This is my first posting. I'm confused and thought I would seek some advice. About 8 months ago, I began to develop numbness and pain in the right foot. It gradually extended up the leg to the buttocks. To make a long story short(podiatrist,physical medicine doctors,physical therapy, chiropractor, epidurals,pain drugs, accupuncture!), the bottom line is that my mri's show L4-L5, L5-S1 and L3-L4 anomalies that coincide with the symptoms. I am able to manage. The pain is never sharp, but it is very annoying and increasingly continuous. Two surgeons, at major centers, say it is a common stenosis problem ie a mix of hemilaminotomies, foraminotomies and partial medial facetectomies(all of which would preserve the left side and central spine structures) have an 80 to 90 % chance of relieving the symptoms with "only" a 2% chance of destabilizing problems and a less than 1% serious complication chance. One says that I should do it relatively soon and the other says waiting will do no harm. I can manage ok on 1-3,50 mg tramadols a day, but I'm uncomfortable and it's beginning to affect the way I live and think. Should I go ahead?? One surgeon says it would involve an overnight hospital stay and two weeks at home without driving. The second says that he would do it with microsurgery on an out-patient basis with 5 or so days at home. The latter sounds a lot let invasive. Has anyone had these procedures? What were they like?? Thanks for any comments.
Alan