Sorry for the delay...been super busy with work and life in general.
Thank you all for the replies.
So I saw Dr. Delamarter, after reviewing the films he feels I should have a fusion at L5-S1 and Pro-Disc at L4-L5. Very nice the entire time I saw him, extremely supportive and was very reassuring of the entire procedure. Has done a lot of work for police officers on Southern California and if I was going to do it state side I would feel confident going to him.
On the flip side when I asked about other discs out there, in essence he stated the Pro-Disc is the top of the line and he doesn't foresee anything better coming out for the next five to ten years.
I have done quite a bit of reading on fusions at L5-S1 and I am not totally against it and since I do have some mild to moderate wear at the facet joint there I could see myself having problems there in the future regardless of the artificial disc.
I have also sent my films to Dr. Dare in England and await his response and I have a skype consultation with Dr. Clavel on Thursday.
Maybe someone could enlighten me to the difference between facet pain versus nerve/disc pain.
If I was to chart out my pain it would be as follows:
1.) Starting at the right hip bone, down three inches and then three inches back towards my right glute is the main source of pain. A deep burning and stabbing pain that make is very difficult to even stretch.
2.) Sciatica on left side, starting in glute and going down to the knee area.
3.) Extreme cramping in both of my hip flexors/groin area. Some days one side is better than the other, no consistency to either. I can feel a difference depending on whether or not I drive or ride shotgun at work.
4.) General hip pain on both sides, kinda sore and achy like when the whether changes.
5.) Slight numbness or tingling in right calf and general pain in my right shin area.
6.) Extreme pain in my right knee for whatever reason.
No general pain in my back area, I can feel the stiffness in it if I don't use my inverter but really my back feels good, usually just hips, groin and legs that feel crappy. If any of this is related to facet degeneration or you have experienced this and it was found to be facet joints instead please let me know.
Thank you all again for your help in deciding what to do.
