[EE03]

Okay, it seems to me that my doctors are really down playing the situation with my bulging disc at C5 & 6. I have neurological deficits as a result of this, and a whole bunch of other issues with it too. But, I also have a chronic pain condition with my shoulder that seems to have them baffled as well. Anyway, the neurosurgeon I saw doesn't think that my disc warrants any sort of surgical intervention and thinks that my neck looks good. The ortho docs mention it, and don't really discuss the kind of distress I'm in. The one that discovered the neurological deficits did document those and he is the one who sent me to the great pain doc I'm seeing. My Pain doc, who is an anesthesiologist, has diagnosed the following: mononeuritis occipital neuralgia, cervical spondylosis, cervical disc displacement, cervical radiculopathy, and cervical degenerative disc disease. All of this, results from an old car accident which involved years of different treatments, three surgeries, and ongoing therapies, etc... So, I'm a little confused about the way they present this. Does anyone have any thoughts on this? Or am I just being overly sensitive about this.
ellena

[EE03]

I posted here because I guess I'm thinking that what I'm feeling pain wise is the beginning of a long road of pain. At least, that seems to be a recurring theme among the posts dealing with spine problems. Perhaps the doctors don't say much about it because they just want to wait and see, and I've been waiting a long time here and I'm not sure that they are giving me the best information. Oh well, at least putting it on here somehow makes me feel better but I'm not sure why. ee

[Jomar]

Hi,
Your questions and some of your symptoms and the car accident that you had, make me want to suggest that you might want to read a bit on our Thoracic Outlet Syndrome forum.
The symptoms of TOS can be confused or overlap with C spine problems, not always of course, but the mention of your shoulder involvement and previous surgeries etc {scar tissue??} anyway I just wanted to mention TOS and post the link for you.
http://neurotalk.psychcentral.com/forum24.html
be sure to check out the useful sticky thread.

[EE03]

Jo, thanks for the response, but TOS has been suggested and sort of explored, but no real definitive answer and no one has ordered any imaging studies, just an EMG which was done by a physiatrist who suggested some other condition which doesn't fit and he didn't fully explore nerve function to rule it out TOS, but made it appear as though he did in his report. My GP read his report and laughed at it. I guess he found some of his writings and opinions ridiculous, but I can't get any further info out of him regarding the report. And the NS is another story all together, so hence my continued confused state. ellena

[Jane]

Given your history, you could go to three or four different specialists and come away with a long list of problems which may or may not be accurate. Simply put, it sounds like your cervical area continues to deteriorate.

After three surgeries and a boatload of non-invassive therapies, your best bet is probably to stick with the pain mgt. doc and try to stay on top of your symptoms. From time to time, your P. doc may want a surgical evaluation as a second opinion and to justify pain mgt. Personally, I wouldn't agree to anymore surgery unless I was experiencing four alarm symptoms and the pain doc insisted that it was in your best interest.

I hope this problem remains confined to the cervical area. If one is predisposed to degenerative problems, those darn car wrecks can set off problems there never seem to end. Best wishes.

[EE03]

Jane, thanks for the reply. The surgeries I've had haven't been to the cervical area, two to the hand and one to the shoulder. The paraspinal muscles and the levator scapula stay in a state of spasm, and can be a complicating factor for the ON as the nerve passes through the muscles that stay tight, and this shoulder thing has them all confused as this appears to be a result of the injury/surgery to the shoulder which presurgery, was unstable. I had pain to the shoulder post surgery, and with the disc, the pain escalated. It took me four months to get to pain management after being referred to the NS, physiatrist, myelogram, EMG, and then back to the ortho. The NS tried to send me to two different physiatrists who refused to treat me, stating that they didn't believe they could do anything for me. So, the ortho sent me to the PM doctor I'm with, which I'm really happy with him and he is a jem. The delay for treatment stems from the insurance company, which needs no further explanation I'm sure. Anyway, I appreciate your input, but all the research I find doesn't indicate that everyone is bound to get this. Prior injuries do predispose people to these problems. The initial ortho who did the first two surgeries advised me to keep the medical open on this as he foresaw future problems. I'm grateful that he was honest with me.

Take care