Recurring lower back pain, foot numbness, X-ray showed no sign of slip disc, taken Efetran, ultracet, V12. Cause?
Patient: I am aged 48 suffering from lower back pain . I cloud not get up from where I was sitting on the floor. Nerve catch and I was taken to Ortho. Dr.Ortho gave pain killer injection & V12. Took x-ray and no sign seen on slip disc but said not to rule out. Advised for MRI in case of SOS. Medicine taken Efetran, Ultracet, Benzaday15, PAN D for 10 day. I was quite comfort and do my regular work/travel etc. After a month the pain developed. The pain from lower back to foot , numbness at the foot etc. Pl advise. Doctor: Hello.Thanks for the question.This is most probably because of a pinched nerve or lower limb radiculopathy (Sciatica ). Common cause is bulging intervertebral discs in the vertebral column that compress on the nerves as they come out of the spinal cord. Symptoms are experienced along the area of distribution/path of that particular nerve.  Xrays cannot be ideal to evaluate this so go ahead with MRI. Conservative treatment include anti-inflammatory medications, physical therapy or chiropractic treatment, and avoiding activity that strains the neck or back. The majority of radiculopathy patients respond well to this conservative treatment, and symptoms often improve within six weeks to three months. I guess conservative treatment are not proving helpful in your case.  If patients do not improve with the treatments listed above they may benefit from an epidural steroid injection. With the help of an X-ray machine, a physician injects steroid medication between the bones of the spine adjacent to the involved nerves. This can help to rapidly reduce the inflammation and irritation of the nerve and help reduce the symptoms of radiculopathy.  In some cases the symptoms continue despite all of the above treatment options. If this occurs and the symptoms are severe, surgery may be an option. The goal of the surgery is to remove the compression from the affected nerve. Depending on the cause of the radiculopathy, this can be done by a laminectomy or a discectomy. A laminectomy removes a small portion of the bone covering the nerve to allow it to have additional space. A discectomy removes the portion of the disk that has herniated out and is compressing a nerve.  I would suggest you to see a spine specialist who will take into account severity of your symptoms and MRI findings to guide about the treatment.  Thank you.