New to forum - need advice?

[Ekrause973]

Hello, I am a newbie here but have been navigating around and reading the forum for a few weeks now. It is awesome to see this forum is put together to aid people in times of need that goes with back pain. I will give you a quick run down of symptoms and findings and I would sure appreciate any input from you guys.
I am a 39 yr old male (very active and fit) with 2 kids and a wonderful wife so life is good, until.............woke up one morning after not working out for a week to find neck and back pain. Took some aleve and thought it was a stiff neck from sleeping wrong. Next 2-3 days I had the pain intensify accompanied by severe muscle spasms in right pectoral, tricep.
went to Chiro for adjustment, massage and stem after the third day. Spasms stopped but pain in lower cervical/ upper thorasic area and right shoulder. Went to the gym and noticed I could not do a push up or bench 95 lbs. Tricep, shoulder and Pec were about 20% strength.
to make a long story shorter I had an MRI on shoulder which showed some tendonitis and arthritis but no damage or tears. I then went for an MRI of cervical spine to find the following: (please excuse my lack of proper terms)
c2/3/4 all good. C5/6 had slight cord compression (slightly bean shaped image from top and bottom) along with some degeneration in disc height. C6/7 had huge disc bulge posterior to the right that was compressing cord and I think its the c7 nerve root. C7/T1 was normal.
Chiro set me up with neuro (that was a month out) and I started massage and decompression of my neck everyday in the mean time.
Pain went away but strength is still not there in tri and pec and they both have atrophied and are about 50% compared to the other side.

Have gone to 3 neuros since and they all said I need to do something about the 6-7. 2 of them suggested disc removal and fusion of 6-7 and they were both on the fence about 5-6. Said they would leave it up to me but if I wanted to do that level or not.
Went to see Dr. Blumenthal at TBI and he suggested Secure C ADR for C6/7 and showed me on the MRI that the nerve roots going out of 5-6 were not impinged, but there was some DDD and a slight compression of the cord itself at that level.
Everyone I talk to agrees the tricep is from the C7 root but I am getting conflicting reports about the pectoral muscle coming from that root.
Has anyone had experience with C6-7 causing tricep and Pectoral muscle strength loss of atrophy?
Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

[NJ Gene]

Originally Posted by Ekrause973

Has anyone had experience with C6-7 causing tricep and Pectoral muscle strength loss of atrophy?

EKrause, I did. In my case, ADR wasn't necessary (although I spent a lot of time on these boards investigating it a possibility). I had a minimally invasive procedure called a foraminotomy at that level and I feel 100% better. I don't know the exact extent of my tricep and pectoral muscle strength loss because I am not actively lifting weights. However, all weakness was gone about a month after the procedure. I am now 3 months post-op and completely back to normal.

I noticed that you saw several neurosurgeons, but no orthopedic spine surgeons. It might be a good idea to get an opinion from one or two of them. I think it might be a good idea to see if a minimally invasive procedure like I had might be a consideration before considering a fusion or ADR. IMO, ADR is better than a fusion. Having had two fusions, I know that over time, they can put pressure on adjacent healthy discs, causing them to become herniated. However, I think keeping your natural discs and repairing them is an option to explore first. I initially thought that the foraminotomy would be a band-aid on the bruise. However, after discussion with my surgeon, the disc heals where the herniated portion or bulge gets cut off. It takes about 8 to 12 weeks. Also, contrary to what you may read on these boards, a foraminotomy does not preclude you from ADR in the future. It may eliminate certain types or brands of artificial discs but not all of them.

Don't get me wrong, a foraminotomy is just one type of minimally invasive procedure. You need to seek out a spine surgeon or neurosurgeon who will discuss which option is best for you. If you haven't had an EMG test as of yet, you might consider getting one. It helps pinpoint which level is causing your symptoms. If it indicates C6/C7, you know it agrees with the MRI and there is little doubt about you treating that level. You might be surprised though. Without going into details, I've been surprised in the past. Look at my signature to see all of the cervical procedures I've had.

Feel free to PM me with any further questions!!

Good luck!!

Gene

[Ekrause973]

Thank you for the info NJ Gene. I will look into that deeper as no one has mentioned anything about that but I like the idea. It is appreciated!

[LauraB]

I am new to your forum, and so grateful to have found all of you. I have put off a multilevel fusion for five years because it just never seemed right!!! I currently have a fusion at C5/6, but after a car accident and extensive protocol treatments - I've been left to believe that fusion was my last and only alternative until my internet research came across the M-6, Stenum, and Dr. Ritter-Lang.

After reading your forum, I have decided I need to go elsewhere. I've looked into Dr. Clavel, Dr. Bierstedt, and Dr. Bertagnoli. I've sent my evaluations and diagnostics to all, and am awaiting reply. Any suggestions, advice, ANYONE can give me, I would appreciate it. I am running out of time. I am a teacher and cannot afford to take time off during the school year (especially since I have to remortgage my home to do this) -This summer is my only option - or wait until next year (not sure if I can). Any assistance would be GREATLY APPRECIATED! I'm scared, unsure of myself, and not very trusting of the physicians I've seen to date.

[Harrison]

Laura, I reposted your topic as YOUR new topic in this forum, see this new one for you: http://www.adrsupport.org/forums/f58...58/#post100956

This is another member's topic. Pls See the first sticky topic in this forum, too about posting.

Thanks!