I had this problem too until I had spinal fusion in 1985. They took bone from hip and fused to level 3-4-5. I am doing not tooo bad but still have pain but not in legs. Could hardly walk when this was happening. I was 39. Life is alot better now than then. Recovery was long -1year off work. I do heavy work in a factory. I guess my experience worked better than some tho......

I was just browsing the web tonight and so glad I found this msg board!! I was diagnosed with a pars defect around March of this year. Before that I had been on pain meds and chiropractic work, physical therapy for pain in my lower back for at least a year before that. I would love to talk to others who have this same issue. Some days I will be fine, others it feels like I am being stabbed with an ice pick. Acupuncture helps somewhat, as do corticosteroid injections at the nerve roots, but nothing is long lasting. I am very leery about surgery. I've not met anyone else who has this problem, and they cannot relate to the pain associated with it. Any takers? Thanks...

hi, I also was diagnosed w/ a pars defect and spondylolesthesis. the neurosurgeon said I'd probably want an operation in a year. that has been about 5 to 6 yrs. ago. but i've been getting steadily worse. now when I walk some distance my left leg gets weak and my knee hurts as well as pain radiates from my left lower back down the back of my leg. Also I can't sleep on my back anymore because it hurts my back and left leg. been scared of surgery. was told the holes where the nerves come off my spinal chord are restricted and need to be made bigger after which my spine needs to be stabilized w/ a fusion including rods and screws bridging the bad spot. I heard that immobilizing one joint can cause the one above and below to be more stressed which can be a problem. it is really hard to assess whether or not I should have this surgery. lately i've heard about where they are actually replacing the flattened disc w/ a plastic one. heard about it on national public radio and I think there is some info on their website. also would really like to talk to those who have had the surgery to find out how successful it is. plus i'll have to ante up at least 5000.00 for my ins. deductable.

pacwonder

hi, i'm naser, i was recently diagnosed with pars defect. I have a lot of questions about and would like to talk to you because you mentioned you had a surgery. I will appreciatte your help. :)

I was diagnosed with spondylolesthesis grade one and pars defect in 1994. With the information available at that that time I decided to go against the doctor recommendations about having surgey. I managed the pain with stretching, excercise, and OTC pain reducers. When I moved to Arizona last year I heard a radio ad for Vertebral Axial decompression (VAXD). I went through the treatments which took over six months to complete, but it has been a god send for the lower back and leg pain I was experiencing. For those of you who are experiencing this type of pain I would suggest you inquire about this non-invasive treatment. It worked very well for my condition. While the pain I experience is not completly gone, there are days where I don't feel any pain.

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Wow, it was great to find this site. I too have spondylolesthesis, Pars Defect. I was born with it at Grade I. Found out 3 years ago after moving and couldnt get out of bed. Finally they did an MRI and there it was. I had learned how to manage. What not to do, what to do, PT helped with exercises too but I also had an ESI and that worked GREAT. On Jan 25th I was rear ended by an SUV. Impact was ALL on my driver side rear. It pushed it into a Grade II and its been down hill since.
My neurosurgeon told me not to do surgery at Grade I. Now, I am having terrible pain, numbness and weakness. It is terribly frustrating as I am a Type A personality and I have been on disability for over 5 weeks. We have sent films to Vanderbilt for an opinion on the best way to do my procedure. I am looking at fusion at L-5/S-1 and then rods/screw bit from L-4-S-1. My doc wants to do in 2 separate procedures, fusion anteriorlly (from front) and rods/screws posteriorly, but his partner thinks it could be done in one, posteriorly. Now I wait for word from Vany and we go from there.
The pain is one thing but having your entire life altered and stopped, your forward progression - is even harder for me.
I am engaged and we were planning our wedding, hoped for late May, but open throughout summer months. Now we cant even plan that.
I would love some people to talk with. THanks for the place to just vent.
Also, since Im a type A personality, ive had sooo much time on my hands I have researched the crap out of this! Any help I can give, just ask! :)