Help de-coding MRI results please
 

About a month ago, I started experiencing horrible pain in my lower back, which was beginning to radiate down my right leg. I was set up with an MRI.

After a week and no news, I called my doctor and was told by the receptionist that answered the phone my MRI results were negative. I was still in pain, but it had decreased, so I figured I just had some form of muscle strain.

I returned to the doctor today due to recurring pain. It wasn't anywhere near as bad as the pain I had experienced upon my first visit, but it was returning. I reported to my doctor that I had called and was told my MRI results were negative. He informed me that, in fact, my MRI results showed some disc bulges, though no impingement.

He printed off the MRI results for me and gave me pain medication and an order for physical therapy. I was wondering if someone could further explain these results to me and possibly explain why my results were reported to me as being negative. The results are as follows:

"Findings: Vertebral heights are maintained. Marrow signal appears normal. Disc spaces are maintained. There is normal disc signal. The conus appears normal at L1-L2. Distal aorta does not appears dilated. No spondylolisthesis. There is levoscoliosis.

Axial images at L1-L2 show no spinal or foraminal stenosis.
L2-L3 demonstrates a very minimal central disc bulge without impingement.
L3-L4 shows minimal central/left disc bulge without impingement.
L4-L5 appears unremarkable although facet hypertrophy is present.
L5-S1 demonstrates a broad-based central disc protrusion without evidence of focal impingement."

Can anymore shed some light on this for me?

Thanks so much!

Hi zipher~
 

First of all I want to say, I am not a doctor. I have had a lot of spinal surgeries though. My guess is, you are fairly young. I say this because your MRI says: mild bulge with no impingement, no stenosis, no spondylolisthesis. They don't do surgery on mild bulge's. I have had surgery on this because mine fell into the spinal cord. Stenosis means narrowing of the cord and spondylolisthesis means the slipping foward or backward of a vertebra over the one below it. (It is usually L5/S1.)

I'm sorry, but I don't know what Levoscoliosis is. You might surgery later on down the road, but as long as you see the word mild decribed on an MRI try not to worry about it. I have had five surgeries and I still have pain and need pain medicine.
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Fancylady:)