long term back problem

fungus · 08-01-2003, 11:02 AM

hi my name is dave i live in gosport in the uk,i am 47 yrs old. my problems started 18 yrs ago with severe sciatic after a lifting accident. ihad all the physio and traction etc to no avail.i had a milogram which revealed disc problems and in jan 1988 had a laminectomy. after about 12 mnths rest i returned to work in a managerial capacity. i was ok for 12 yrs, went back to my tools and hurt myself almost immedeiately.i had more useless physio and after about 18 mnths the decided to mri scan me. i had a large bulge at L4-L5 (laminectomy was on L6). this is where it all started going wrong. i was offered an enzyme injection into the disc which would shrink it, this had a 90% success rate, so i went in for it. iwent for my appointment which i was told would, with resttime,last about 4hrs and would be under local anthtc. the last i can remember was lying in the theatre with aneedle in the back of my hand. iwoke smoe time later surrounded by some very concerned faces. i asked why i was put under general and they said i was moving around too much. i was later discharged and went home. next day i felt sore and rested in bed. within 48 hrs i was paralised with pain and my wife called my doctor.i was ambulanced back to hospital. iwas there for 5 days recieving nothing but pain killers i left of my own accord as i could do that myself.i was in severe pain for about 2 wks and it never got better. i eventually saw the surgeon again and he couldnt give me any answers, he said "what do you suggest we do????" another scan maybe? after another 8 mnth painful wait i was scanned again revealing that the large bulge was now massive!
in 3 wks i had a discectomy (sept 2002)felt better after until i started physio again, all the pain came back with a vengeance and the consultant stopped it. i last saw him inmarch and he said i will get better and to rest till october!!i feel that something went wrong with the "chemo-neucleisis" as th injection was called. i keep getting fobbed off when i suggest this. i recently found out that this procedure is no longer used in that hospital! has anyone out there had a similar experience? i would dearly love to hear from you as i feel so let down by the n.h.s. painfully yours dave s.

Hazmat · 08-01-2003, 12:08 PM

Sorry to hear about all your pain. You have come to the right place. A couple of questions,
1. how many doctors have you seen. I am not that familiar with the the Health care system in the UK but it is always best to see more than one doc.
2. Have you had surgery? for something like yours a lamenectomy/discectomy is a treatment. I beleive you said it was one disc. The Lamenectomy can usually be done using non-invasive laser surgery, that leaves only a small incision and a short recovery time.
3. There are other options. After reading a lot of posts about disk replacement, that might also be an option. I believe europe is the only place that does those as of now but from what I have read the proceedure seem to be a viable and good option.
On another note you have come to the right place there are some very educated and informative people on this board. I think a lot of people will be more educated in this than I am but keep your options open and do research. There are a lot of treatment options out there so find the one that fits you best. Keep us posted and I hope this helps.
Sincerely,
Lane

------------------
18 years old no trauma but severe leg pain
traction for 2 weeks didn't work
Epidurals, steriods didn't work
1988 triple disk Lamenectomy L3-4,L4-5,L5-S1. good for about 6 months pain on and off for the next 12 years
EMG shows nerve damage right leg
Nov. 2002 Triple Disk Lemanectomy, discectomy L3-4,L4-5, L5-S1. WORSE. MRI shows scar tissue causing pain. Neurosergeon says nothing can be done.
Seeing PM doc on Neurontin 1800 mg daily stopped taking neurontin effecting job performace
endocet 5/325 everyday

fungus · 08-12-2003, 10:57 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by Hazmat:
Sorry to hear about all your pain. You have come to the right place. A couple of questions,
1. how many doctors have you seen. I am not that familiar with the the Health care system in the UK but it is always best to see more than one doc.
2. Have you had surgery? for something like yours a lamenectomy/discectomy is a treatment. I beleive you said it was one disc. The Lamenectomy can usually be done using non-invasive laser surgery, that leaves only a small incision and a short recovery time.
3. There are other options. After reading a lot of posts about disk replacement, that might also be an option. I believe europe is the only place that does those as of now but from what I have read the proceedure seem to be a viable and good option.
On another note you have come to the right place there are some very educated and informative people on this board. I think a lot of people will be more educated in this than I am but keep your options open and do research. There are a lot of treatment options out there so find the one that fits you best. Keep us posted and I hope this helps.
Sincerely,
Lane

hi, thanks for your comments. glad to hear that there are a lot of experts out there.i have seen abotu 5 different doctors and 2 surgeons. operations on L4/5/6. its the chemo-nucleosis i am worried about. kind regards, dave