Hello,

I am new to this site, a bit scared, but overall holding up pretty well. Date of sports injury January 2013, so I'm coming up 1.5 years. I am taking (only) 2 Aleve at bedtime, so I hope this is bodes well for now/long-term, as well. Oh yeah, 54yo male, hwp good, athletic, etc.

MRI (Duke University) states the following: A 3mm Anterolisthesis of C7 on T1. Mild degenerative endplate changes C4-C5, C5-C6, C6-C7. Small anterior osteophytes at C3-C7. Vertebral heights are maintained. No abnormal cord signal or cord deformity. Cervical spinal canal is small in caliber. Visualized posterior fossa is unremarkable. C8 radiculopathy w/ pinky/ring finger pain/numbness; a hint of weakness.

Question(s): 1. Do I/can I realistically expect this to improve and/or self-correct, 2. Continue 2 Aleve daily (and be so thankful it continues to help), 3. Surgery (or never) or ??, 4. Walking only or anything I can do to prevent/avoid further damage?

Thanks for any help/suggestions, words of warning, etc!

What was the nature of the sport injury? Were you hit in that area of your back?
Do you have any other symptoms along with the pinky/ring finger pain/numbness; a hint of weakness.?

Have you considered an eval /possible treatment with skilled chiropractor? Or a Spinal PT?

Did Dr say if the Anterolisthesis was stable or unstable?
I have unstable retro L5 that has started to become bothersome..but comes and goes. Recently had a few chiro sessions to see if it helped, so far so good.

[degenerative endplate changes] - that is usually a chronic thing
[anterior osteophytes] I have those too- chronic usually
[Cervical spinal canal is small in caliber] if they gave some measurement, %, or mild, moderate , severe it would help on that one

Over extensions while doing should shrugs at the gym; been lifting 30 years. I presume (?) my slip is "stable" however, the doc(s) have not stated this. No, have not consulted with chiropractor. Two doctors suggested PT will not help they think.

A lot of weightlifters develop thoracic outlet syndrome (TOS). Paresthesia of the ring and pinky fingers is a very common sx with TOS. If there is compression at the level of C-8 / T-1, that can be indicative of a lower trunk brachial plexus injury. Just a thought, but you might want to be tested for TOS if things do not resolve. Process usually includes a consult with a vascular surgeon for TOS to be dx'd properly. It is not an orthopedic problem, but a neurovascular entrapment disorder. Check out our TOS forum for more info - there is a ton of material on that site. Best of luck to you and I hope you feel better soon.

Ahh weightlifting, we have quite a few members on our Thoracic outlet syndrome (TOS) forum that were weightlifters..

Perhaps the spine isn't the only cause of the pinky/ring finger pain/numbness; a hint of weakness.?

TOS often affects the ring /pinky finger , sometimes the elbows and up the arm to the neck and upper back, eventually it all can join together if not treated early on.

I'll tell you now that many MDs are not fully up on TOS or TOS like conditions.

I got the best help from expert PTs & very good chiropractor..

Soft tissue, trigger points, posture are all involved quite often.
Our TOS forum - be sure to explore the useful sticky threads there.
http://neurotalk.psychcentral.com/forum24.html

I'll address just the C7-T1 anterolisthesis. 3mm is just under the AMA Guidelines for Category IV Impairment. 3.5mm would get you there. Clinically, it matters if your 3mm anterolisthesis is static as interpreted from a lateral plain-film x-ray or if your 3mm is dynamic, as interpreted from either flexion/extension x-rays or dynamic fluoroscopy, but not for the rating itself. MRI is frowned upon for millimetric displacement considerations as the cortex of the bone is not well visualized making it inaccurate. Much can be stated about this but in short, if you have lower neck pain, especially with motion, it might be related. Also, if you have pain, numbness or tingling into your inner forearm and little finger or weakness/wasting of the intrinsic hand muscles or with power grasping, C8 nerve root issue might be considered. If oral anti-inflammatory meds (including Medrol) aren't working for you and you have already gone acupuncture, PT and chiro, then time to think about more invasive things like facet blocks, medial branch blocks, interlaminar ESI and transforaminal ESI. Talk to your doc!

Thanks to everyone for the feedback! Any other advice is welcome, too!