If a person has lower back herniated disc problems and pain in the thigh and calf at what point?

is it best to get the back fixed by a specialist. I mean, will the blood flow be cut off to the leg at some point, and is the pain in the leg a blood clot or what? everyone had superb answers. Thank you. the herniated disc thing seems to be a popular problem. I have a cousin who just went thru a tortuous back operation and aftermath of 18 months. I have a female cousin who has had 3 back operations and warns me of numbness in the leg and that she's lost her driving privileges because of it. I met a maintenance man here at the apartments who successfully had a back operation to relieve pressure on the nerve and his was successful and no pain afterward. I knew of a boss years ago who was playing tennis and ended up having to have a back operation, he seemed ok afterward, never mentioned pain. I also knew of a neighbor who continued to insist that I get the back operation because she said hers was successful and without pain afterwards. I used to have a chiropractor but he said he will no longer see me because it's an injury and nothing further he can do. When i was his patient he told me to exercise if I could, but "no" massage. I heard the CT scan was better than the MRI with regard to back problems. Am I wrong?

Public Comments

1. I'm not a doctor, but in my experience, a herniated disc in the lower spine will not cut off blood flow to your legs. If your are having pain that travels down your bottom thru your thigh and into your lower leg or foot, then you may have pinched your sciatic nerve. This is a large nerve that runs the entire length of your lower body, starting at about your pelvis. If the pain doesn't travel all the way to your lower leg; it stops at your knee you may have pinched the femoral nerve. If your pain isn't a traveling pain, but is throbbing then you don't have a nerve problem, it's something else. But like I said I'm not a dr...I would go see your doctor. It's up to you to see a chiropractor...I don't trust many of them. I hope this helps.
2. My husband just got out of the hospital for a back operation in three separate areas of the spinal column. He had Spinal Stenosis. You can look the info up, like I did LOL. Basically, the nerve inside the spine gets pinched by the compression of bone against it. A narrowing occurs as we age. What you'll have to do first, is get a referral from your primary MD to see a nerve specialist. He will run a test with electrodes to see which nerves are involved that cause you pain. It is his medical opinion after this test, that will determine if surgery is right for you. If you feel you may have a clot or something in one of your extremities, they can do a scan to determine if there is an obstruction. Never agree to surgery until all possible testing can be done to determine your pre- cise problem. The neurologist will probably also be a surgeon, who can give you your options. My husband was in the OR for about four hours, while each disc was cleaned out and fixed. He assumed he'd be able to walk around right away, and he was trying to do a little of that, while the OR drugs were still in his system. Now he's just on a muscle relaxant and Tylenol with Codeine.And they aren't numbing the pain as was the case in the hospital. He makes sure he takes his meds on time due to severe pain. He is pampering himself, and is getting stiffer. He's supposed to make himself walk, but he won't go far. Sometimes things get worse, before they get better. Only time will tell. This is a surgery that is supposed to relieve all of the pain causes, and if it's not complete, he may have to face more surgery. But for now, he's hopefully on the mend. We'll soon see.
3. the pain is from pressure on the nerve. There isn't much you can do about it any time soon. Natural techniques take years and surgery sometimes causes its own problems. I only know one healer who treats this kind of thing, here's his site. I bought his book, it's on how to do adjustments on yourself, but I don't think that would be good for you to do. I have emailed with him, and he knows natural techniques for a herniated disc.
4. I was excited to see this question because I am LIVING what you wrote about and thought, "OK, now there's something I KNOW about"..... and then I saw "Princess" told you the straight stuff. I'm only writing this to suggest that you exhaust EVERY possible remedy before you have surgery. Of all the people I have talked with that have had the surgeries, only about 1 in 4 are satisfied. Most of the others say that they merely, "traded one kind of pain for another". Be careful. If you talk to one of those orthopedic surgeons - they ARE going to recommend surgery - because that's what they know how to do -operate. Do it as the last possible resort. The pain down the leg isn't blood flow problem it's sciatica like princess said. Give her the 10 points but remember what I said. Try chiropractic (deep tissue massage) and an inversion table.
5. I may be able to help with a simple exercise,if the problem hasn't progressed too far....I am a curative massagist,that means I solve the problem...email me if you feel I can help,most happy to share....
6. I've had surgery on my lower back twelve times. I have osteo-arthritis in the severe degenerative stages along with severe neurological damages. The orthopedic surgeons ill make the decision for you. They will examine all MRI's and X-Rays and make that decision. It's a matterr of "If it isn't broken, don't fix it" I have been on pain control since 1994.
7. I used to have lots of back pain in both my upper and lower back and the pain in my lower back radiated dow my leg. A neurosurgeon wanted to do surgery, which scared me into seeing a Chiropractor. I have been pain free since (with the exception of the damage I since did to my body from moving). Time for another visit to the Chiropractor.
8. Sophie, the only way to figure out what is causing the pain in your thigh and calf is to visit your doctor for an examination. Herniated discs can put pressure on nearby nerves which can cause leg pain. Blood clots are caused by other things, but can also cause pain in your legs. Speaking with your doctor, your doctor's examination, and perhaps some tests, will allow your doc to figure out the cause of your pain and then how to treat it. Answering your doctor's questions and the examination will give your doc clues about which tests to run; nerve problems from a herniated disc and blood clots will likely cause different signs that your doctor can observe. If your leg pain is caused by the herniated discs pressing on nerves, and the pain has lasted more than a few weeks, then it's time to try a different treatment. Some people are helped by a combination of physical therapy and oral medications. The physical therapy helps strengthen back and abdomonal muscles; which eases the compression. The oral meds help with pain and swelling. When the oral meds do not work, injections near the ruptured disc can sometimes relieve the swelling and pressure. Sometimes people rest for a few days and then try to exercise again. Some people have been helped by using a chiropractor or theraputic massage to help stretch the spine a bit to relieve pressure-just make sure to check with your doctor about these treatments....and that the providers are well qualified. If none of these things work then it' time to be evaluated to see if surgery might help. There is no way to know if you are a good candidate for surgery without seeing 2 or 3 specialists for an evaluation. I wouldn't go with just one recommendation from a surgeon....it's safer to have 2 or 3. If your leg pain is caused by something else, then the treatments will likely be very different. I know this can seem like a big ole puzzle, but getting an accurate diagnoses is very important and it can take some time. I hope your pain is eased soon!
9. When all else fails, look up and find an Osteopath that does manipulation. Forget about chiropractor's they can do more damage. My husband had back surgery and then a year later had more back pain, his surgeon ordered all the tests, but in the end he went to an Osteopath who found a muscle leaning on his sciatic nerve, after two treatments he fine.
10. I have a good relationship with my doctor, and I would seek professional help rather than tolerating it or relying on advice by people who may or not know all of treatments available.
11. I have spine problems and while my back bothers me in those places I find that the symptoms radiate out into my hands & arms or legs. I have an injury at the neck and have problems with my hands & arms swelling and loss of feeling in my fingers and then somewhere around the lumbar area another injusry and my right thigh goes numb sometimes and other times my big toe goes out. There are things you can do for herniated disks that don't involve surgery. If you decide on surgery be sure you pick the best doctor your $ can buy. When I got hurt, I met a fellow that had just had surgery and while the surgery was a success and fixed the problem, the scar tissue made him lose the ability to know where his toes were and therefore, he tripped frequently and fell flat on his face. Find out a bunch before you do anything. I just stopped doing what I was doing and my nerves regenerated a bunch. I'm nowhere near 100% but I'm much better. Check with several doctors. . .no chiropracters. . .don't let anyone touch you until you can make an informed decision.