[Rbrk99]

#35777

Hello Dr. Corenman,

On June 30 i had a CT with contrast (never had it before) for screening, i did not even need it but did it anyway. About a few hours after that, i began to have pins and needles in my legs, blurry vision, spasms, hearing problems (ringing). It has no moved to my hands and become more painful (like stinging). I had a lumbar punch done a few days after the CT to figure out why the pins and needles and i don’t know of that made it worse. I had a brain and spine MRI and they were cleared, the only thing that showed was the lumbar with an enhancement of the S1 nerve root (i have also had coccyx pain).

This is what the MRI reads:

Impression

Asymmetric enhancement of the right S1 nerve root, likely on an inflammatory basis. Schmorl’s nodes at T11-12, T12-L1, and L1-2’s detailed above. There is no disc herniation, central stenosis, or neural impingement The conus is located at T12-L1 and is normal in appearance.

***There is asymmetric enhancement of the right S1 nerve root that extends from the cauda equina to the S1 sacral foramen. There is no additional leptomeningeal enhancement.

The alignment of the lumbar spine is normal. There are small Schmorl’s nodes at T11-12 and T12-L1. There is a Schmorl’s node within the superior endplate of L2 demonstrating low T1 and high T2 signal. The remainder of the vertebral body stature heights are well maintained and demonstrate normal marrow signal.”

Could this be arachnoiditis?

[Donald Corenman, MD, DC]

#35778

Arachnoiditis occurs when the arachnoid membrane that surrounds the nerve rootlets becomes inflamed and the roots “stick together.” It occurred more frequently with oil based myelograms (old school) but there are rare cases of that occur with the current water-based dyes. According to the radiologist, you have a single root inflamed which is an inflammatory mono-radiculopathy, not an arachnoiditis I assume this finding was present before your lumbar puncture and even a reason for the test in the first place. Contrast can make some individuals sick like the signs you were showing post-CT. More answers might come from the radiologist who is more familiar with this.

Dr. Corenman

PLEASE REMEMBER, THIS FORUM IS MEANT TO PROVIDE GENERAL INFORMATION ON SPINE ANATOMY, CONDITIONS AND TREATMENTS. TO GET AN ACCURATE DIAGNOSIS, YOU MUST VISIT A QUALIFIED PROFESSIONAL IN PERSON.
 
Donald Corenman, MD, DC is a highly-regarded spine surgeon, considered an expert in the area of neck and back pain. Trained as both a Medical Doctor and Doctor of Chiropractic, Dr. Corenman earned academic appointments as Clinical Assistant Professor and Assistant Professor of Orthopaedic Surgery at the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center, and his research on spine surgery and rehabilitation has resulted in the publication of multiple peer-reviewed articles and two books.

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