[imee1970]

#5177

Hi,
I have been diagnosed last 18 months ago with L5-S1 spondodylolisthesis and anural tear with also degenerative disc disease . My pcp recommend a surgery but i refused i just took it conservatively still having on going sign and symptoms of waddling gait, back ,pelvic and bilateral leg pain with weakness and sometimes numbness and weakness on my legs.But now for almost 2 weeks now i’ve been having neck pain, pain is like a pressing pain . Is their a relationship between my back pain and to my current neck pain? Or shall i say that can lumbar spondololythesis can also cause the neck pain? I hope you can give me an info regarding this.

Thank you,
imee1970

[Donald Corenman, MD, DC]

#5180

The answer is that spondylolisthesis of L5-S1 will not cause neck pain by itself but may magnify preexisting problems in the neck. If you need to alter your gait to compensate for the spondylolisthesis and have a degenerative neck, this may magnify neck problems.

I worry about your “weakness” from the spondylolisthesis. This condition can produce bone spurs that can compress the nerves adjacent to the pars fractures (see isthmic spondylolisthesis on website). If there is weakness present from nerve compression and not pain inhibition- surgery needs to be considered as nerve do not recover easily from compression.

Dr. Corenman

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