Quote:
Originally Posted by Pendora
Hi! I am new here and want some suggestions on how to procede to my next step of care. In May of 2008 I had a laminectomy/discetomy on L5-S1 for a herniated disc with nerve compression. The surgery worked great for a few years but now I am in a constant state of pain. My last MRI was in 2011 showed bulging discs and severe facet arthritis and degenerative disc disease. I am currently on Pain management with oxycotin. I went to a spine specialist and he said he could do a fusion but that my other discs are at risk so he said it was a 50/50 chance of helping or hurting worse! I have also done multiple lumbar epidurals (no pain relief) and facet injections (no relief). I am now doing PT but the therapist told me that the fact of the matter is I have a bad back and nothing really is going to help. I still am trying the PT but alot of it is lying on my back and it takes me a couple of days to recover from it. I just recently got approved for SSDI ( thank goodness!). I'm just tired of being in pain and getting really depressed. Any ideas on what I could do next besides surgery? Thanks for listening.
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I would recommend the fusion surgery. Do the least amount of levels recommended. Sadly, back pain and DDD usually result in more surgeries but they make a difference between. I have had 4 fusion surgeries. This last one is the most major one. After each surgery I have been able to have increased mobility and decreased pain. Its worth the surgery if you have debilitating pain. I recommend researching your surgeon!!! My first surgeon was a hack but my 3rd and 4th surgeries were done by the spinal team at Harborview Hospital in Seattle and this team teaches at the UW, so they have amazing abilities and area capable of the state of the art surgical strategies. It is definitely worth the surgery with the proper orthopedic spinal surgeons.
