Hello everyone,

I finally went back to the dr for the check up after the nucleoplasty,He said that I have the L5 S1 annular tear and it is leaking.I asked was the nucleopasty just a waste of effort and time.He said that since 1995 I had been complaining of pain and since i had every kind of treatment injection,therpy,chiro,and nucleopasty,That he felt it was time to see a neurosurgeron,I was referred back to one I have seen early on in my treatment.I just wonder how bad does the pain have to be to have surgery,I have lived with pain since 1995,It has progressively gotten worse.It used to be around a 4 now it is like a 7.I have pretty much constant burning in both my feet and with leg pain.Does anyone Know what kind of surgery they do for a annular tear and herniated disk.I had thought this viscious cycle was over and that i had found a dr that was gonna be able to fix my back,but now I am off again going to another dr,after the nucleopasty failed..I know that I will always live with a certain amount of pain,But i dont believe this is in no way normal and needs to have some kind of treatment done to it.If that is surgery then lets do it already.I just know some dr's are very conservative and I dont want to jump into just anything,But I feel I need a little more aggresivise treatment after 9 years.I just want to find something or do something to put a end to some of this pain.Ty soo much

Think about it.
You have had this pain for 9 years.
You can get another surgery done right?
what do you have to lose?
If I were you, I would see about 3-4 different orthos, see what they have to say. Then, if they think you should get surgery..Go for it. Life is going through ****. Some of us are meant to, the rest just have a free ride. But it makes us all stronger in the end.
Good luck.

What state are you in?

As far as the annular tear that isnt something they can't fix. Basically youre probably looking at a laminectomy/microdiscectomy. Maybe even just a laminectomy if the hernia is real big. How large is your herniation? The laminectomy is basicall the removal of bone and is usually the first part of the microdiscectomy. They will enter the area through about a 1 1/2" incision and move the muscle out of the way. They then remove a piece of bone to access the nerve. After carefully moving the nerve out of the way they'll scrape the disc material which is irritating the nerve. Then they sew ya back up and your done. It's about a 4 hour procedure and you'll probably stay just one night in the hospital. I had mine on January 26th on the L5/S1 for a 15mm herniation. Like you I had lived with pain for some time until it got to the point of being dibilitating. It took a good 3 months for the nerve pain to subside and I actually just had another surgery last week on the L4/L5 which was causing foot drop. Some say that after having one level done the one above usually goes too and I just may be a classic example. Surgery is a major decision but I think I'd do it all over again to relieve that excruciating pain I once had in my left butt, leg and foot. Good luck with whatever you decide.
Kevin

I am in kentucky,My situation is so messed up,I have been going to the dr's here in my home town for 9 years and just last month the radiologist that owns the clinic here in my home town got busted for misreading mamograms and MRI"S and x-rays...SO they fired him and they are in legal battles right now with people.But For this 9 year visious cycle I have had 6 mri's and mylograms,that were read by this dr that got fired.Every last one of them.They have went back on him for at least 15 years of misreading these films.So I truely believe that is why everyone of my films showed nothing wrong.So I was refered to another clinic last month where the did a discogram and a cat scan that showed the annular tear and herniation at level L5 S1...So then i knew it wasn't in all my head and so did my family.I thought i had been rescued from this pain,But they have refered me back to the neuro I saw early on in my treatment that told me mri and my myleo were negitive.And to get up out of the wheel chair i was in at the time (had been down in my back for 2 weeks when i saw him) and there was nothing he could do.So NOW i have to go back and see this man.I am just so disgusted and aggervated.I feel like this cycle never ends.This is where my insurance has sent me.