Four Level Disco

[Gil Denis]

Hi All

This is not the 80`s dance but i am going to find out where my pain is coming from? Low back pan 24 - 7 leg pain left worse than right if I walk too far my left leg does not work so well, nerve issues, scar tissue blah blah

Emg test showed some nerve issues possibly from L5-S1 ????

Life is too short to live like this get busy healing or >>>>

Gil

[mmglobal]

Gil, when is the disco scheduled? Did you see that Donna Summer was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of fame this year?

I hope you get some conclusive results!

Cool avatar.

Mark

PS... I hope you don't mind, I moved your thread to the main forum.

[Gil Denis]

The Disco is scheduled the week of june 17 and thephoto is me years ago

Gil

[jsewell]

It is a very cool photo Gil. I too had an EMG which shows some damage to L5 . my leg pain is mostly on the other side when i walk any distance though. Other things going on through the Emg but i am not sure what the heck they are. My doc is now talking about an anterior approach to fusing L2 -L4. He wants to leave L5-S1 alone , but if that is where the nerve problem is i am not sure that makes sense to me anyway. I will have him explain it further . I am hoping to have this anterior surgery help with being more upright. I already have a head forward position from when i broke my neck.
so if my lumbar could be corrected a bit,scoliosis, and non fusion and i can stand straighter i will be a happy person. Well happier than i am now.

Let us know those disco results and good luck with them and your future treatment.
Judy

[Maria]

Good luck on Friday with your 4 leveler Gil! I've had 3 levels done and got Marcaine injected afterwards into areas checked to kind of numb up the pain.. it helped a lot. The next time I had another discogram I had an ESI afterwards (first discogram had nothing afterwards but only had aggravated pain for 2 -3 days afterwards).

As mentioned please let us know the results and hope the source of your pain will be pinpointed so hopefully can be adequately addressed! Maria

[Gil Denis]

HI All Update

Still need to have the four level Disco, And suggested at this time by Neurosurgeon to fuse one Level at L5-S1 my concern is that the other Three levels are not great and this may cause the domino effect with more surgery,in the future
Origional Surgeon also said that Coflex is not expermaintal but FDA approved and said that a fusion at this time would not be suggested due to the four levels, well have to give him a call and see what his plan is I hope he has a great solution

Gil
P.S. Photo is a former athlete i coached now on the U.S. ski team

[Rob Wilson]

If nerve damage you might consider some regenerative injections. Look at stem cells or PL injections.

Regenexx Procedures Family Regenexx? Regenexx?

[Gil Denis]

Check this out

The potential role of mesenchymal stem cell therapy for intervertebral disc degeneration: a critical overview.
Acosta FL Jr, Lotz J, Ames CP.
Source

Department of Neurological Surgery, University of California, San Francisco, California 94143-0112, USA. acostaf@neurosurg.ucsf.edu
Abstract

Low-back pain is the most common health problem for men and women between 20 and 50 years of age, resulting in 13 million doctor visits in the US annually, with significant costs to society in terms of lost time from work and direct and indirect medical expenses. Although the exact origin of most cases of low-back pain remains unknown, it is understood that degenerative damage to the intervertebral disc (IVD) plays a central role in the pathogenic mechanism leading to this disorder. Current treatment modalities for disc-related back pain (selective nerve root blocks, surgical discectomy and fusion) are costly procedures aimed only at alleviating symptoms. Consequently, there is growing interest in the development of novel technologies to repair or regenerate the degenerated IVD. Recently, mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) have been found to possess the capacity to differentiate into nucleus pulposus-like cells capable of synthesizing a physiological, proteoglycan-rich extracellular matrix characteristic of healthy IVDs. In this article, the authors review the use of MSCs for repopulation of the degenerating IVD. Although important obstacles to the survival and proliferation of stem cells within the degenerating disc need to be overcome, the potential for MSC therapy to slow or reverse the degenerative process remains substantial.

Suggested at four levels for only $ 4,000 each level I will see if Workers Comp will cover this

Gil

[Rob Wilson]

I would definitely try this. Even more than 1 session. I know it costs $$ but it can work. It has worked on many body parts for me. You can always contact more for more info.