Laparoscopic back surgery - anyone had it?

[Branhammer]

So I've been dealing with a bulging disc in my lower back since about June 2015. At first it was causing excruciating sciatica, but after a while it healed enough that it was bearable. Since then, it's just been a nagging pain around the site of the injury; left lower back. It's bad enough that I can't touch my toes with my left leg straight or do sit-ups without making the injury worse. I have to be able to do sit-ups for my military PT test. I'm currently on a profile and that portion of the test gets waived, which I hate. It's embarrassing.

I've been going to the gym a lot and there are a lot of things I CAN do, so it's not difficult to stay in shape. I've also run multiple half marathons with the injury (although I really only jog/walk the whole time) and I'm trying to train for a couple of Spartan races this year, although this will be way more taxing on my back than a half marathon. The main concern is that the pain just hasn't gotten any better over the last year or so. It hasn't gotten worse either though. I need to get better so this doesn't threaten my career.

So far I've done physical therapy and a round of prednisone.

I have another visit to the doctor tomorrow and I'm thinking he may recommend cortisone shots, but if that doesn't fix it, the next step will probably be laparoscopic back surgery. Has anyone here had this done before? I've heard horrible things about how once you get back surgery, you are just never the same again after that.

I used to be like Wolverine. I could get injured and heal in half the expected time or less. Since I turned 30, I'm falling apart. And it's ****ing bullshit.

 

[crfrider16]

My wife had a bulging disc that was pressing on her sciatic nerve as well. She did everything - PT, meds, etc, but finally got to the point where she could barely get out of bed.

Had laproscopic surgery and walked out of the hospital the next day. She's been 100% ever since. Of course, this is just her experience, but realistically, these things rarely fix themselves fully.

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[Machdup1]

I haven't been through it, but know plenty that have. All of them were better off for going through the procedure.

BTW, welcome to getting old, right now I have a mild tear on my Achilles, a twisted knee, a torn ab muscle that hasn't healed in two years, a tweaked pectoral muscle, mild heart problems and have been in physical therapy for about a year and I would rather have all of that than your bulging disc.

 

[Branhammer]

My wife had a bulging disc that was pressing on her sciatic nerve as well. She did everything - PT, meds, etc, but finally got to the point where she could barely get out of bed.

Had laproscopic surgery and walked out of the hospital the next day. She's been 100% ever since. Of course, this is just her experience, but realistically, these things rarely fix themselves fully.

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That's good to hear. I am really scared of the possibility that I may never be 100% again. If I end up going that route, I hope for similar results.

I haven't been through it, but know plenty that have. All of them were better off for going through the procedure.

BTW, welcome to getting old, right now I have a mild tear on my Achilles, a twisted knee, a torn ab muscle that hasn't healed in two years, a tweaked pectoral muscle, mild heart problems and have been in physical therapy for about a year and I would rather have all of that than your bulging disc.

Getting old sucks. I'm only 33. I always thought "getting old" didn't happen until 40+. I guess I was just an arrogant 20-something. Since I hit 30, I've had a tweaked rotator cuff in each shoulder (both healed fine but it took a while), a shit load of torn ligaments in my left ankle from rolling the shit out of it at a mud run, and this ****ing bulging disc that has been the bane of my existence for over a year now.

 

[TheShadow]

Can't address the lumbar issue, but did have anterior discectomy with fusion for a ruptured disc at C6-7 back in 1989. I would call it a 99% solution. Prior to surgery I had persistent pain from my neck down though my left arm, with muscle atrophy and numbness in the hand. Post operatively, recovered all muscle mass/strength, and numbness was confined to index and thumb of left hand. Full recovery for me was gradual and probably took better part of 6 months.

Unfortunately, I injured myself again in the fall (no pun intended, trust me) and am scheduled for another ACDF on Wed for C3-4. I am scared shitless, although probably for no good reason. I just don't like hospitals.

 

[oldmodman]

Consider yourself very fortunate that your back problems are NOW, and not 30 years ago.
I had the old fashioned, "gut you like a fish" back surgery and was three years recovering. The nerve induced pain was gone as soon as I woke up in ICU. But the carved up bones and muscle tissue needed three years to recover as much as it was going to.
I had a friend that got the new surgery that you might get and he was in the hospital only one night. And his post surgical recovery was completely over in six weeks. Now it's like he never injured his spinal column.

 

[Nanner]

Had the surgery August of 2015.

Before surgery, i was in pain all day, couldnt sleep. Tried the epidural, stereroids etc....nothing worked.

After surgery - the pain was gone in the nerve (pain level 8-9). The pain from the incision (4-5) was welcomed ! Of course the first few days were a bit rough, but well worth the surgery. I should have had it done a few years before it got so bad.

Currently - zero nerve pain, occasional soreness in back/hip. But not a big deal.

 

[Dusten]

Also no laproscopy, but I had a discetomy at l4-l5 in 2010. After i built my core back up(I let the back injury go for about 2 years and had a lot of atrophy). but I am currently as close to 100% as I would expect. I had a 6mm protrustion that would cause pain 95% of my day with numbness the other 5%.

 

[_Snake_]

That's good to hear. I am really scared of the possibility that I may never be 100% again. If I end up going that route, I hope for similar results.



Getting old sucks. I'm only 33. I always thought "getting old" didn't happen until 40+. I guess I was just an arrogant 20-something. Since I hit 30, I've had a tweaked rotator cuff in each shoulder (both healed fine but it took a while), a shit load of torn ligaments in my left ankle from rolling the shit out of it at a mud run, and this ****ing bulging disc that has been the bane of my existence for over a year now.

I remember turning 30. It was like the warranty on my body expired.

