spine isn't held firmly in place, it and herniated disc(s) are allowed to affect the nerves around it more.  Basically, the procedure involves dextrose solution injections (totally different than cortisone or other types) which stimulate the body to cause inflammation that signals the body to heal itself.  The ligaments can become kind of like a rubber band that has been overstretched, and the Prolotherapy actually causes them to become strengthened and shortened again.  There are actually a lot of people who have herniated discs but aren't aware of it.  They are often found incidentally when someone starts having pain due to nerve involvement.  Sometimes just strengthening the ligaments to keep the spine where it belongs is enough to make someone pain free.

My daughter still most likely has a herniated disc, but after three rounds of Prolotherapy is pain free.  I don't know if this can help your husband, but I strongly urge you to look into it.  There is a lot of information on the internet if you want to look into it.  There are a lot of different doctors that do it, so if he decided to try it please make sure you find a reputable one.  After reading a number of websites with information on it, I realized there are a few different methods doctors use.  There is a book called Prolo Your Pain Away by Dr. Ross Hauser that has a lot of information.  I pray this helps!

[kimpton]

hi.  you didn't mention the type of surgery that your husband needs.  reducing inflammation is important.  a high dose of oral anti inflammatory might help or a torodol injection (ask to have it mixed with lydicane).  the torodol only last a few days.  i know it's scary, but some people bounce back after surgery quickly.  google the story about melanie roach.  she's on the 2008 olympic weightlifting team and has returned after back surgery. pain is one thing and numbness is another.  i was partially paralyzed from a l4/l5 disc herniation.  in hindsight i should have had a disectomy to relieve the pressure and damage to the nerve.  i took the alternative route and have spent 4 yrs and a small fortune getting my nerves to come back. i feel for you.  

http://mediaserver.prweb.com/pdfdownload/957914/6/pr.pdf

[Zak_Han]

Hi,sorry to know it.
The decision to have surgery or not principally depends on your husband's level of pain and dysfunction.If your husband with severe pain that results in a great deal of dysfunction may want to consider surgical decompression of the nerve root. otherwise,try alternative med.
Good luck!