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anyone had this? in constant pain from herniated L5-S1 disk for about 6 weeks, it's horrible but slowly getting better. I am told this is a good option. Of course my physical therapist recommends PT, the orthopedic surgeon i saw recommended .... guess what... surgery and the pain managemant/anesthesiologist recomended this. I guess it's the latest/more accurate/lower dose of epidural injections.
I am freaked out about having a 7 inch needle anywhere near my spine, don't care how simple it sounds.
don't just do something..... sit there
the odd title drew me in..the description gave me the heebie jeebies that sounds frickin awful...the only thing I like going in my body is food anything else just aint right
Go less invasive and see if it works. If PT doesnt wor go with another option. Surgery should be the last resort. Of course you may be in pain longer.
I had en epidural during labour (pre-op for c-section). They did me the favour of not showing me the needle. They explained the risks to me, and it seemed like a reasonable procedure, when you compare risks from surgery. I agree with other posters here, tho, go PT first, if that doesn't yield improvments, you could think about it. Sugery is always last.
Best of luck, back pain sucks the big one.
This would be the way to go IMHO. I am a surgeon. Although "To CUT is to CURE" and "STEEL is for REAL!" I always start as minimally invasive as possible. I also do a lot of my own spinal/epidurals and the risks are so low you should try that route (anesth/pain mgmt)first.
HC
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Holden Cain, ObGyn..."People pulling people out of people"
thanks for the comments everyone. after 3 weeks of nothing but popping pain pills and then 3 weeks of low intensity (because i can't stretch or even roll over without pain) phyiscal therapy i guess i am gonna let them shoot me up.
don't just do something..... sit there
The bad thing about herniated disks is they hurt like hell. The good thing is that they nearly always get better. The natural history(what happens if you just do nothing) for this condition is complete resolution of pain and return to function in several months (6ish) treatment can shorten this time frame.
The transforaminal injection will put a antiiflammatory agent (depomedrol often) around the nerve root and if it works it will give you some pain relief but it will not shorten the natural history of the condition.
I have had 2 herniated disks the first 15 yrs ago I had surgery on and the second I treated conservitvly. If I had a thrid and I was suffering I would cosider the transforaminal and keep up with a good chiropractic and rehab program.
You must make sure that whoever does the injection does it under fluroscopy becasue if they dont they will be doing it blind and could miss the affected nerve entirly and put a needle somewhere it aught not to be (this can be very bad)
Good luck adn dont worry you will get back on track and be able to swim , bike and run.
<<Good luck and don't worry you will get back on track and be able to swim , bike and run. >>
gonna put that on my wall so can look at it. also hand it out to skeptical family members and friends who say (this is an exact quote- i swear) "All that running and stuff is going to shake your internal organs loose" and similar.
Yes he's using a flouroscope, he's done a few thousand of them so hope he knows where to stick that frikkin needle by now.
sp
don't just do something..... sit there
In my practice (chiropractic) I have treated literally thousands of people with herniated disks. Also a good read of athe literature will confirm that the vast majority of patients do well.
One of the most difficult things I find about treating people with discogenic pain is to get them to believe that the pain will go away and that they will function well at or near 100%. Almost everyone in your position is skeptical, frustrated and a bit scared. I'm sure that whome ever is doing your injection will tell you much the same thing.
I have had two herniations and my back now feels as good as most other people although I do get episodes of mechanical(not disc) low back pain they are easily managed and rarely interfere with my training.
[reply]anyone had this? in constant pain from herniated L5-S1 disk for about 6 weeks, it's horrible but slowly getting better. I am told this is a good option. Of course my physical therapist recommends PT, the orthopedic surgeon i saw recommended .... guess what... surgery and the pain managemant/anesthesiologist recomended this. I guess it's the latest/more accurate/lower dose of epidural injections.
I am freaked out about having a 7 inch needle anywhere near my spine, don't care how simple it sounds.[/reply]
A simpler and more effective option in my opinion (being a board certified anesthesiologist and pain specialist in a prior life) is a simple epidural steroid injection. Whatever, he (or she) has told you a selective nerve root injection is not "simple" to do it right. Further, an epidural injection does not require xray guidance and the injectate sloshes out through the foramen including other levels that could be involved also. There is little benefit to any reduced dose the anesthesiologist may give as larger doses have no ill effects unless continued for long periods of time. And, probably will cost you and your insurance company oodles less. Ask for some data proving the benefits over simple epidural injection. It doesn't exist.
Frank
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Frank,
An original Ironman and the Inventor of PowerCranks