[emailsteph]

#20259

Hello,

I was on an employee bus that was struck by a fuel truck from the rear, driver side. i was seated at an angle and was diagnosed with post-concussive syndrome. I have never had a headache previously, but now have persistent migraines and my neurologist has prescribed Relpax and that certainly does address the problem of the headaches.

However, i have had this ongoing problem in my neck for over 2 years now. if i lay on my back and rest my arms on my stomach, they go to sleep within a couple of minutes. i have slight tingling, especially in my left fingers and more so the pineky and ring finger. the worker’s comp. doctor diagnosed this as cervical spondylosis and said it was simply degenerative disks and arthritis, though he did facet joint injections at c1,2 and 3. is that common practice?

i am no longer under the care of the worker’s comp. doctors and seeking my own treatment, as they were trying to send me back to work unrestricted, when in reality, i can barely get up out of a chair or bend enough to get in a car.

i have had these treatments: occipital nerve block; 8months physical therapy, 4weeks work-conditioning therapy (which i could not complete), facet joint injections (C1 was the worst!), numerous trigger point injections, 3 epidurals, dry needling and now chiropractic adjustments and deep tissue therapeutic massage. The massage and dry needling seem to be the most effective in dealing with my neck stiffness, but yet they also set off a dull headache, which eventually becomes another migraine.

my concern is that i’ve recently been told that chiropractic adjustments could cause severe damage to the nerves especially since the facet joints have been involved. my xrays show a “stair-stepping” in my neck (slipped disks?) and i’m really concerned whether to seek yet another medical opinion before going for another chiropractic adjustment or not. the comparison was made to christopher reeve in that his was a facet joint related injury that left him paralyzed and since doctor’s have done me no good thus far, i’m torn as to what i should do.

i thank you for any help, suggestions and/or opinions!

[Donald Corenman, MD, DC]

#20265

First-don’t compare yourself to Christopher Reeves. He was on a horse, fell from a height and broke his neck. There is no comparison to you.

If you have “stair-stepping” of your cervical vertebra, this condition is called cervical degenerative spondylolisthesis. See the website for an understanding of this condition.

Chiropractic manipulation if performed well should not cause problems but if you have hyper-mobility of your neck, manipulation will not help much.

What you might need are facet blocks of your lower neck (C4-7) if your facets are the pain generators.

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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