back pain questions

Hi im Dan, a new member here and my first post.....

3 weeks ago i had an MRI done and was told i had a Bulging disc in L3/L4 and Degenarative/Detereorating disk in L4/L5, and a mild canal stenosis... This is all gibberish to me lol, ive been all over the internet looking for answers but can only get bits and pieces, currently im waiting to go to get my first cortisone shots and im pretty nervous not knowing what to expect.

My first question is about the cortisone shots.. are they painful? anything to worry about?

Second, Im young, 27 that is, too young they say for going under the knife or anything like that which im fine with! aha .. But i work in construction, heavy lifting, bending, twisting, and on my feet all day. Is it gonna be possible to continue my job the way my back is? or am i gonna defeat the purpose.

Any help from anyone would be grateful, Thanks again - Dan

Hi and welcome!

Let me see if I can explain some of your results to you...as we age, all of our discs will loose some of their moisture , the older we get , the more this will happen.  This is what is called disc desication or degenerative disc disease, which is a real misnomer. It is not a disease per se, but a natural part of the aging process for anyone over the age of 21 or so. People see the disc disease and automatically think that this is something to be concerned about. Normally, it is not.

A disc bulge, depending on how large it is , is also most times a normal thing on MRI. It can be positional, meaning, that you could have been not exactly straight, in the tube, which can cause the appearance of a bulge. Even if it is not related to your position, it normally is not of major concern.

Mild canal stenosis is something of a concern, and may be because of the additional stress you put on your back, being in construction and doing repeated heavy lifting. Mild indicates that it is not pinching a nerve or the spinal canal, which is a really good thing.

The steroid injections can help to reduce any inflammation that you may have, and it may be that your back pain is related to your job.

The injections can be a bit painful, depending on how they are done, but it is a very quick pain from the injections used to numb the area they are going to inject the steroids into.

However, the steroid injections can and often do, worsen pain levels for a few days after the injections. This should subside within a few days, and using ice and alternating with heat, plus any other directions given to you by the pain management doctor should take care of any increased pain levels. Remember when using ice or heat, 20 minutes on, and an hour or more off........you don't want to burn the areas by leaving either one on too long.

Good luck and if we can answer any other questions, just ask away.
Sandi

Ask your doctor some of these concerns, as they seem important to you than maybe your
doctor can better describe this to you, Straydog/Susie did a very good job of trying to
explain it, but sometimes a doctor's explanation is needed...Injections are not a cure all, no sometimes they
help other times they don't, for the first 24 hours after the injections you need to ice the
injection site and rest up, so usually it's best to take a day or two off work...
You do need to call and see if they are going to put you to sleep, if so you can't eat
or drink anything for 12 hours prior and you'll need that day off work and someone to drive you home
Also it might be good to read back thru older postings on injections or nerve blocks...
My Father was an electric engineer, so that is a tough job, doing all the wiring on a house
and up to code can be very hard work indeed...
Well wishes to you, I hope you can get some relief from the injections and keep us posted...

Post Edited (Chartreux) : 6/14/2011 12:27:19 PM (GMT-6)

Hi Killa and I too would like to welcome you to Healing Well's chronic pain forum. I see that you have been given some excellent info from Mrs123 about your situation. She has had back surgeries and can probably give better input than someone that has not been down that road before.

All in all, it sounds like you are not a surgical candidate and thats good. I think all of us were afraid of the injections and that is normal. I have had so many different kind over the years they all sort of run together, lol. Granted none of us are drs here we can only speak from experience and that is pretty much it.

Anytime you have an injury to an area in your body, it can leave you predisposed to further injury later on down the road. An injury is going to weaken an area somewhat. It is a possibility and no one can say for sure whether or not this will happen to you.

A very good website that you can go to to get accurate info is Spine Universe.com.. I think when you get the time you should go there and you can read up on what you have going on.

Anyway, I wanted to pop on and tell you welcome aboard. Take care.

Hey Killa. I'm Linda and brand new here. I'm really sorry to read that with your chosen trade you are having bad back issues already at 27. I had workers comp once (my 2nd auto accident) I'm happy for you that it was settled. I know that they have to be certain that you were really hurt but it doesn't make it any easier that you had to wait for it. That said, welcome back to the forum.

I'm personally against getting these injections. I know steroids are one of those drugs that some people (asthmatics, renal patients, ect) HAVE to have in order to survive.

BUT that said, there is this "standard" of practice to help the spine patient feel better and let's face it we all want a quick fix and get on with our lives as we know it. Who has time when you have a mortgage, kids, a job and well LIFE TO LIVE!

I had 2 injections in my neck (I have both neck and low back injuries and fusions in both) It helped me for maybe 4 or 5 days? Then it was back to the regular thing with how I felt.

Pain is one of those things that give you indicators and tells you something is wrong. Unless you correct, it you'll continue having pain (yes even if it includes changing what you may do for a living) if you still have workers comp they can pay for employment education so that you can still make the same amount but learn a different trade at their expense I think it's called vocational education or vocational rehab. Check with the lawyer that handled your case.

All this being said even doctors spine doctors know that injections of steroids into the spine can break down the surrounding tissues.

It weakens the tendons and will break down the segments even quicker. Why do they do it? Because as fast as we need to go to keep up with our lives we need a quick fix so we submit ourselves to this.

If your physical therapist didn't do much for you try and find another. Ones that have OMPT or orthopedic manual physical therapy techniques I've found are the best.

I have a fusion in my low back called XLIF it's my second surgery @ L4/L5 level (the first surgery I had was just a laminectomy) But the level they worked on has scar tissue built around the nerve and it's tethering my nerve. It can't glide easily. The "stenosis" that re-occured means that I had stenosis before the surgery and while I started doing OK after surgery during the first 12 months post op a osteophyte or in laymens terms a piece of bone grew back into the same place.

Besides having the back pain I have leg pain and possibly complex regional pain syndrome now. It's basically kinda like my body has freak out at all the nerve damage and the leg is swelling, the muscles are contracting and I can't do much walking or anything right now. It's not a nice way to have to introduce myself but it is what it is shocked

I'm in the medical field but not a doctor. I only wish to share why I have strong opinions against having steroid injections in the spine.

Whatever you decide make an informed decision looking at all the options.

It's my opinion if being an electrician causes you a degenrating back you're definately young enough to maybe find a new passion. I wish you didn't have to think looking at that, but if workers comp will pay for vocational rehab, why not take advantage of that??

I wish you well in whatever your decision yeah

BTW the billing for MD's or pain management doctors to do these injections range from state to state but in my state my doctor was paid a bit over 3,000 per injection x's 2 injections. He had 15 people on the schedule that day. I just thought I'd add that in too.

CHEERS, Linda