Accident

[Jim]

I posted in this forum on 3-18-01 and didn,t give you enough information, so I'm trying again.  
     I was in a car wreck and had a neck injury. I had a headache for 2-3 weeks, some stiffness, mild to moderate pain, and a popping noise in my neck. X-ray's taken the day of wreck were O.K. My doctor sent me for physical threaphy when symptom's
continued. This stopped the headaches. The pain, stiffness, and popping continued. I have had a slight ringing in my ears for a long time, proably from year's of working around heavy equipment. Since the accident it seem like the volume has been turned up in my ears. My doc sent me for an Cervical MRI.
     The results are:  T1 andT2 weighted sagittal images of the cervical spine were acquired as well as axial T2 weighted images of the lower three cervical interspaces. The study is correlated with that of a lateral plain film of the spine done at the time of the MRI. There is normal alignment. There is no evidence of a fracture or subluxation. Intervertebral disc space and vertebral morphology is normal. The surronding soft tissues are normal. There is no evidence of any cerebellar tonsillar ectopia. At the C5-C6 level there is a proable small right lateral focal disc protrution/Hernation which extends into the right lateral recess and effects the right nerve root. There is mininmal mild canal stenosis at this level. At the C6-C7 level there is minimal acuired canal stenosis due to degenerative disc disease and arthritic changes.
      It has been almost 5 months since the accident, I still have mild to moderate pain and stiffness, my neck pops or cracks every time I move it, the noise in my ears has leveled off but is much louder than before the wreck. I had no popping, stiffness
or pain in my neck before this accident.
     My doc said C-5 C6 damage could have been cauesed by the wreck or from naturel aging, C6-C7 was proably already there. Osteoarthitis may be the cause poping and stiffness and said to try Glucosamine Sulfate and Chondroitin sulfate for about six months to see if it helps. Since I already had the ringing in my ears he didn,t seem to think it was related to the accident.
     My question are
1.Why was I not having any problems before the accident if this is Ostearthritis?
2.Do you agree with what my doc said on the cause of the damage?
3.I know the ringing in my ears has gotten louder since this accident. Is there something we should be looking for that might
have affected this noise level?
4. Is this likely to go away, "Pain, stiffness,popping" with time?
     Thanks again for your time, I have trouble with my questions
sitting here and I seem to always leave a doctor's office with more question than answers. These forums are great.


     James

[ChiroDoc]

Hi,
     The pain and stiffnes you are experiencing is probably due to the rearraingement your neck inccurred with the auto
     accident. Much happens as a result. Bones and the general shape of the cervical region changes leading to
     improper mechcanics of the spine, hence the poping you hear. The medical view of xrays are different than a
     chiropractic view, which leads to a different diagnosis for your problem. When your Dr. said everything looked
     OK, to him it did. Nothing was broke. But the changes are much more subtle than that and can be understood by
     a well trained chiropractic doctor.
     Have your spine evaluated by a chiropractor, preferably by a refferal from a friend or work mate.
     Good luck
     CD

[CCF Neuro[P]-M.D.-RPS]

Dear James:

I would agree with your physicion.  I am not sure why your degeneration has only recently showed up, but likely it is due to coincidence.  Osteo is a slow process and a few months is too short for it to look as it does (by your description).  This has been going on for many months.  I do not know what is going on with your hearing, one needs to look and maybe an ENT visit might help.  Also, I can't predict about the fourth question.  One needs to see the MRI and do a good exam.  I imagine it will resolved over time.  Sorry, I am probably not giving you the answers you were looking for.

Sincerely,

CCF Neuro MD