[PghPat]

I have no idea if I'm posting this in the right area so if it's the wrong place please direct me to where I should be. This is my first time on this board.

I am 71 years old and have had no serious problems until two years ago. Out of the blue one afternoon walking from the car into a dept store I started limping. I actually had to laugh thinking I was loosing it......no pain and no reason to limp. I had no accident, didn't fall or bump my foot or leg.

Well, after a couple months I went to a PCP and she sent me for physical therapy....no help there. I was sent to a neurologist and he sent me for more therapy. By then I was having back pain and had minimal invasive back surgery and had worst pain after that. After 6 months of very bad pain I went to a different back dr (a Steeler dr) and he said no doubt about it Ihad to have back surgery......fusion L4-L5. Surgery went well and have no real back problems other than if I stand too long. I can handle that and just Tylenol helps.

BUT I am still limping. A physical therapist before any of the two back surgeries discovered that I limp because the front of my left foot is dead.....can't stand on my left tip toe - AT ALL. That was almost 2 years ago and still limp. The back dr said it may be a dead nerve and mabye it would heal itself after surgery and if it didn't within a year it wouldn't heal......it didn't. But now, in the past 6 months I find that after walking not far at all I just have no energy and have to stop and sit a while before I can go farther. Someone suggested a vascular dr and I went. He did a doppler and it was fine but then he said he wanted to do a doppler with exercise. When I went for that they put me on a treadmill and had it at 2 mile per hour. I went exactly 2 minutess and 42 seconds and I couldn't go another step. When I reached about the 2 minute mark my knees started going down - like as if I were going to get on my knees. By the time 42 more seconds I was hold on for dear life because I was going down...still NO pain. The man doing the test stopped it and put me back on the table. My heart was pounding for quite a while. Well, the test was negative.....no blockage.

Now what......where do I go. I just went to my daughter-in-laws today to try her treadmill. She insisted on stopping it at 2 minutes and 30 seconds when I was going down. Again I was pretty short of breath....but the shortness of breath comes AFTER I get off the tread mill.

I just don't know where to go no and the vascular dr had no suggestions. Can anyone here relate or know where I need to go now. I sure would appreciate it.

Thanks you! Pat