Hip pain following spinal fusion
Posted , 14 users are following.
I have had a spinal fusion on 4 levels which was done in 2 stages. First stage the surgeon went into my spine sideways and replaced 2 discs with cages and then 2 weeks later went through my back and put another cage, 2 plates and 8 screws. I am pleased to say that I no longer have lower back pain but I can only stand and walk for short periods of time as my back tightens up and I get pain in what seems to be my right hip. Has anyone had similar and do they know what it is?
1 like, 19 replies
CHICO_MARX diane35061
Posted
Fused 4 levels L3 through S1. Have had hip pain over time when I walk "funny". Very common to change your gait when you've been in pain (back, hip, knee, etc.). See a chiropractor. You may have a misalignment of your hips or a locked SI joint. A few weeks ago, I woke up with a level 10 hip pointer. Turned out to be my quadratus lumborum (QL) muscle. Two sessions plus a massage fixed that one up quickly. Start with a chiro. Not invasive and NO DRUGS. A lot of this pain can be alignment related.
If the chiropractor can't help, then back to the neuro or ortho to find the root cause of the problem. With your back like that (mine was too), I'd think it's more alignment and/or musculature. Easily fixable.
Carolineq8 CHICO_MARX
Posted
Hi chiko hope your well, I really just wanted to see if you could help me with what's going on at the mo.
As you know I had l4/5 fussion 14 years ago with chronic pain ever since, this opp lead to me having a thoracic arachnoid cyst t2-6 with compression of spinal cord and now cervical degeneration with multi level bone spurs and bulging discs especially c6/7 and slight lordosis.
I suffer chronic rhomboid and trapezius muscle spasms and my left leg has been numb with weakness for 4 years now, I have lumbar and sacrialic joint injections every 4 months and I'm now off all meds and only take diazapam and gabapentin when I can't take anymore.
Sorry for babbling on but this is where it changes, in the last week something has happened to my lower back, it feels like it's coming away from me, I can barely stand up and walking is excruciating, my chiro said something has changed since he last saw me a week ago, I am now getting numbness down my bottom right leg, side of foot and toe which I think is S1 and sciatica down both legs 😫I'm also scared something has happened to the Fussion.
I had an MRI 4 weeks ago but no results yet but my doc has ordered an emergency MRI. I am so scared of surgery since I have suffered 14 years with no answers from my fussion, do you have any advice while I wait for results
Oh and also there sending me for EP and EMG tests, thank you
CHICO_MARX Carolineq8
Posted
Advice? Yes...drink heavily...only kidding...but maybe I made you laugh...
My only experience with sciatica down BOTH legs is when my neuro found stenosis at L2/L3 last year. Eight months into a knee replacement recovery and it just completely knocked me down. Didn't get it all figured out for a while. MRI showed it in late November, a CT/Myelogram with contrast confirmed it in January, and a pain shot to L2/L3 double-confirmed in February. Took until the end of March 2017 to get the surgery to fix it (surgeon coordination required).
Neuro told me I had two choices. Option A was to open my back, pull all the L3 to S1 metal and re-fuse me L2 to S1. Ten days in the hospital plus six months of back brace and rehab. Or...
Option B: a LATERAL Lumbar Intervertebral Fusion (LLIF). A General Surgeon goes in from your SIDE (lateral) and clears a path to your spine through the muscles and moves "stuff" out of the way. The Neurosurgeon then goes in, destroys the disk, puts the "device" in place, cranks it open with an Allen wrench, backfills it with a bone graft from your hip and backs away from the table. The General Surgeon does the close. All finished in 90 minutes. One night in the hospital, ZERO rehab.
Thank you...I'll take one from Column B, please...
Result: Immediate stenosis relief (all the pain was gone when I woke up), speeding down the hallways, climbing up and down PT stairs. See the attached pix. You'll clearly see the "device" above my old fusion; the lateral picture shows how the neuro cranked the posterior edge open further than the anterior edge to maintain spine curvature.
If you have single-level stenosis, this cures it in a heartbeat. You just need the diagnosis and then find a neuro who's done a thousand of these. He'll know the GS to call. Search YouTube for "globus lateral" to see a cute animation of the procedure.
Hope this helps...
Carolineq8 CHICO_MARX
Posted
Hahaha yes you did make me laugh...thank you
That's sounds great and I will be mentioning this to my GP and chiro when I next see them, not sure my surgeon would appreciate the suggestion of LLIF but you never k ow he might just surprise me, however time to do research into a surgeon who knows this opp well.
Iv been climbing the walls this weekend with the pain so hopefully I will get some answers soon, I will keep you updated.
