Cervical Disc Herniation

[wawaskr]

Anyone come back from a cervical disc herniation without surgery or fusion?

[6balls]

So many variables. Severity, spinal stenosis, neuroforaminal stenosis...every case different. I've come back from surgery without fusion 16 years ago, coming back now post surgical fusion. It's not my neck holding me back right now...I think it's a combo of age and a year off to recover. I'm not too far off in terms of ball count but took a lot longer this year to get here.

[oneski]

I suffered a cervical herniated disc at C7-T1 exactly 11 weeks ago today. I've gone from severe/debilitating pain, to moderate pain, and now have almost no pain. Even though I'm almost pain free I'm still rehabbing my neck/shoulder/arm and still a long way from getting back on the water. The good news is that over 90% of herniated discs will heal without need for surgery. The bad news is it can takes months, and possibly a year to fully heal. Most of the time the pain resolves in 6-12 weeks, but it can take months to build back strength. The key is patience and rest, which is very difficult in the middle of ski season! If you start back to early you can reherniate the disc.

I've become an expert in the subject. Feel free to PM me if you have questions.

[DaveD]

@oneski, now you've got me worried. I herniated my C7 7 weeks ago and plan to ski for the first time tomorrow. Right arm is still weak in triceps lifts but my bicep strength is almost 100%. Am I making a mistake by skiing?

[MarkM]

I came back from a herniated c5/c6. It happened last year. I lost 90% strength in my left bicep and deltoid. The pain was unreal. I avoided surgery, had 2 epidural injections and lots of drugs. I missed 6 months of skiing. But it healed (still healing) on its own and I'm back skiing. So yes, you can avoid surgery. In fact, herniated discs heal themselves 90% of the time. You can message me anytime for advice.

Good luck!!

[Bookm_dano]

Slightly different animal, but I suffered a herniated lumbar disc and just waited it out...walked with a limp for about a year; could not sleep on my back; 15 months to be mostly pain free....three years later now and I can't tell I ever had an injury. (continued to ski conservatively during the recovery )

[oneski]

DaveD, 6balls is correct in his post. There are many variables. No two cases are alike. Many people can heal within several weeks while others can takes months or longer. It's also not necessarily how big the herniation is, but other factors such as whether it is impinging on a root nerve, or if you have compounding factors such as spinal stenosis or neuroformaminal stenosis, bone spurs, etc... If you had an MRI done it should help the Doctor assess your particular situation. Also, if you're going to P.T. (something I'd highly recommend) your physical therapist should be able to tell you if it's safe to ski. I have also heard from several people with herniated discs that it's very important to NOT overdo activity when you start feeling better. The message is it takes longer to completely heal than you think.

I had so much pain for such a long time that I don't want to risk a reinjury, which is why I'm waiting longer. I also still have a strength deficit it my left hand (which would make holding on on my 1,3,5 pull pretty difficult).

[6balls]

C7 not likely to affect bicep much. Tricep, wrist extensors are innervated by C7. Bicep would get hit by C5/6 nerve impingement.

[oneski]

6balls: Which vertebrae did you get fused? I'm a little concerned on mine because I herniated the disc between C7-T1, which is just on top of the shoulder, and that particular area takes a big load when I'm at maximum lean just off the ball. It's also impacted my hand strength, which is improving very, very slowly.

Oddly enough, skiing never once bothered my neck. In fact I had skied several days in a row before I herniated the disc and had no discomfort whatsoever. I suspect that I had developed a tear in the annulus some time earlier and the nucleus pulposus seeped out one morning when I turned my neck the wrong way.

I also have moderate to severe neuroformainal stenosis at C6-C7, which has slowed my recovery, but I hope will not permanently keep me off the water. Do you know if the stenosis is usually related to the herniated disc and resolves once the disc heals?

[jdk99]

@wawaskr....yes, you can bounce back without surgery. As stated by @oneski above, we quote our patients an 85-90% chance of recovery without surgery in the case of isolated soft disc herniations. HOWEVER, as per @6balls, if there are additional anatomic factors such as foraminal stenosis, that likelihood goes down. My rec is to to try nonoperative measures (PT, Injections, traction) and avoid activities that place you at risk for hypermobility of the neck until your symptoms have resolved.

 

@DaveD...7 weeks with persistent weakness is pushing it. You might get away with it but if you have an OTF with neck hyperflexion it might put you back at square one or worse.

 

@oneski...foraminal stenosis can either be due to 'bone spurs' or disc protrusion/herniations. More often than not a combination of both. You may get relief as the disc resorbs depending on the degree to which the disc is causative in your particular case.

[6balls]

At 26 years old I took a hard hyperflextion in a barefoot fall. Had the typical whiplash type stiff neck develop shortly thereafter. Progressively lost strength right tricep and wrist extensors obvious to a competitive lifter initially, obvious to all later as 3 months later flex my tricep and it was mush. Went from 400 lb bench press to can't do 135 left side wouldn't come up.

Turns out I had congenital spinal stenosis and a big C6-7 extrusion to the left. Already bone spurs, too...poor heredity.

 

Microdiscectomy and it all came back. Benched over 400 through 2009, tourney PB skiing into 39.5 3 seasons ago.

 

16 years later insidious onset crushing headaches and a burning left neck. Pretty soon trouble painful swallowing. Really strange if I yawned I would get a blast from left neck to scalp so unexpected and fierce I would scream...I had to quit yawning. Asymptomatic if I took enough prednisone.

 

MRI showed severe spinal stenosis made worse by central disc bulge causing edema of the cord and severe C5 and C6 neuroforaminal stenosis to the left. C2 and C3 foramen not great, either. Had C4-5, C5-6 foraminotomy and fusion June 5, 2014 and missed the ski season. Recovered well.

 

Getting older but still benched 350 last winter, have one practice 38 on the books this year and 3 more just inside 5 ball all in the last few weeks. My neck is not normal, but I take no meds for it...it's more I'm aware of a bit of overall minor stiffness...barely perceptable and doesn't effect what I do. I noticed backing trailer today slight loss of range of motion, I noticed yesterday when telling a patient to touch chin to chest that mine doesn't quite make it there anymore. It's over a year out and it still seems to be improving. Used to get a random shocking pain left neck for 5 seconds every 2-4 weeks nearly a year out...now that's gone, too.

 

In my view...surgery as a last resort. 16 years ago I needed my left arm. Last year I would have been fully disabled off of prednisone due to neck pain and headaches. Both times I really had no choice.

 

@oneski my suspicion is your tricep weakness is your neuroforaminal stenosis at C6-7.