Back and Neck Pain Exchange
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Now I know I have arthritis most likely throughout my back, but I am wondering about this area in my neck. It is at C5-C6. I don't know if aother Ryzotomy would help this, or if I would need something more invasive to take care of the pain. The arm problem is what bothers me the most as I drop things all the time with that hand and have a hard time lifting the arm. I have been to physical therapy for it, and actually that is when I started having the arm weakness. My orthopedic surgeon is waiting to see what someone is going to do with it because he is going to do a trigger finger release of my right thumb around the same time because I would need to go on Lovenox before his procedure because I am on Coumadin for past blood clots. Is this something that could get better, and then worse, and I could just deal with it for now?View Thread
The next day following the accident, I visited my local ER. The x-rayed my neck, and prescribed me muscle relaxers and ibuprofen. They told me I was just sore from the impact and should be fine by Monday, if not I should follow up with an ortho-surgeon, or my family doctor. (my accident happened on a thurs, fri was the ER visit.)
Monday when I woke up, I was in 10x more pain and the pain localized into my left shoulder and neck.
SYMPTOMS:
The pain starts in my neck, radiates out through my collar bone, goes into the side of my shoulder (closer to my spine), it goes into my left side, down my left arm into the inside of my elbow, straight to my hand in the side of the palm and into my ring finger and pinky finger. There's also numbness and tingling, and the sensations in my shoulder, arm, and hand have become strangely painful.
The pain is so severe sometimes I can not move my arm and it feels heavy and broken. My hand and arm also swell to be twice to 3x the size of my right hand. I also have tremors in the ring and pinky fingers. They shake slightly when my hand is closed slightly into a fist, and they get more severe as I try and stretch my hand opened. The nerve pain starts when I try to open my hand all the way.
I visited my family doctor, where they told me that they just thought that I just strained muscles in my shoulder, and that I should be okay by the following week. They told me if I wasn't to call them back, and they'd x-ray my spine.
I was still in pain by then, so I called and the x-rayed my entire spine. They said their findings were normal. But I still persisted as my pain got worse. I was then sent for MRI's of my upper spine (for my shoulder, to check for pinched nerves).
I was then referred to a neurologist, that suggested I get a Nerve conduction study (EMG) done on my left shoulder. I did so, and they told me immediately after that it was normal.
I also went physical therapy, and a pain management group to find an answer for my pains. (I also injured my lower back in the accident.) Then my family doctor told me that they would no longer coordinate my care, and that I would have to follow-up with the pain management facility if I wanted help for my ailments. So I did.
Since then, I went to Physical Therapy, and had to stop where-as the doctor told me it was making my shoulder worse. I also went to a chiropractor, and then stopped because the insurance wouldn't pay them. The pain management group also referred me to another neurologist to get a second EMG done on my left arm.
I did so, and again the findings were normal on my shoulder. I've complained over and over again to the doctors about the pain in my neck, collar bone, shoulder, arm, and hand. They've all told me that the muscle was just damaged and swollen and that the muscle was swollen and pressing on nerves.
I finally talked the P.A. at Pain MGMT. to get an MRI done of my left shoulder. When they sent the request to my insurance company they denied it. I went back to Pain MGMT. this past week, and they decided to order an x-ray of my left shoulder to see if they see anything, and for the insurance to approve the MRI. My questions are; Do you think the MRI will show if there is any damage?
Is there chance that they'd conclude their findings to be normal again?
What do these symptoms I'm having point too?
and lastly, Does the problem sound like it may need surgery to correct? Thanks, -SarahView Thread
I woke up yesterday morning and my neck and back felt really stiff. I'm still able to move my head around - right, left, up, down, etc., but my back hurts pretty badly when I take a deep breath. Possibly the result of internal bruising?
Since I'm able to walk and move my head around okay maybe this is just a case of internal bruising / bad back strain? I would describe myself as very fit - I work out and run frequently, so maybe this is something that will go away after a few days. Or should I check with a doctor asap? Thanks for the advice...View Thread
My questions are, then:
1. Is this normal
2. could it be related to my surgery (I never had this pain BEFORE surgery)
any advice would be great!!View Thread
Thanks in advance for anyone responding.
CassieView Thread
So I've recently started getting this sharp, shooting pains in the left side of my neck. They're infrequent and only last a couple of seconds, but they hurt so bad it brings tears to my eyes. The left side of my neck is also swollen. Does anyone have any idea at all what this could be?
Thanks in advance.View Thread
I have these bouts of neck pain which last for 2-3 days and then go away. I had got an X-ray done 2 years back and everything was normal at that time. This time I was having the pain for over a month so I got an X-ray done. The report says -
Cervical vertebrae are normal.