Thank you for your help I really do appreciate it, I hope your having a great day 😊
jessica_78456 diane35061
Posted
Yr still very early post op when standing yr back is using all ur muscles to support u , you will still be very bruised sore and swollen inside , its going to take time , arnica tablet from holland and Barrett £4 heal you from the inside out
Daynaehren diane35061
Posted
Carolineq8 Daynaehren
Posted
It could be where they took the bone graft for your fusion, Iv heard that the pain here can be as bad as the back pain, if this is the case it can take a while to settle, good luck😊
madeleine38315 diane35061
Posted
I would love to know how you are feeling 8 months post operation. I had a 3 level lumbar fusion 6 weeks and suffering from hip pain, and one of my knees hurts now also. The hips feel bruised and ache all the time. The worst problem is a pain like an electric shock which comes from the point that the thigh joint meets the hip on the outside of my right leg and radiates towards groin. It can happen for no apparent reason when I am sitting, standing, walking or just reaching up in a certain way.
The physio says it is just muscular but it feels more like the hips are not aligned properly. It is my good side that is giving me the biggest problem now.
Is my problem similar to what you had? Thanks.
Carolineq8 madeleine38315
Posted
It's very early days and can take months to a year to recover which I do t think the docs really prepare you for, I mentioned to sherry about a sacrialic joint belt? Just check with physio or doc before doing anything and also gong to the pool just to gently walk evenif it's for a few minutes at a time but again check first, also ice packs are really good 😊
diane35061 madeleine38315
Posted
Hi Madeleine,
Have only just seen your post. I'm not too good to be honest. I have a flank bulge which is apparently due to nerves being cut or damaged during surgery. This has caused my muscle in the lumbar wall on my right hand side to collapse as the nerves are no longer feeding the muscles. They don't want to operate as this would be a serious operation whereby they would get a big piece of mesh and connect it to the muscle down the side of my spinal fusion. This would go round my side and be connected to the bottom of my ribs and top of my hip. It would then be taken round to my stomach muscles. They would have to move the bowel and kidney to get behind them. It is a very rare condition. Guessing that this is why I have been struggling to walk and I still am. My Neuro surgeon was very upset and has asked for a second opinion. But I cannot walk very far without my back going into spasms, my hips become extremely painful and I have groin pain. Just goosed basically and wish I could turn back the clock. The prognosis for the bulge is not good as I have been told that there is nothing holding my guts in and could get to the size of a football.It is like living a nightmare.
Jillyn67 madeleine38315
Posted
I'm going through this very thing right now. I feel like I'm being stabbed with an ice pick on the outside of my right hip. I feel sore, bruised and at all times. I had l4 l5 S1 fusion in 2013 now this...
michelleDee madeleine38315
Posted
Hi,
I get this shooting, electrical shock like pain after my double instrumented fixation and fusion.
My consultant told me it's from the nerves that are cut during the operation trying to reconnect (if that makes sense?!) Basically, the nerve endings are "Sparking"
It certainly feels like this and actually makes me cry out when it does it!
sherry21530 diane35061
Edited
I had L4 L5 disc replacement and not quite a month out now I am suffering with pain in both hips. It feels like my hip joins are out of wack. I cannot walk for very long and sleeping is horrible. When I do sleep, I cannot pull my legs up without bad pain waking me at the new disc site. I am now seeing others in the same boat. Any advice?
Carolineq8 sherry21530
Posted
diane35061
Posted
Hi everyone and thank you for replying. Sorry it has taken me so long to reply. My problem appears to be the severance or damage to nerves which has caused a flank bulge. Basically a break down of muscles on my right side due to the nerves not feeding into the muscle. This has caused my fat and guts to move over rather like an enormous hernia as there isn't any muscle to hold things in. I have seen a complex hernia guy with his plastic surgeon. He has called it a breakdown due to denervation. Nothing that they can do really. Would mean an enormous and serious op to attach mesh to the muscle in my back at the side of my spinal fusion, to attach it then to the bottom of my ribs and top of hip and to take forward to attach to stomach muscle in an attempt to keep everything in place. To attach it to the stomach muscle apparently will mean my bowel and kidney moving. If it had been spotted earlier, there might have been a chance of reconnecting the nerves. When it appeared shortly after the op, I mentioned it to my physio who said that it was a knot in my muscle and started doing deep massage which the hospital has admitted would have made things worse. He now no longer works for them as he also had me doing excessive exercises and they found that there were several failings in various areas by him and not just in my case. My neuro surgeon is asking for a second opinion from a surgeon who he obviously trusts. In the meantime, I have been told that this bulge can get as big as a football and cause me pain. It is getting bigger and is starting to cause discomfort. I can walk very little, have severe nerve pain in my hips and groins. It is a nightmare and I just wish that I had never had the fusion.
Carolineq8 diane35061
Posted
Omg dianne this is absolutely awful, I have been doing research for years because of the chronic pain Iv suffered due to a failed fusion and have never come across anything like this, I hope you get sorted real soon and looked after properly this time.
Please keep us updated on your progress, sending hugs 🤗