What is the cause of buttock pain with facet disease?
Patient: My leg or knee gave out on me after that happen my whole leg as slowly turned outward, especially my foot, very noticeable...pain in opposite buttock...nothing shows on Mri of the hip, the spine shows facet disease, an old fracture. Nothing on the pelvis...What could cause this? Doctor: Hi, after going through what you have written, it is possible that you have an arthritis (inflammation of the joints) or misalignment (called listhesis) of the spine. This can cause pressure on the nerves that supply the legs in turn causing weakness and pain. If I was seeing you in clinic, I would recommend an MRI of the spine. Treatment initially involves pain control with Acetaminophen (Tylenol) :25-650 mg every 4-6 hours as needed. Do not take more than 3,000 mg of Acetaminophen over a 24 hour period. You can also try Ibuprofen (400-800 mg three times a day with food)- it has an anti inflammatory effect. Do not take Ibuprofen if you have a history of chronic kidney disease, bleeding from your gut or severe reflux. If this does not help other pain medicines for nerve related pain (like gabapentin, pregabalin and duloxetine) can be tried. I would recommend physical therapy and based on what the MRI shows refer you to a neurosurgeon. Since MRI's and pain medications need to be ordered by a doctor (except Acetaminophen and Ibuprofen which are over the counter), I would recommend seeing a general physician or an orthopedic surgeon as a start.Please let me know if that was helpful. If it was, please take a moment to provide a rating. Thanks!