[nwaters80]

#8368

We have discussed the procedure in brief, we will be discussing more about how he is going to approach this procedure in a week. No epidurals or facet blocks have been done. Ive had CT w/contrast, MRI w/contrast which reveals t7-t8 herniation with noticeable protrusion to the spinal cord.

[Donald Corenman, MD, DC]

#8370

Good luck with this procedure. Please report back to the forum regarding your progress.

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.

[nwaters80]

#8512

I am still awaiting surgery, it is getting closer! My symptoms have increased with more pain and more frequent! I have now inherited a limp with a lot of weakness from mid back to legs! At first I was informed that my surgery was Posterior Spine Fusion & Inst T7-T8. Recently I spoke with my surgeons nurse and she had informed me that the procedure is called thoracic lumbar spine fusion, I have degeneration signs from t7-t11, but the disc protrusion which is flattening the left ventral cord contour is at t7-t8 where I am told the source of the pain is coming from. I am awaiting to hear back from the nurse to ask the question” Are they fusing t7-l1 or l2 or is this just the name of the procedure”? My surgeon had told me that this condition is rare and that he has never performed this surgery in the thoracic region, so he wanted to do more research before the surgery and he will inform me of how he was gonna perform the surgery the morning of! I’m a bitscared but anxious to the ppossibility of relieving this constant crippling pain! Any insight Dr. ?

[Donald Corenman, MD, DC]

#8523

The thoracic disc herniation will not by itself cause further herniations at another thoracic level. However, the disorder that allowed this herniation to occur in the first place is present in other discs (either brittle collagen or Scheuermann’s disease-see website). This could cause other herniations.

Disc herniations in the thoracic spine that compress the cord typically do not cause local pain by cord compression. The cord does not have pain fibers so that compression of the cord is typically non-painful. Compression can cause myelopathy, the dysfunction of the cord that is covered on the website.

I am unclear if you have undergone a workup to discover the cause of the pain. DId you have an epidural and have kept a pain diary (see website to understand pain diary)? Did you have fact blocks? Did you have discograms?

Disc herniations are indicative of degenerative disc disease which can cause spine pain. There are occasions that fusion can be helpful if you have failed conservative treatment and the pain is disabling. If the surgeon has never performed this surgery before, think twice before consenting to surgery. There are some subtle techniques that need to be understood.

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.

[nwaters80]

#8861

Update: Post-Op

I had my surgery on May 15, 2013, the operation took 5 yes on a 1 level thoracic spine fusion with instruments and a decompression, I spent 4 days in the hospital. The first 3 days I was heavily dosed with pain medications. I was told that the surgery went well. I am now close to 4 weeks post op. I am still having pain from the surgery but prior symptoms has seemed to have improved. I am walking around, am not doing any bending, lifting or twisting. My current pain is the feeling of tearing when going from sit to stand, stand to sit, stand to lying, lying to standing. I am practicing proper body mechanics and utilizing the log roll method, although I’m sure this is normal after this type of surgery I wanted to bring it up anyways. I am also wondering on if and how long it will be until I return to my job ( Roofer/Construction), I fear for possible future injuries due to the physical demand of my job and the impact of my injury to it!

[Donald Corenman, MD, DC]

#8870

Your post-operative pain is not uncommon. It takes time for the fusion to develop and the post-operative pain to subside. Every surgeon has a different time period to return back to heavy work. Understand that typical solid fusion in the thoracic spine takes about 4-5 months minimum (if BMP was used). I would assume that your surgeon would not let you return to a heavy construction job until the fusion was solid.

You are right to be concerned about future heavy labor as one of your discs has already failed. Even though you have had that level fixed, your genetics makes me concerned about future problems. It is probably better to contemplate a future using your mind instead of your body (brains instead of brawn) but I understand if you continue in construction. Maybe consider a change to a finish carpenter.

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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