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Old 08-17-2017, 10:21 AM
Blizzaga Blizzaga is offline
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Join Date: Nov 2016
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Hi Matt,

I am sad to hear that also you are suffering from the disabling pain. I wanted to weigh in by mentioning that, upon deciding on surgery, I never had any leg pain. Not even once. All my pain was in the lower back and bending over was also not possible. In my case, I also had severe trouble sitting.

I am not sure what you mean, when you say that it is more of a "mechanical issue" rather than "disc/nerve" issue. If your MRI shows that your discs are degenerated, have tears and there is a possibility of substance leaking out of them, then the pain may be nerve pain. I don't think having leg pain is or should be a prerequisite for ADR.

In my case, L4L5 and L5S1 were black on the MRI and one could see some small bulges. However, the bulges were somewhat minor (I find way worse pictures online), so it would not be 100 % obvious by just looking at the pictures that I had severe disabling pain. The important point was comparing the color of the discs to L3L4. L3L4 was not black on the MRI. This made me realize that L4L5 and L5S1 are both flawed and they together contribute to my pain. I did not need any discogram made. All I needed was the MRIs and analysis of the symptoms to conclude that replacing the discs will fix my problems. And so it did! My pain is gone now. You can read my outcome in the surgical outcome sections.

In your case, I would feel that getting several doctors opinions and getting all necessary tests done (extensive blood testing, MRIs and X-rays) must be done to get a clear picture on what is the issue. If you are able to confidently pinpoint your issues to the degenerated discs, like I was, then it makes perfect sense to proceed to ADR surgery.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Remodelme44 View Post
So far the doctors say my L5S1, L4L5, and L3L4 all have damage and or tears some worse than others and some no pain generated at all. For the most part I dont have pain down my legs except on flare ups, mine is mainly mechanical in the lower back. I work construction for a living and can work all day with little pain but bend over to tie my shoes and boom its out. All i get from doctors is do more stretching and excercises, and for the most part i agree somewhat but even with the PT it still goes out. Has anyone else had more of a mechanical issue than a disc/nerve issue?
__________________
2015 Lost ability to sit
2016 Gradually worsening despite conservative treatment
2016 L4-L5, L5-S1 activ L success!
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