26 Years Old With Low Back Problems ( dislocated disc ) Posted: 11-12-07 20:00pm
I'm a 26 year old female and i have three
dislocated disc in my back. I first had
pain in my lower back 4 years ago were I
could not walk at all and had to be on my
back for four months. I finally recovered
on my own from that but just about 7
months ago I started having back pain and
pain going down my right leg it goes from
the back of my right thin to the middle of
my knee. We found that one of the
dislocated disc is pinching one of my
nerves that would explain the pain. I can
set some times, other times I can't. I
can't walk to long on it or stand because
it hurt really bad. I've seen a
chiropractor who did therapy on me and
cracked it until we got an MRI done and
found all the three disc dislocated. I'm
getting an epidural done in a week. I had
a few questions about an epidural and if
any one can help me.
My first question is will an epidural
help with the pain going down my leg and
what is the % change of it? Does this
sound like it might have to do with a
pinch nerve? I am also really scared of
getting this done does any one have some
advice for me?
Thank you all for reading this!
|
Spicey
New User, Becoming EHEALTHy
Joined: 02 Nov 2007 Posts: 8 Location: , UK
Posted: 11-13-07 13:13pm
Hi there,
I'm not a doctor so I can only tell you
about my experience with an epidural
steroid injection in 2003.
As far as I understand, when they do this
proceedure they are injecting steroids
directly into the area of the back that is
being affected by pain. Steroids can
reduce any swelling in the area, therefore
if the nerves are being pinched by a
swelling in the area then it can help with
that.
I'll be honest with you, it wasn't a
particularly pleasant thing to go through.
It's a very peculiar feeling when the
injection goes in and I felt very numb for
several hours aftewards. They wouldn't
let me come home until the feeling had
completely returned and I was able to walk
and stand ok. I was also very sore for a
few days afterwards too and needed pretty
much complete bedrest for 2 days. I have
heard of several people on other forums
where this proceedure has been really
helpful to them. It didn't actually work
for because in the end I needed surgery
but hopefully it will work for you.
I hope this helps a little bit. Try not
to worry (easier said than done I know - I
remember how scared I was beforehand!),
this is far less invasive than surgery and
may do the trick for you. Good luck and I
hope things work out for you.
|
Tyton
New User, Becoming EHEALTHy
Joined: 25 Sep 2007 Posts: 29 Location: ,
Posted: 11-14-07 15:03pm
Hi Zeldabm27 and welcome to the forum,
Spicey provided an excellent description
of what seems to be the normal experience
from the patient’s perspective regarding
the injection and recovery from the
injection. The content (medication used
in the injection) of the injection,
depending upon the purpose for the
injection can vary. Although it is most
commonly a combination of numbing agents
and anti-inflammatory agents (steroids),
the amount of each can be adjusted.
Patients like myself who experience
steroidal flushes will and do receive
injections containing little to no
steroids.
In addition to the information that Spicey
provided I’d like to add that epidural
and facet joint injections permit contact
of steroidal and other injected agents
with the bones surrounding the injection
site for up to 12 months following the
injection. The good news for those
patients who do achieve positive results
from the injections is that they can
obtain relief for up to twelve months.
The bad news is some patients receive no
relief while others receive affects of
varying degrees, lasting for varying
amounts of time. The really bad new is,
bones exposed to steroids degenerate at an
accelerated rate and continue to do so for
as long as the steroid is present
(approximately 12 months).
It’s a bit of a crapshoot regarding what
you might expect in terms of relief. I
will however keep my fingers crossed and
hope that you are one of the fortunate
ones who receives optimal relief.
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