I am a 47-year old female, 6’1″, average weight for my height, with a history of Mixed Connective Tissue Disease, Raynaud’s, and am on warfarin for the remainder of my life I have been told. I have severe pain in my lower back, into my right hip, which at times feels like it will dislocate, and now the pain seems to be radiating to my left hip, and down the front and back of the right leg, though normally the pain is either in the front or back of the leg, not normally both at the same time. When I stand for 10 minutes or longer, the pain feels like it is under my ribs, almost to the point of not being able to breathe, and it’s like gravity is exerting intense force on my back and ribs. Often when I bend forward my back pops, but not like someone normally pops their back,it’s more like something sliding into or out of position. It hurts at times when it does that but not always. I have been to an orthopedic spine specialist who has referred me to pain management, and I am concerned that I am going to be simply masking a problem instead of trying to correct or prevent something worse happening in relation to my spine. I can’t sit, stand or walk for more than 10 minutes at this point, there is an electrical type pain that radiates when I turn or twist my spine in any way, all lower back. These are the MRI results, I do not understand them, my physican did not go over them, and I would like to know if it would be beneficial to me to see other treatement either with a neurologist or another spine specialist. Thank you.
MRI Lumbar Spine:
Lumbar Spine: For the purposes of this study, there are 5 nonrib-bearing lumbar-type vertebral bodies. Lowest fully segmented body will be labeled L5. Using this numbering system, the conus terminates at the level of T12-L1. The conus and cauda equine nerve roots appear grossly unremarkable. On the sagittal images, reactive Modic signal is scattered throughout the lumbar spine especially within endplate surrounding L2-3 and L5-S1. No acute fracture seen.
L1-2: Normal
L2-3: Circumferential disc bulge is present along with bilateral ligamentum flavum redundancy. There is mild central canal narrowing at this level. Neural foramina are patent.
L3-4: Mild circumferential disc bulge is present along with bilateral ligamentum flavum redundancy. No stenosis.
L4-5: Bilateral facet hypertrophy. No central canal narrowing. There is mild bilateral neural foraminal narrowing at this level.
L5-S1: Bilateral facet hypertrophy is present. No central canal narrowing. There is moderate left and mild right neural foraminal narrowing.
Tarlov cyst is seen posterior to the sacrum on the sagittal images. Evaluation of the soft tissues does not demonstrate any focal abnormality.
Impression: Multilevel degenerative disc and facet disease with no high-grade central canal narrowing. Details of each level as above.