Degenerative Disc & Scoliosis

[sarah0987]

I am 22 female and I have been suffering from lower back pain for the last two years.
The 1st doctor told me to do an xray and ultrasound and the results came as the following:

- the lumber spine shows a mild scoliosis concave right with preservation of vertebral and disc height. The pedicles and facets are intact.
- the right kidney contained a 2.7x1.8x2.2 cm upper pole cyst. There was some mild fullness in the upper pole collecting system.

After that the pain was on and off and till it reached one day its maximum and I had to change the family doctor.
So the new doctor asked me to do another x-ray last Feb. and the results came as the following:

-There is a left convexity scoliosis. Cobb's angle measured from the superior aspect of D11 to the inferior aspect of L4 is 26 degrees. There is a disc space narrowing at the L4-L5 and L5-S1 levels.Minimal osteophytes are seen at the L4-L5 level. The other dis spaces are not clearly seen, but appear to be fairly well maintained. The pedicles are intact. There is no evidence of bony injury. The apophyseal joints are within normal limits.

Right now am not able to walk/ sit at all and am waiting to see a specialist. And an MRI is scheduled to be done in Aug but seriously I cant wait and am trying to push it to an earlier time..

Please if there is anyone that had the same thing, let me know what you did and what should I do to prevent this situation from worsening. And for the doctors out there.. please provide me with any advice.

[ron0540]

Sarah, my name is Ron Lambertson, and I have been dealing with something similar to what you are going through for many years.  The one thing you said that tells me you have a better handle on this thing than most people who are just starting to deal with this condition is when you said you are looking for a way to "prevent this from getting worse."  The thing that ***** is that your back will never be like it was before all this started crumbling down.  But, The medical community has come along way in dealing with and being able to get you to a place where you will have a quality of life that will allow you to play, and smile, and do things, and have fun.  It takes work, and an awareness of what your condition is, and, the hardest thing I had to learn, is telling people you "can't do some things".  "I can't" is really hard to say.  I injured my back in 1978 and I was 31 yrs old.  I was a doer until then.  I was in the military, in Viet Nam for 3 tours, played high school sports, surfed, scuba dive, there just was not much I couldn't do.  Then, my world came tumbling down.  
I had fusion surgery, then, when it didn't work too well, I had two more surgeries a year and a half later.  I spent a total of 22 months in a body cast.  12 months the first time and 10 months the second time.  I had these Harrington Rods put in, taken out, put back in, and that went on for 10 surgeries over 18 years.  During this time, I continued to work, I went back to school for a second degree, Got a job with the Federal Gov, and my attitude kept me pretty busy and always trying to get better.  The better physical shape I was in, the less pain I had.  This held true for 20 plus years.  Finially, at age 55, I had to retire, and I needed to start taking pain medications on a daily basis.  I am 62, and I live with chronic pain, but with pain meds, I am able to enjoy a moderate quality of life.  As I get older, it gets harder, but, I have had a lot of opportunities, a great family, and friends that kept me wanting to push myself.  BUT, the secret to me is that when I have to say, "I Can't do that", I say it.  I know when to back off.  and there are many things I can't do, but there are more things I can do.
You are young, and the evolution of the medical treatments is amazing.  It is going to take some work, a lot of work, but you will have many happy, and fun times ahead in your life.
Good Luck
Ron

[Dr. A. Srivastava]

Thank you for your question. Although without being able to examine you I can not offer you the specific advice on diagnosis and treatment that you need, but I would try to provide you some relevant information about your health concern.

In disc narrowing & degenerative condition, symptoms may originate due to nerve root pressure, pressure on the spinal cord and pressure on the tail bone. Common symptoms could be lower back pain, paralysis of muscles, pain radiating to the arms or legs, leg pain and numbness, tingling, or weakness. Warning symptoms can include loss of control of the bladder function, paralysis & spasticity of both the legs. Since you are suffering continuous weakness and notice reduced strength of muscle bulk in left leg, please arrange an appointment with a neurologist right away. Further referral to a physiotherapist for spinal exercises could be beneficial and may produce relief of symptoms. Hope this helps. Take Care & Stay Healthy!!!