05-06-2008, 09:32 PM
as someone dealing with it currently.... the last thing you want to do is have someone "refill" your disc with the gelatinous synovial fluid (as the therapy promises to do), because
it will just leak out where your herniation is, and that bathes the area in cytokines.
The real problems come when you either delay or heal up in some fashion, and then compensate in a way that aggravates other discs.
That doesn't mean I advocate running under the knife -- there are plenty of procedures,
such as the epidurals, that if applicable, might relieve the situation.
Not all disc material is compressing a nerve. Some herniations are central, and press
upon the ligament that surrounds the nerve trunk. In that case, no nerve damage is
imminent, but it still hurts like hell, regardless - especially when it is aggitated.
I can't imagine any reputable orthopedic surgeon not wanting to stabilize the area
first, via a combo of epidural and oral meds (prednisolone) and then discussing with
you the various types of surgery that exist.
As for IDENTIFYING the real problem.... you can have herniated discs that cause you
no pain. What happens is idiots operate on the wrong one. Such as the example above
about not seeing it on an xray.
Discograms are among the most painful things you can endure, because they are
injecting iodine into discs to find the one that is hurting... THAT inflates the disc, and
you'll be a cripple until it all leaks out - and the pressure is AGAIN reduced. Sometimes
2-3 weeks. Expect to be in severe pain after an epidural too.
Get the MRI, but if you have no issues with Gadolinium, request it. If you can manage to
find a 3 Tesla MRI local, those records will do you a great deal of good. I have stacks of
literature - one where MDs themselves, with problems, missed it on their own MRIs, but the more powerful, closed (tunnel) unit and contrast, showed a tiny tear that was leaking
and inflaming the area non-stop.
Anyone who doesn't say "let me put steroids in there and your mouth.... and you stay flat/curved/hanging from ceiling/in traction" or whatever, is rushing you, especially if you don't have a WITH contrast MRI to be very VERY specific.
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it will just leak out where your herniation is, and that bathes the area in cytokines.
The real problems come when you either delay or heal up in some fashion, and then compensate in a way that aggravates other discs.
That doesn't mean I advocate running under the knife -- there are plenty of procedures,
such as the epidurals, that if applicable, might relieve the situation.
Not all disc material is compressing a nerve. Some herniations are central, and press
upon the ligament that surrounds the nerve trunk. In that case, no nerve damage is
imminent, but it still hurts like hell, regardless - especially when it is aggitated.
I can't imagine any reputable orthopedic surgeon not wanting to stabilize the area
first, via a combo of epidural and oral meds (prednisolone) and then discussing with
you the various types of surgery that exist.
As for IDENTIFYING the real problem.... you can have herniated discs that cause you
no pain. What happens is idiots operate on the wrong one. Such as the example above
about not seeing it on an xray.
Discograms are among the most painful things you can endure, because they are
injecting iodine into discs to find the one that is hurting... THAT inflates the disc, and
you'll be a cripple until it all leaks out - and the pressure is AGAIN reduced. Sometimes
2-3 weeks. Expect to be in severe pain after an epidural too.
Get the MRI, but if you have no issues with Gadolinium, request it. If you can manage to
find a 3 Tesla MRI local, those records will do you a great deal of good. I have stacks of
literature - one where MDs themselves, with problems, missed it on their own MRIs, but the more powerful, closed (tunnel) unit and contrast, showed a tiny tear that was leaking
and inflaming the area non-stop.
Anyone who doesn't say "let me put steroids in there and your mouth.... and you stay flat/curved/hanging from ceiling/in traction" or whatever, is rushing you, especially if you don't have a WITH contrast MRI to be very VERY specific.
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