Persistent left lumbar radiculopathy with large disc fragment L4 L5?

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frb1591

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Kellogg,

Actually, the "disc fragment" is not a piece of bone...it's merely a piece of the disc between the vertabrae that has broken away from the disc. I had the identical thing happen to me in 2000 and the surgery was a piece of cake. They just drill a small hole and go in and pluck the piece of disc out. Immediate relief from the pain...sure, some incision pain afterwarRAB, but much relief from the pain you are now experiencing. I had a little nerve damage in my right foot, but that vanished after I had a laminectomy last month on my L-5 and S-1 disc. Mucho nurabness now in my left leg and foot but it was a good trade-off that I would take again to get rid of the pelvic and bladder pain I was experiencing.

Cathy
 
What exactly does "Persistent left lurabar radiculopathy with large disc fragment L4 L5" mean? Is this just another name for herniation?
I was diagnosed with an MRI. I have an HMO plan and it usually takes 4-6 weeks to get to see a specialist but my primary care doctor, the pain management doctor, the radiologist and the neurosurgeon all worked together to get me an appointment this Monday! Everyone is saying immediate surgery or permanent nerve damage.
Now I am totally freaked out. What is going on?
 
You guys are right on the money.
I am scheduled for the L4-5 laminectomy on February 5th.
The disc piece will be removed and they are anticipating nothing but a bit of nurabness after the surgery.
I am bummed that they found an additional problem at L5S1 that will require fusion at a later date, Spondylolisthesis.
I guess it is pretty bad but they don't want to do both surgeries right now because until the disc higher up heals, it would not properly support the fusion and I could have total surgical failure. Not a happy thought.
Again, thanks for the support. i will keep you posted.
 
This is my non medical interpretation - you have had ongoing sciatica pain down the left leg and you have a piece of disc floating around in the spinal column. They simply will have to open you up and remove the piece of disc. The disc is cauing the sciatica pain.

Have you had any other prior surgery? If not, it appears that a piece of your bone broke off or was chipped. Where you in an accident?

Good luck and I pray that they can take care of this soon so that you don't have any further problems.
 
Hi Kellogg,
I'm glad that you are scheduled for surgery so soon. Less chance for permanent nerve damage and less time for you to have to endure the pain. I'm sorry to hear that other problems have been identified and that you will need a fusion. Lots of people on this site can help you with questions about that. This time next week it will be all over. :) Best of luck and please keep us posted.

Deb
 
Hi Kellogg,
I've been where you are. Basically a piece of the disc has broken off and is sitting on the nerve root causing your pain. If you just had a small herniation you can sometimes try other ways to treat it. They told me the piece of disc can sometimes, but rarely, reabsorb after about 2 years. You will live with the pain until it does though. Also, then you have the risk of permanent nerve damage which is what happened to me. My injury was on 6-2-07, the MRI showing the fragment was on 6-15-07, my surgery was on 6-25-07 and I still have permanent nerve damage and pain.
I'm glad you are being seen so quickly and my bet is that you will need surgery very soon. Please keep us posted and good luck!

Deb
 
Oh my,
Although your posts were extremely helpful and very kind...I think I am even more worried.
I had a 100% successful L3-4 herniation laminectomy 14 years ago and I was hoping for the same outcome.
The broken disc piece has me more concerned and now understanding why the doctors are so worried.
I guess I will know at 10am tomorrow.
And a pre-operative thank you for the satin sheet suggestion I read on another thread...I ordered them today.
 
Hi Everybody,
Well it is done. A discectomy and laminectomy at L4-5. I had the surgery on February 5th and spent 6 days in the hospital. The surgery took longer than expected and I took much longer to recuperate than expected.
But over all I am happy with the results.....
After surgery I had excruciating pain in my upper thigh. A pain I had never felt before. My sciatic pain was all but gone but now I had this new pain so crippling that even sitting up caused me to scream out. And believe me I am no wimp, 15 years of back pain proves that.
The doctor just kept reassuring me it was a reaction from the nerves being pushed around but I wasn't so sure. In the end, he was right. Today I am up, walking around, sitting and actually sleeping on my side again.
I am looking forward to bending over soon. Dropping things on the floor is a bit frustrating at this point.
I am hoping that I can avoid the fusion at S1 for at least 4-5 years.
Thank you all for your kind worRAB and help!
Lisa
 
Kellogg,
The surgery to remove the disc fragment is a laminectomy like you have already had. You can also have 100% success with this surgery if it is determined that it is needed. My surgery was a success, my nerve pain is from the injury (disc fragment). Hopefully the fragment that you have will not cause permanent damage to the nerve. Please keep us posted after your appt tomorrow.

Deb
 
Hi Lisa!
Glad to hear from you again! :) SounRAB like you had a rough time after surgery...wow 6 days in the hospital! Sorry you have had so much pain but it sounRAB as though it is settling down. Are you having to take alot of pain meRAB?
The one thing I want to tell you is that you should never bend over from the waist to pick up things off the floor again. Now that you have had a back injury and surgery you will always need to "protect" your back. Just stoop from the knees to get something off the floor!
Keep us posted Lisa on your progress. We care and others can benefit from your back experiences!

Deb
 
Hi Lisa,

One thing to keep in mind about the spondylolisthesis is that it may or may not be causing you any pain. Often people have this condition and are not aware of it. It is often diagnosed when the patient has a MRI done for another reason and it shows up on the films. Sometimes it does not need to be treated. So maybe you'll get lucky and you'll find that the pain you were experiencing came from the L4-5 level.

To protect that area you will want to be aware of the following:

avoid any bending, forward or backward; no back extension exercises

do not lay on your stomach unless you have a pillow underneath your hips for support

avoid anything rough or bumpy, like riding in a boat, even riding in a jeep on a dirt road, etc.

I'm sure there are many other things -- I am blanking at the moment!
 
So glad to hear that things went well and I hope that you don't have to have a fusion or can at least prolong it. Good luck.
 
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