Sciatica
Posted , 3 users are following.
I have sciatica which is caused by a cyst at the bottom of my spine which is pressing on nerves. Have been on Gabapentin (useless); have had an epidural injection in back (useless) and am now being put on a drug called Phegabalin which I am due to start in a months time when I've weaned myself off the Gabapentin. In the meantime I get along using TENS machine (good), Tramadol tablets (good) and exercises (useless).
My my question is has anybody tried a PainGone pen or this Sciatcalm which are advertised as helping us cope with this awful condition. Any feeback would be greatly appreciated as some of these things are a waste of money
0 likes, 5 replies
mike23582 Soxy
Posted
Hi,
I've never tried that. I'm surprised Tramadol is helping since that does nothing for nerve pain. If you have a cyst I highly recommend talking to an orthopedic spine specialist or neuro surgeon. The cyst is going to keep pressing and it sounds like if it is removed the nerve will be free.
Soxy mike23582
Posted
I use Tramadol purely for pain relief. I'm seeing a Pain Specialist at the moment, but may need to see a Neuro Surgeon. Cyst is in a position that it can't be removed without real damage to me (don't want to end up in a wheelchair). A long haul ahead of me I think. Thanks for your reply.
CHICO_MARX Soxy
Posted
I'm not a doc, but...
I had really bad sciatica a number of years ago and nothing worked. Drugs, PT, chiro, injections...no joy. A neurosurgeon found a bone spur "crushing" (his word) my sciatic nerve root at L4/L5. Simple laminectomy got rid of the spur and freed the nerve. Pain-free in 24 hours; no rehab.
You can spend your money on all the drugs you want and get minimal or no relief...the TENS is also only temporary. Need surgery to remove the cyst...period. Did your docs tell you that's not possible? See another doc...must be a neuroSURGEON not a neurologist. Are there other complications that are preventing this operation? Then find a neuro who's done the procedure before.
A while back, my daughter had a compression fracture of L1 and micro-fractures of her sacrum. Everything healed but she was in constant pain for two years until a neurosurgeon looked LOWER...found that her tailbone was completely shattered. Luckily, the doc had experience with coccyx surgery and did the op. Got Kate back to 90% of normal.
Do the research, find the right doc, get this fixed once and for all.
Soxy CHICO_MARX
Posted
Thank you for your reply. This problem appeared after I had a hip replacement in December 2015. The hip healed well, although I was getting a lot of pain at the back of the thigh and in the lower back. My orthopaedic surgeon recommended me to see a pain specialist which is where I am at the moment. Have had one epidural injection, but no improvement. Can't do anything more until I have had a follow up appointment, although the pain man has intimated that the cyst is in a difficult place. Any thoughts on my previous question about pain relief pen or Sciaticalm to help me through the waiting.
CHICO_MARX Soxy
Posted
Not familiar with either of those. Typically sciatica on once side can be hip/pelvis-alignment related. Had that months 2 into my knee replacement recovery. Fixed by a Chiro in a few weeks. Then again, my pain years ago was caused by the bone spur. Really, really need the imaging to nail down the root cause. Once you get to that, you need a permanent fix.
If this is definitely being caused by the cyst (like mine was by the bone spur), then it has to be taken care of surgically. Anything else will be short-term and not fully effective. Cortisone, epidurals, meds...nothing worked for me. If it's the cyst, find a neurosurgeon who will do the op. I don't see any other path to long-term health. Sorry...