what is causing my pain?

[kaiserit]

Hi All, if anyone can offer me some help I'd be most grateful.Heres my problem :
Approx 12 months ago I started having nurabness and tingling/burning sensations in my left outer thigh. As the months ticked by, it gradually worsened and I developed low left sided back pain. The pain would be aggravated by walking or standing for long perioRAB, and relieved by sitting. An MRI proved inconclusive, no disc prolapse, but mild wear present at L4,L5. No nerve impingement showing. I have a very poor posture, flat feet, and very stiff musculature as pointed out by my physio. I,ve been stretching and followung physio advice now for some time, but no relief. Furthemore I now have the same problems in my right thigh as I did in my left! I want to try to find a more holistic way out of this, rather than a surgical or nerve blocking route. If anyone can help, or has had similar experiences I'd be really grateful to hear from you..................

 

[brendaks1]

Just because your MRI didn't show nerve impingement doesn't mean it doesn't exist. MRI's aren't perfect, and I once heard that they only show something like 85% of all disc herniations.

The fact that your right side is now experiencing the same symptoms along the same distribution is further evidence that you likely have a spinal disc herniation.

If your symptoms are that much worse when standing, I would suggest asking for an upright MRI where you actually stand in an MRI machine for the test. Sometimes a disc will look fine when you are laying down but the herniation will pop out when you put a load on it.

Warm wishes!

 

[kaiserit]

Thanks Brendaks, I didn't even realise there was such a thing as an upright MRI. I can see that they are quite widely used around the USA, however I've only been able to locate one facility here in the UK. I have another consultation coming up soon, and I'll ceratinly take up the point with my Consultant. Thank you very much for your reply.