I recently posted a reply to the new member who was at a loss how to proceed since a discogram seems to have relieved the pain from a ruptured disc. For some reason my reply (now deleted) went into a completely different thread and I can't seem to find the correct one. If you posted that query (or know which one it was) would you kindly supply a link or directions to this old fool? I'd like to try and post my reply in the right place, if I can manage it...

Thanks! http://adrsupport.org/groupee_common...icon_smile.gif

I replied to this also, rather lengthy at that~ guess it's wherever it's supposed to be altho I have yet to check~

"Stranger than science"!

Can't find it using the Search function.

I've searched through Mariaa's recent posts and can't find it that way. I think the original poster must have removed the thread altogether (I haven't tested this yet myself but understand from the instructions on the board FAQ's that it's possible to remove an entire thread if you're the originator or first poster of a topic). Either that or I'm just missing something... Anyway, if a response doesn't turn up on this thread in the next few days I'm going to see if that 'remove thread' capability works on this one. If you see it gone you'll know why. ;-)

Oh, yeah; just for the heck of it, here's the response I posted (or tried to post) to that newbie's first topic. You can see it was someone new by my first word!

Welcome! A discogram is designed to determine if a particular disc is the cause of the pain a patient reports (narrowing down the pain to a specific disc rather than a general area of the back). A needle is inserted into the suspect disc and fluid is injected. If the correct disc is injected then patients respond with immediate pain exactly duplicating what they previously reported (and some do not). The result of the fluid injection is, many times, a re-inflation of the disc, which then results in the newly-injected fluid acting in a similar manner to the original core of the disc (nucleus pulposa). The original core acted as a shock absorber as well as preventing direct compression of the outer shell (annulus-which contains nerves which produce most of the pain in the back post-discectomy) between the endplates of the vertebrae. You are most likely experiencing a temporary loss of pain only because the annulus is re-inflated. Once the injected fluid leaks out again (and it will!) the annulus will flatten, the endplates of the adjacent vertebrae will continue to compress the annulus and you'll be back to the same pain (only you'll perceive it as greater because you've had a respite for a while) as before. Don't let this temporary respite fool you; you're *not* cured (sorry!) and you need to continue pursuing your original goal of ADR, fusion or whatever.

Exactly. I felt better for at least 3 weeks after my first discogram, and was working and on my feet way back then so it was great. However, my usual pain returned with a resounding big bang or collapsing feeling I should say~ and things were back to normal. To date however, I haven't had more surgery as back then I was being advised to have a 3 level global fusion, and then in '03 and '04 a 2 level ADR.

Only you can tell when you feel that you are badly off enough to have surgery unless you are experiencing significant neurodeficits or other changes that would make surgery more immediately necessary and have been advised as such of this situation.

Continue seeking seeking opinions however, so you will be prepared when making the surgical decision should it come to that.

It probably jumped into the FAQ's...HA!

Patrick I promise you it didn't, because I live in the FAQs, and as a Yorkshireman keen on cricket I would've caught it had it dropped in on me. -- -- -- -- -- lol http://adrsupport.org/groupee_common...icon_smile.gif http://adrsupport.org/groupee_common...icon_smile.gif http://adrsupport.org/groupee_common...icon_smile.gif

Very few things, in any, get deleted. Many moves are made to tidy up and keep the forums organized.

PS: After my discogram, I felt great for 10 days (other than the spinal headache!). The inflated disk relieved the lumbar pain for whatever reason...