I have back pain questions. Had MRI and CT. Please answer these ?’s?
MRI reads:
At L5-S1, there is disc degeneration, mild posterior broad-based disc bulge, and facet hypertrophy.
Possible nondisplaced fracture through the left side of the sacrum.
No spinal calnal or neural foraminal stenosis.
My doc didn’t explain what this meant! I was left in the dark. please explain!
It means you have a herniated, or blown out disc in one of the most common spots to see one. I imagine you do have pain, shooting down your derriere to the lower thigh and calf on one side. The sacrum is the triangular shaped bone at the tail end of the spine- what you might call your tail bone. A fracture there, even if there is one, is not usually more than a misery for sitting. Given the trouble in the L4-S1 area, it could also be a stress fracture, unless you just recently took a hard spill. No spinal calnal or neural foraminal stenosis means the cause of the pain is not from the bones of the vertebrae overhealing or extending into places they shouldn’t- bone spurs you might call those. If you did have them, they might be the cause of your pain. However you don’t. What you do have is a herniated disc, mild at this point- but no doubt painful. You will have to discuss the treatment options with your doctor though. If this doctor was not an orthopedist, the reason you had no discussion may be because he doesn’t quite understand the report himself. Not knowing your medical history, I can’t give you much other help than this. I would recommend you see a Doctor of Osteopathy, a D.O. as opposed to an MD, or an orthopedic surgeon for treatment. I’d suggest the DO first, as they will prefer to try non-surgical means of treatment first, and resort to surgery as a last resort. Orthopedic surgeons sometimes are a little less enthusiastic with physical therapy. In the meantime, you may find a chiropractor can offer you some relief, but not permanent solutions. Floating in a nice hot tub of water can also help take some pressure off you as well.