DogMom22
06-22-2006, 11:18 PM
I’m trying to figure out if my recent discogram which has been declared negative was maybe a false negative (I have not seen or talked to my doctor about the test results but I did hear him say the test was negative when he left the procedure room.)
The first disc that was injected and caused extreme pain but not my normal pain, it was on the other side of my body and radiated through my buttons and hip and into my side, it was very intense and made me cry (not sob, but lots of tears and moaning. I was given at least 2 doses of fentanyl and maybe a third (not sure as I was lightly sedated) to get the pain under control. When the next disc was injected the pain from the first one was still present and pretty intense and occupying most of my attention. I felt the second disc being injected as a deep pain and it was in the general area of where I feel my pain, but it did not replicate my pain fully in that it did not radiate in it’s usual way to my hip, groin and thigh. In addition the pain I felt was gone in about a second and it was nowhere as intense as what was still occurring from the first injection of the first disc. On this second injection, I was asked if I felt it and I said yes, but that it wasn’t my pain for the reasons I described above, but because I was drugged I was unable to describe these things, in fact I don’t think I even know why I answered that way then, it is only now looking back that I am wondering about this. The injected a third disc which was almost identical to the second except the pain was in a slightly different location but still in the same area where my back hurts. On this third disc I also remember wondering at the time why they kept asking me if I was feeling what they were doing because the other side of my body was killing me from the first one and that was all I could really think about.
So, now I am looking back at all of this. I thought the discogram would be considered positive if the injection of contrast into the disc replicated my normal pain and the doctor also saw some kind of damage to the disc under the fluoroscope. I thought that in order for my pain to be considered to be replicated it would have to be it’s full syndrome with all it’s normal aching and radiation. Also because of the intensity of the pain on the other side of my body from the first disc I think I maybe then also expected to feel the same intensity when they tested the last two discs and when I didn’t it made me think my pain wasn’t replicated. The other thing that is kind of weird, is that when the last 2 discs were being tested, I didn’t even know that was what they were doing. I remember them asking me if I felt them and I did and answered, but at the time I didn’t know why this was going on. All I was really aware of was the other side of my back hurting and wondering what they were going to do about that, cause I thought I was dying and couldn’t understand why they kept asking me if I was feeling other disturbances in my back. I know this is all distorted by the meds they gave me.
So, if when I meet with my doctor next he tells me there was damage to either or both of the last 2 discs that were tested, do you think it is likely that I unknowingly answered incorrectly and my test has resulted in a false negative, something I have read that is fairly common – maybe the fentanyl I received dulled my reaction to the pain – or that I was only suppose to tell them if I felt pain in the ‘area’ and that it didn’t have to radiate to my hip and groin and be intense like it was when the first disc was tested?
I probably sound nuts – why does this woman want her discs to be bad? Well I don’t, but I suspect they are bad and if they are, I would like a diagnosis so I can get proper treatment. It is very difficult to get doctors to treat you when they can find nothing wrong with you and very difficult to live when something is so clearly wrong and you can’t function. Also, my symptoms are close to disc problems and I have felt for a long time this is what the problem is, it has just taken me 3 years to get a discogram as all my other tests are ‘clean’. I need to either rule this in or out.
Thanks for any thoughts.
The first disc that was injected and caused extreme pain but not my normal pain, it was on the other side of my body and radiated through my buttons and hip and into my side, it was very intense and made me cry (not sob, but lots of tears and moaning. I was given at least 2 doses of fentanyl and maybe a third (not sure as I was lightly sedated) to get the pain under control. When the next disc was injected the pain from the first one was still present and pretty intense and occupying most of my attention. I felt the second disc being injected as a deep pain and it was in the general area of where I feel my pain, but it did not replicate my pain fully in that it did not radiate in it’s usual way to my hip, groin and thigh. In addition the pain I felt was gone in about a second and it was nowhere as intense as what was still occurring from the first injection of the first disc. On this second injection, I was asked if I felt it and I said yes, but that it wasn’t my pain for the reasons I described above, but because I was drugged I was unable to describe these things, in fact I don’t think I even know why I answered that way then, it is only now looking back that I am wondering about this. The injected a third disc which was almost identical to the second except the pain was in a slightly different location but still in the same area where my back hurts. On this third disc I also remember wondering at the time why they kept asking me if I was feeling what they were doing because the other side of my body was killing me from the first one and that was all I could really think about.
So, now I am looking back at all of this. I thought the discogram would be considered positive if the injection of contrast into the disc replicated my normal pain and the doctor also saw some kind of damage to the disc under the fluoroscope. I thought that in order for my pain to be considered to be replicated it would have to be it’s full syndrome with all it’s normal aching and radiation. Also because of the intensity of the pain on the other side of my body from the first disc I think I maybe then also expected to feel the same intensity when they tested the last two discs and when I didn’t it made me think my pain wasn’t replicated. The other thing that is kind of weird, is that when the last 2 discs were being tested, I didn’t even know that was what they were doing. I remember them asking me if I felt them and I did and answered, but at the time I didn’t know why this was going on. All I was really aware of was the other side of my back hurting and wondering what they were going to do about that, cause I thought I was dying and couldn’t understand why they kept asking me if I was feeling other disturbances in my back. I know this is all distorted by the meds they gave me.
So, if when I meet with my doctor next he tells me there was damage to either or both of the last 2 discs that were tested, do you think it is likely that I unknowingly answered incorrectly and my test has resulted in a false negative, something I have read that is fairly common – maybe the fentanyl I received dulled my reaction to the pain – or that I was only suppose to tell them if I felt pain in the ‘area’ and that it didn’t have to radiate to my hip and groin and be intense like it was when the first disc was tested?
I probably sound nuts – why does this woman want her discs to be bad? Well I don’t, but I suspect they are bad and if they are, I would like a diagnosis so I can get proper treatment. It is very difficult to get doctors to treat you when they can find nothing wrong with you and very difficult to live when something is so clearly wrong and you can’t function. Also, my symptoms are close to disc problems and I have felt for a long time this is what the problem is, it has just taken me 3 years to get a discogram as all my other tests are ‘clean’. I need to either rule this in or out.
Thanks for any thoughts.