Intervertebral disc space between c4-c5 & c5-c6 is slightly diminished.
Transverse process of c7 vertebra are prominent.
I also have a fatty lump at the base of my neck for some years. I am undergoing physiotherapy as suggested by my physician. Please tell me what is this condition and can this be treated completely?View Thread
Does anyone have a similar story and, if so, what did you do about it? Is there anything that can help? My ortho said even physical therapy would not help. I am currently taking three Tylenol 3 a day for the pain. It doesn't even come close to taking the pain away, but it does get me through the day without crying. My dr has recommended a stronger pain med, but I'm resistant as I work at a drug and alcohol facility and I've seen what those medications can do.
Any suggestions or help would be greatly appreciated! Thanks.View Thread
I'm hoping someone has some idea of what I'm experiencing.
When I bend over, vacuuming, shoveling, etc, I end up with alot of pain in the lower back which runs from the lower middle of my back and spreads out to the middle of either side of my lower back. the longer I am bent over the worse the pain gets. It ends up in my legs. I have to stop what I'm doing after about 5-10 minutes, and then stand straight, which is sore to do. Then the intense pain goes away once I am able to stand straight and residual pain lingers which an ibrupropen seems to help some.
I have not yet been to the doctor with this.
Thank you for any input.View Thread
View Thread
Pain Mgmt doctor. I had no releif from them. My discogram findings is L4-5. My MRI is showing L3-4 L4-5 disc bulges & annular tears on them. I want to go ahead with the surgery but I am afraid that it may make it worse. I was told to quit smoking which I understand the risk of not healing while smoking etc. Has anyone gone through this procedure? How long did it take to heal up and feel some what normal? I was told they have to go through my abdomin to get to my spine and the doctor said it will be worse than my fusion in my neck that I had two years ago. Please advise someones out come to this type of operation. Thank you kindly.View Thread
How much success others have seen w/ this procedure in the 50 Age group?View Thread
When i take a breath that is medium to deep, my back pain suddenly reappears and my lower neck (back) starts to hurt. It hurts to move, and when i sit up I feel like my lung is squeezing down my throat, its kind of like a gagging feeling. This has happened before, but never to this scale, and it never lasted more than 5 minutes. It has been about 12 hours now and the pain and discomfort is still with me.View Thread
This is how the injury occurred:
I am on stage crew for my school play, and was pulling on a fly-line for a set piece. For those of you who don't know, fly lines are heavily weighted pulleys used for moving set pieces up and out of sight from the audience. I was flying out a piece, (lifting it up out of sight), and it was very poorly weighted, and the weights were coming down fast, yet i still had control of them. They first hit my head, but that didn't cause much injury because it really only grazed me. but then, i guess instinctively, let go of the rope to cradle my head. At this time I was crouched down, and the weights, determined to be about 450 pounds, slammed into my leg. It was about two inches up from my knee cap.
I'm 16 years old, and I have a very petite frame. I'm five foot two and I weigh only 105 pounds, if that.
I tried to put this in the most relevant section, but still, this seams to be the wrong one.View Thread
This is how the injury occurred:
I am on stage crew for my school play, and was pulling on a fly-line for a set piece. For those of you who don't know, fly lines are heavily weighted pulleys used for moving set pieces up and out of sight from the audience. I was flying out a piece, (lifting it up out of sight), and it was very poorly weighted, and the weights were coming down fast, yet i still had control of them. They first hit my head, but that didn't cause much injury because it really only grazed me. but then, i guess instinctively, let go of the rope to cradle my head. At this time I was crouched down, and the weights, determined to be about 450 pounds, slammed into my leg. It was about two inches up from my knee cap.
I'm 16 years old, and I have a very petite frame. I'm five foot two and I weigh only 105 pounds, if that.
I tried to put this in the most relevant section, but still, this seams to be the wrong one.View Thread
Around the time the climate changes from warm to cold or vice-versa, I get these severe muscle pain in the back. It is so bad that I cannot lie flat on my back or even on the sides. I have tried using a hot-water bag, Bengay and similar medications (not yet tried pain killers), but they don't seem to help. The pain lasts for about 3 days usually with the 2nd day being the worst. I cannot even hold a plate in my left hand or move my left-arm freely. When I try to breathe, I often find that the pain makes me take rapid, shallow breaths - especially when I somehow manage to lie down flat on my back.
I don't drink or smoke and have a normal physique. I read about pleurisy but I am not sure if that's what I am having since I don't have the other cold/flu symptoms.
Would much appreciate any input on this and how I can alleviate the pain.
ThanksView Thread
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