Chiari and degenerative disc diesease

[Kris492]

I have Chiari 1.. I haven't had surgery.  I was aslo told that I have degenerative disc disease in my neck that the dr thinks i s caused by the Chiari.  Does anyone know how these two are related?.  How does Chiari 1 cause degenerative disc disease?  

[mrscmuzik]

I don't think it's caused by as I think the degenerative disk is fairly normal with aging .. but I also have chiari and degenerative disk .. looks like I may have the osteoohytes as well. #neckpainismylife

[selmaS]

Those with Chiari and EDS can have early onset of DDD so the disk issues is something we all have to have looked at.

[selmaS]

  Ok, so this was not a Chiari surgery u had but one to reduce the cyst u had....sorry but I am confused here....and that is my fault not urs.

Do u have the results of this latest MRI?

[Daniel1961]

My MRI was done the 2nd of august 2013. And they cut me open at c5-c6 and this is where they entered to shrink cyst.

[selmaS]

  Hi...yes this is helpful, but he should have a MRI of the lumbar as well as many with Chiari may also have tethered cord which a MRI may help with as not all TCS will show on a MRI....but other testing and indicators are there to help make the DX.

So were the cerebral tonsils cauterized? There are a few ways for a decompression to be done, u need to know if u have a lamenectomy, and a dura plasty and what type of patch was used...see if u can get the surgical report.

How recent was ur last MRI?

[mrscmuzik]

Hey Selma , does the type of patch matter ?

[selmaS]

Yes, the type of patch can matter a great deal especially if you have Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome, which is a related condition to Chiari,

[Daniel1961]

I will post what the doctor wrote. He underwent an mri of cervical and thoracic region witch revealed a Chiari-I malformation with a syringomyelia from c2 through t9. Hope this helps

[selmaS]

  Hi and welcome to the Chiari forum,

May I ask, do u mean they shrunk the cerebral tonsils...or do u mean u had a syrinx that they shrunk?

Chiari is not a cyst, but the cerebral tonsils herniate and many times they will cauterize them to help them shrink...

Did u have a lamenectomy and dura plasty with ur decompression?

Did they rule out ALL related conditions?

DDD- degenerative disk disease is something we all get as we age, but those of us with Ehlers-Danlos (related Chiari condition) may suffer symptoms sooner in life....

Have u talked with ur NS since getting this MRI?

[mrscmuzik]

Hmmm interesting

[Daniel1961]

In 95 I had operation for a chiari I malformation they shrunk my cyst from 15 milimeters to 3 now 20 years later I have gotten worse.I had an MRI 8-2-2013 now the report shows I have Moderate degenerative disc decease in c5-c6 same place they went in and shrunk my cyst. I go for 2 more mri's 6-5-2013.
I have gotten worse in the last 2 years arms go numb in my sleep in pain all the time arms hurt nose bleeds migraine head aches my speech sometimes does not come out right my mood swings are real bad over little stuff. It goes on and on.

[Shane99]

Chiari doesn't so much cause DDD, it's just a related condition. Both can be considered to be congenital neurological disorders. The brain, skull, spine, and nerves are all closely related and connected. We just had the bad luck to have a design flaw.

[cfinniss]

I too have Chiari and DDD and also thyroid disease and thyroid eye disease, the more I keep reading on the forum about chiari - I feel these 3 things are all realated somehow.

"cfinniss"

[selmaS]

HI and welcome.

This has been a topic several times here and unfortunately the only thing I know is that DDD is something we all will get eventually and those with chiari seem to get it sooner.
I did read that chiari can lead to having autoimmune disorders and I believe DDD is one of them as is Hashimoto's thyroiditis....

We all would like to understand how and y these r related....all we know is they r.

I hope u continue to be an active member and share ur experiences with us here on the forum.

"selma"