MRI Results and lower leg pain

I have been having lower leg pain that prevemts me from pushing the gas pedel in the car for 4 months.  I have lupus, and have talked with my Rheumatologist,  been to my Family Practice Dr and now he sent me to a Orthopedis, after the MRI he says I have a very strange finding on the MRI of fluid in the calf,  He showed me the MRI and it looks like solid white line about like a pencil, medial to the tibia, just where the pain is.  This is not bone related so he suggest I talk to my lupus Doctor.  I feel like I am going in a big circle with no pain relief.  Any help or suggestions would be greatly appreciated.  Sherri

[Neuro Forum]

Thanks for using the forum. I am happy to address your questions, and my answer will be based on the information you provided here. Please make sure you recognize that this forum is for educational purposes only, and it does not substitute for a formal office visit with your doctor.

Without the ability to examine you and obtain a history, I can not tell you what the exact cause of your symptoms is. However I will try to provide you with some useful information.

It sounds like cause of your symptoms is fluid in the calf area. This is unlikely to be of neurologic origin (i.e. this is unlikely to be a direct problem of the nerves or nerve-muscle inferface) though the fluid collection is likely causing pain by pressure on the nerves. This is beyond my area of expertise, and is more in the realm of orthopedics and rheumatology (though unlikely related to your lupus). Some potential causes of fluid collections in the lower leg include bursitis, inflammation of the fluid that cushions joints most often due to repetitive stress which often resolves with anti-inflammatory medications, a baker's cyst (a fluid collection which occurs behind the knee), tendonitis (inflammation of the end of the muscle as it inserts into bone), a stress fracture (a small sliver of a fracture in the tibia with some surrounding edema), and others. Continued follow-up with your orthopedist and rheumatologist is recommended.

Thank you for this opportunity to answer your questions, I hope you find the information I have provided useful, good luck.