Bob's Back Issue - Part 2

Fri, 25-Aug-2017

I woke up to start working only to find that I could no longer stand or sit. I could stand for maybe 30-40 seconds before the pain became too much and I had to get back on the ground.

I called Advanced Pain Management (APM) for help. They suggested Vicodin or go to ER. I had my wife leave work to go get the Vicodin. They ended up giving us Hydrocodone. I started taking it that day.

Sat

Medication not helping. Went to ER around 6:00 AM. ER doctor said he can give me a drug through the IV that would help with the pain, but it would only last for a couple of hours. He also said I can take way more Hydrocodone than what I was told. I was told to take 1 every 12 hours. ER doc said I could take 2 every four, so I decided to do that.

Sun

Medication still not helping. Still can't stand, or sit. In pain all the time, even when lying down, or on all fours.

Mon

Called APM. They said they can give me another prescription (Gabapentin). They can also do a trigger point injection (in the muscle) that would alleviate the pain immediately.

Went to APM at 1:00 PM. Had to crawl from the car into the building, then crawl to the waiting area. Went in to get the shots. Doctor said relief would be immediate. He told me to sit up. I did and it hurt. No help at all.

My wife and I talked to the doctor and assistant afterward. We asked what to do. Doc said to go to ER. We asked: "Go to the ER every two hours?" He said yes.

After haggling with insurance, I made an appointment for Friday, 1-Sep for the pre-RFA shot. Basically RFA will deaden the nerve, causing me not to feel the pain. The pre-RFA appointment is to numb the nerve to see that the pain goes away. This confirms that RFA will work.

Tue

Working while lying on my back, waiting for Friday...

Bob's Back Issue

I'm hoping this post generates some ideas from others as to what I can try to fix my back pain.

Issues:

• Low back pain over the last two years
• I've been seeing a chiropractor, on and off, for 15+ years
• Pain has been more significant in the last couple of years, even more so in the last two months
• Pain is believed to be caused by a bulging disc hitting a nerve (see MRI image below)
• Pain is severe enough that I can't do my two hobbies (tennis and drumming), ride in the car for a long time, focus in the morning (when the pain is most severe), sit for more than 20 minutes, etc.

Actions taken over the last two years:

• Four chiropractors
• Physical therapy
• Pain management (one steroid shot at one doctor, then three steroid shots at another)
• The second set relieved pain for about two weeks
• Stretching exercises, including an inversion table
• NSAIDs (Ibuprofen, Aleve, Meloxicam)
• Ibuprofen and Aleve haven't helped. Trying Meloxicam now.
• Two MRIs (Apr 2016 and Aug 2017)

Latest suggestion by doctor (15-Aug-2017):

• Does not recommend surgery because the bulge isn't specific enough, or severe enough, to warrant surgery and the possible longer-term complications that go with it.
• By "specific enough," I mean there isn't a smaller bulge to cut away; it's a bigger, overall bulge.
• Recommends radio frequency ablation (radio waves that generate heat that stop the nerves from transmitting pain signals)
• Apparently this can last from 3-18 months.

What I want:

• Some suggestions for things to try to make the pain go away. If you have any, please let me know.