re: Low Back Pain - Degenerative Disc Disease - Checking In

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i'm at about 10 months since the nerve burn injections

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I'm an all pro at these, have been getting them for 20 years off and on.

Some work for years, some for months.

Problem is they are so freaking expensive even with large Co group insurance. Get an incumbent stationary bike and put in front of the TV and try 45 minutes a day. This helped me. Until I quit

Surgery is for people having declining neurological status in the arm or leg or loss of bowel/bladder function. Anything else is too soon in my opinion.

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Surgery is for people having declining neurological status in the arm or leg or loss of bowel/bladder function. Anything else is too soon in my opinion

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Exactly. My neurosurgeon told me straight up, “We do neck surgery for arm pain and back surgery for leg pain. If your back or neck pain 8mproves after surgery, consider it a bonus, but don’t expect it,” I ended up with neck pain after the surgery that I didn’t have before it.

Also, my neurosurgeon won’t do lumbar fusions except in rare cases. He said most surgeons do them because they are a cash cow. He won’t do lumbar fusions unless it’s at the point where you are losing bowel functions/control.

The last 4 years were what I'd consider my fight.

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*Laser Spine Institute

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Well, that is something that I want to find out more about.

I recently had a lengthy conversation with an older guy that has been through more problems and more remedies and specialist and surgeries than me. According to him Laser is "minimally invasive and can clean out stenosis and arthritis issues cleaner and more effective that traditional surgery". Said for him it was the difference of 6 months of painful recovery vs about a week not so painful. BTW, this guy is 79 years old and he's telling me this on the golf course.

Not recommending this yet but something I will be researching.

BTW I have had half a dozen or so epidurals which have been for the most part effective, i would say for a mean of 12 months. I am now seeing a neurologist that I trust. My MRI validates several indications for surgery. I tell him I don't want surgery, that I worry it would be end of my competitive golf. His advice for my condition is that I do epidurals with Pain Specialist "until they no longer work" then he will recommend that he do surgery.

Pain Intervention Doctors like to do a series of two or three injections to get a coattail or cumulative effect.

BTW the first Orthopedic Spine Surgeon I was seeing restricted the epidurals that he would perform to one or two per year. Also, he only used a watered down concoction. Well, I guess he is a Surgeon. No hard feelings but I moved on. However I do regret that I suffered through 9 months of physical therapy before I went to the Pain Intervention Specialist, near immediate relief. Hell, I suffered an inguinal hernia going to therapy, just trying to get out my car while wracked with pain and spasms.

I am sharing this because I had an epidural this morning. Second in three weeks. That first one failed over this past weekend. Spent the last two days on my back trying unsuccessfully to find comfort. Different from last year was that my insurer now would not allow him to treat 3 levels, only two. So we had to guess which two we would try. I am hopeful today's will carry me a while. I may be trying another in three weeks. (Three weeks is the new minimum time for coattail procedure as dictated by insurer)

I have 5 ESIs Monday. I really hope to get some relief

Laser spine institute performs the same minimally invasive surgery as the majority of surgeons in the area. They just call it “laser spine” and they pay lots of money for advertising.

I got diagnosed with the same thing last week. I've been suffering from intermittent lower back pain for the last 8-9 years, but ibuprofen for a couple days would generally take care of it.

About a month ago I had back pain that was more severe and wouldn't go away. After it lingering for two weeks, one morning I got out of bed and I was in excruciating pain. I couldn't walk, stand straight, or do much of anything at all.

I went to the family doctor because I was able to get in that morning. I got a steroid shot and an MRI. I was then referred to a neurosurgeon who said I had premature degenerative disc (I'm 37), and he recommended PT. I am supposed to see the PT next week, but it sounds like even with PT I'm going to have to learn to "deal with it" and be more careful bending/lifting.

The only positive thing I see is getting out of helping friends move.

Man frick those nerve glides. My sciatica always got worse after. Maybe my PT sucked. Hard to find a good one. Seems like most are just babysitters wasting my time or hurting me.