[Abbeygirl]

#5139

Hi Doctor thanks for this forum i have really bad neck pain which burns like it is on fire and it aches on the left shoulder or it is closer to the spine than the shoulder sought of in the middle also my pinky finger and half my ring finger goes numb and pins and needles on both hands not at the same time and more on the left hand also my left thumb goes numb but it feels more numb on the outside of the thumb i do not get much sleep so i hope this makes sense Doctor i have had problems with my lower spine which i know is not related to my neck but my surgon said my lower back might take 12 months to recover i hope it does i am going insane just on pretty heavy pain meds i tell my doctors about my neck and they say because i am having problems with my lower back that you get pain in different parts of your body which might be right but with my fingers going numb seems a bit strange i already get numbness in my right thigh my left big toe my right big toe but my surgon said that numbness is caused from the S1 nerve he said it was tender with he touched it when he operated anyway doctor sorry for raving on this is a question about my neck and what should i do Thanks Doctor for this great service

[Donald Corenman, MD, DC]

#5148

Let us just deal with the neck. Lower back disorders will generally not cause neck pain but the total “pain load” can make tolerating the neck pain more difficult.

You have severe central neck pain that radiates to the left shoulder. You have numbness of the lateral on half of the ring finger and the entire pinky finger- more on the left but symptoms are bilateral and intermittent.

It is difficult to determine if the numbness of the hands are related to the neck and shoulder pain. The distribution of the numbness of the hands is either from the C8 nerve root from the neck which is a unusual root to be affected or more likely from the ulnar nerve. This is the nerve at the “funny bone”, the inside of the elbow where it can be trapped in an area called the cubital tunnel. If you tap on this area and you feel a “zing” into the affected fingers of your hand, you might have cubital tunnel syndrome.

Neck pain can generally originate from the disc, nerve root or facet. Pain that radiates into the shoulder area is more typically from the nerve root but all previously mentioned structures can cause this.

It sounds like you are currently seeing a spine surgeon. Ask him to evaluate your neck. I’m sure he would be happy to review and examine your neck to determine where this pain is originating.

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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