Posted: 7/23/2017 2:30:03 AM EDT
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My l3-4,l4-5 discs are black as coal, I can barely walk. What are my options?
TIA |
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I'm pretty sure in spinal imaging you should be concerned about shape/bulging/thickness/etc. indicating impingement/injury not shade of gray/black. When were you injured? When was the imaging? How long have you been unable to walk comfortably?
eta We are talking about MRI, CT or x-ray right? Or do you have pics of your exposed spinal column? If so, post them up! Heck, post up ANY images of your spine, these guys are pretty good. |
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Not a doctor. But have had two spine surgeries.
Mine were black/dead and I was physically shorter than I once was. Talk to a competent doctor. Google "x-lif". ETA:. I had a surgery in 2011 for stenosis. It was a Lamenectomy or in laymans terms a "spinal decompression". A doctor can explain it much better. But my legs were slowly becoming heavier and heavier. This last surgery was for something like you have described. The natural curvature in my lumbar was gone and once the disc is black/dead, they aren't coming back. What was left of them. Before...Attached File After... Attached File Attached File Still in a lot of pain. But it's getting better. I went from dragging my legs around to being able to walk with a slightly altered gate. As well as now I'm strong enough to stand for longer periods. Before, I couldn't stand more than 4-5mins without terrible pain. I wish you the best. |
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Quoted:
I'm pretty sure in spinal imaging you should be concerned about shape/bulging/thickness/etc. indicating impingement/injury not shade of gray/black. When were you injured? When was the imaging? How long have you been unable to walk comfortably? Not exactly true. A black disk is essentially a dead disc. They are filled with a jelly like liquid substance and once black, they no longer are. A herniated disk is when that internal jelly is essentially squeezed out of the side. Many people have herniated discs and don't even know it. Also, a lot of the times a herniated or bulging disc will repair itself with proper rest and PT. Most folks don't know they have them until it's too late. You won't even notice a herniated disc until it puts pressure on a nerve. Once again, not a doctor, just spent a lot of time with docs, and suffering from similar problems OP seems to have. eta We are talking about MRI, CT or x-ray right? Or do you have pics of your exposed spinal column? If so, post them up! Heck, post up ANY images of your spine, these guys are pretty good. |
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What do you mean, black as coal?? Like, did you literally see them? Or just the images (which are, gee, black, white and gray) I'm not a spine doc, but there's nothing to work with there. Think of deteriorated rubber busings. The disk is no longer full of the fluid like substance. It's basically a dried up piece of rubber. (Yes, no doctor, and definitely an oversimplification.) But once black they aren't coming back if it's confirmed with imaging. |
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Blewout L5/L6, L6/S1 on the job in LE, fused Jan 2005
Been having problems ever since, pain mgt. Now L3/L4, L4/L5 are herniated or with annular tears so I've been waiting on spinal cord stimulator to relieve pain associated with the original fusion surgery, can only walk about 30ft right now, no more boom-boom with girl-san. The spinal stim works like a Taser in reverse, prevents the lower back from telling the brain that it hurts down there, whereas a Taser prevents the brain from telling your legs to run from the Po-leece. $100,000 device.......hope I don't lose the remote. 
Your case, OP, you may be a candidate for artificial disc replacement. If you are eligible I would go that route first, rather than fusing those 3 levels together causing you to lose that flexibility which put stress and wear on the discs about which can/will cascade with herniations and tears requiring further fusion or artificial discs. |