Where are you stationed? I'd try a good chiropractor before surgery. Decompression (table) and K laser therapy have saved a few people I know from having to go under the knife, myself included.

 

[DHG1078]

I have a good friend who has had two back surgeries. He was built like a tank. Always had been, just naturally had wide shoulders, played football, worked for his dads cabinet business, and worked at fed ex moving 140 pound boxes around on his own.

He injured his back at work one day, had a couple of extremely bad bulging/slipped discs. He eventually had surgery after a long fight with fed ex over workmans comp issues. I don't remember all the specifics, just its the same one tiger woods had.

He got a bit better but his back was injured again in very short time after recovery. He had a second surgery, and he can't do anything more active than walking around town or sitting in an office chair. He still has a lot of discomfort.

 

[nxhappy]

if you do it, get the best doctor you can find...DON'T cheap out

 

[DHG1078]

if you do it, get the best doctor you can find...DON'T cheap out

Not sure how much choice he has in the doctor as it sounds like the military will cover it.

 

[nxhappy]

Not sure how much choice he has in the doctor as it sounds like the military will cover it.

might as well piss into the wind if you can't choose the best doctor ...

 

[DHG1078]

might as well piss into the wind if you can't choose the best doctor ...

Ya. I'm not sure how it works, but I think he might be able to go through tri-care, which i think has some costs associated with it now, but he can then choose a different doctor.

I know a little more about how it works for retired military, not sure about active duty. OP would have to explain his options.

 

[Branhammer]

I'm an Air Technicial, which means I'm actually full-time Air National Guard. We wear uniforms every day, but are paid on the GS scale and we still have to do our one weekend per month drill, for which we are paid on the military pay scale. We are ineligible for Tri-care (which is bullshit), so I am actually insured through my wife's insurance, Select Health (she works at a hospital). It's decent insurance and I can go wherever I want.

I've already seen a chiropractor, and after a couple of months he told me I should see a physician.

Today at my appointment, the doctor said that I actually am getting better, albeit very slowly, and that he wants me to actually start pushing a bit harder during exercise. He told me to work my way up from walk/jog intervals to jog/run intervals and told me that as long as the half marathons aren't making me worse, I can still do them. I did get a letter to be put on a profile again for this PT test with the intention of building toward being able to take the full PT test around October.

If, by October, the pain is still there, we may start talking about an MRI and possible surgery.

 

[DHG1078]

Thats an interesting compromise in benefits. I didn't know that was a thing.

 

[kirks5oh]

You haven't even had an MRI yet? How can you know what's going on? What are your main symptoms? Back pain? Or shooting pain down one leg? Have you tried a prolonged course of anti-inflammatories and core strengthening? I mean prolonged---not a half-assed "college try".

The chiros are good for an initial look, but if your symptoms are prolonged despite what I've mentioned, then you need to try epidural shots through an actual spine specialist. In other words, you see a spine surgeon, who gets an MRI, tells you exactly what's going on, and orders a series of injections to see if that works. Despite what you'll hear most vocal people say (people who have ended up having surgery), many times the injections can calm the nerve down and the bulging disc that is irritating the nerve regresses enough to give you lasting relief.

Use the surgery as your last resort and get two opinions from two different surgeons who are NOT in the same medical group. The surgery is most successful in treating the pain radiating down the legs.

 

[DHG1078]

I'm also a bit confused as to how your doctor can make a recommendation/claim without an MRI.

 

[Branhammer]

Thats an interesting compromise in benefits. I didn't know that was a thing.

It's pretty nice. We get a federal pension as well as a military retirement and a 5% matching TSP. The only downside compared to AD is that we can't draw our military retirement until we are 60, but overall I'd say our total retirement package is WAY better than AD.

You haven't even had an MRI yet? How can you know what's going on? What are your main symptoms? Back pain? Or shooting pain down one leg? Have you tried a prolonged course of anti-inflammatories and core strengthening? I mean prolonged---not a half-assed "college try".

The chiros are good for an initial look, but if your symptoms are prolonged despite what I've mentioned, then you need to try epidural shots through an actual spine specialist. In other words, you see a spine surgeon, who gets an MRI, tells you exactly what's going on, and orders a series of injections to see if that works. Despite what you'll hear most vocal people say (people who have ended up having surgery), many times the injections can calm the nerve down and the bulging disc that is irritating the nerve regresses enough to give you lasting relief.

Use the surgery as your last resort and get two opinions from two different surgeons who are NOT in the same medical group. The surgery is most successful in treating the pain radiating down the legs.

The doctor is basically making an educated guess based on the fact that when I first started feeling the pain, it was excruciating and shooting all the way down my left leg. He said he is 90% sure that it is a bulging L5-S1 disc but said only an MRI would tell for sure. He just knows that we have a pretty high deductible and wanted to start with the treatment I've been on so far before we do an $800 MRI. He believes that the L5-S1 bulge is the worst-case scenario anyway, and that it should get better with what we are doing, although very slowly.

I have thought about getting a second opinion, it's just that the pain isn't terrible. I'd say most of the time it's a 2/10 with it going up to a 4/10 on a bad day. It's just nagging enough that I have to be very careful not to injure it worse and it hinders me on military PT tests.

Today, the doctor told me that it does seem better than last time I was there; about six months ago. So I'm fine letting it heal as long as I can do the full PT test within the next year. I just don't want this to threaten my career long-term. He said that in 6 more months, if the pain is still there, then we'll do an MRI and go from there.

 

[kirks5oh]

This is your family doctor, right?? He's clueless. $800 for an MRI is a cheap ass MRI. People walk around daily with 2-4/10 pain. Strengthen your core, and take Mobic/voltaren/alleve for a few months and report back. If the pain gets worse, get an MRI. Google Williams flexion/extension exercises and make that part of your daily routine.