spinal fusion surgery and foot pain

[amygreen]

My husband had lumbar spinal fusion a month ago, his back pain has all but disappeared. About a week ago he started having a tingling and burning sensation on the inside of his right foot. The pain is getting unbearable, he describes it as numbness, tingling, burning, electricity feel to it. I tell him it may be a side effect of the surgery, but I really dont know,I do know it is painful for him, any help in this forum would be greatful.
Thank you

[BetteQ]

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[sam1224]

I too had a spinal fusion at level L5 S1 6 weeks ago, i developed horrible pain in my right leg and tingling, burning, stabbing pain in my toes on right foot. I went directly to my neurosurgeon and he did a Cat Scan : he said that a piece of the bone he had put in for the fusion "splintered" off and was touching a nerve. I am scheduled to have an MRI this coming Monday and then am seeing him on Tuesday. He is suggesting that he go in and take the splinter out: he sais it will be a simple procedure and just a day procedure. Have you or your husband called his surgeon? If not, call him. They will probably say lets wait and see if the problems stop....that is what my neuro said...and the problems have not stopped and get worse at night time. It is quite frustrating. good luck to you and your husband: it is, atleast for me a hard long recovery from a fusion: wish i knew this going in!!

[Abhijeet Deshmukh, MD]

Hello.

Nerve injuries are indeed known to occur after spinal fusion surgeries. It will be advisable to consult your orthopedic surgeon again, and discuss the issue with him. He might need some more investigations.

Regards

[Karen660]

Regarding numbness and pain in your foot.......I have had 7 spinal surgeries, three of them being spinal fusions, the last one was on 9-12-07.  I have had stenosis, degenerative disk disease, ruptured discs (3) and other things related to rupturing 3 discs 15 years ago.  I have really never had any neurological problems or symptoms except some pain in my left leg when the pain gets really bad.  I have had to take narcotics on and off for the terrible pain in my back.  However, recently I have been woken in the night because of the bottom of my right foot getting numb and having really bad burning sensation and pain that feels like tingeling and stabbing.  I had this feeling a few times a few months ago but it goes away and then all of a sudden, with no reason, it happens again.  I have had carpel tunnel surgery in both hands and it feels like that.  They both happened just at night and I just had to wait for the feelings of numbness, pain and tingeling to go away.  Does anyone have any idea why I would start getting this pain and numbness just on the bottom of my right foot?  My left leg was the one that I had some occasional aching and pain with my low back problems.  It is really starting to concern me!  

[DanMouton]

Regarding your husband's foot pain.  I had a double spinal fusion at the L4/L5
L5/S1 disc space in 10/2001.  I have suffered with pain in my right buttock, right hip, and right thigh ever since where the sciatic nerve is. Over the past 2 yrs I have begun to develop debilitating foot pain, at first I thought it was from having to walk crooked to compensate for my lingering back pain, but now it has gotten much worse.  I have terrible numbness in my left foot at the ball of the feet where the toes connect to the foot and burning and stabbing pains in both feet.  This condition has gotten progressively worse, so bad that I couldnt even walk for 3 weeks back in late December/early January.  I have a work related back injury and trying to get treatment for my feet is an absolute nightmare.  I would tell your husband to try to see a neurologist as soon as possible before his foot pain worsens. You are in my prayers. Dan