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Sciatic pain started 5 weeks after microdiscectomy

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kirsteen_56748
kirsteen_56748

Since its going to take forever to get an appointment with the neurosurgeon who did my surgery i thought i would ask here if anyone can give me a clue. I had no pain whatsoever after my microdiscectomy, i thought it was a miracle but about 5 weeks after the sciatic pain started creeping back in. My back has been in far more agony than before the surgery but i believe its coming from my sacroilliac joint. I havent had a post surgery appointment with the neurosurgeon yet and we are 6 months down the line now. Im back to walking with a crutch and starting pain in my other leg and hip as its trying to compensate so much. Ive been discharged from physio as she says theres nothing more she can do for me. Any ideas on whats going on?

0 likes, 4 replies

4 Replies

  • rommon
    rommon kirsteen_56748

    Posted

    I had this exact same thing happen, waking up from the surgery was like a miracle of no pain, then one day a few weeks later I very lightly tapped my right thigh on a cushion and the pain was like my entire leg was one sharp unbearable sting.

    I unfortunately don't have a great solution, they put me on the nightmare drug Gabapentin which actually helped at the lowest possible dose of 100mg 3x daily for a couple months, and eventually it went away. I never really saw the surgeon, but his PA person said to try the gaba, and as horrible as that stuff is it did work.

    I would advise against using it though, or at least read through the Gabapentin board on here before discussing it as an option.

    Good luck, I have had sciatica blow outs twice a year since my micro on l4 and l5, once I finally get my body not in pain, I will be at the gym daily to strengthen my entire body... years of health crisis after health crisis has been quite enough for me.

    Hope you find relief soon!

    • kirsteen_56748
      kirsteen_56748 rommon

      Posted

      Thanks for your reply. I was on the highest dose of gabapentin before my surgery but I stopped it because it wasn't doing anything for my pain. Now they have put me on pregabalin which isn't helping either unfortunately

  • CHICO_MARX
    CHICO_MARX kirsteen_56748

    Posted

    The human mind subconsciously changes the way we walk (our "gait") to avoid pain. Totally natural. This shift in weight very frequently puts our hips and pelvis out of alignment, pinching the sciatic nerve in the lower back, hips or SI joints. The result is a gradual onset of sciatica. Very common...happened to me 5 weeks after a knee replacement. Here is a discussion on the causes and fixes...

    Sciatica

    Sounds like a trip to a chiropractor is in order. The chiro will check your leg length (typically off by a half inch or more) and then your hip alignment. For me, a few sessions a week for a few weeks plus ibuprofen (10 days max) almost always works (check out the one time it was caused by a bone spur). I always recommend this as a starting point as it's non-invasive and requires no RX medications.

    In the end, you have to find the underlying cause and fix it ASAP. You should never have to live with sciatic pain. Find the modality that fits you best.

    • kirsteen_56748
      kirsteen_56748 CHICO_MARX

      Posted

      I would like to hope thats all it is. I think I was walking normally when it started though. I'm a bit scared to go to a chiropractor since the physio told me to go back to the neurosurgeon, I'm worried I do myself more damage

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