Ruptured Disc's

[thunderirc]

well the case manager is also treating this like , the lift i was riding was a stand up, not the type that u lean back and have back support, but the kind of lift that i was riding with no back support.
almost every point in the warehouse has holes in it. even the smallest crack will cause me to be throwed from left to right. am going next week to talk to an attorney to see where i stand. as far as treatment, they did push the lower mri which greatly shocked me after they denied it. she also got the injections approved which from what i read dont do any justice.i am also looking towards a second oppinion soon. as far as DDD tthey have not said anything about this being ddd, they said it once , but not anymore.

[Still in Limbo]

Sounds like You may have a NCM that is actually Working to Help You at this Point! For them to Order a Lower MRI is good News, and if they find it as Work Related, even Better! It seems that they are leaning towards a Work Related Injury, or the NCM would be Fighting You at every Turn and would not want to Pay for these Tests! I Hope I'm right, and I Wish You the Very Best! Please Keep Us Informed!

P.S- I had a Total of 36 Injections into My Lumbar Area with no Relief. But Sometimes for the w/c System to Work Properly, You have to try the Injections as part of Your Care. Usually it's a Set of 4 Shots at a Time, and they Usually try 3 Times. My Situation was Different than the Usual ESI Procedure, so You May only have to Receive 12 Injections.

[Cycler]

It amy iterest you to know then Limbo that the peer reviewed Spine literature has found no scientific support for ESI's for back pain OR that there is some magic number of injections or that they should even be repeated in the majority of back pain patients.

The research has failed to dampen the enthusiasm of the medical community for injections for mechanical back pain and the fact that there is a tremendous amount of money to be made doing back injections regardless of lack of positive patient outcomes may be factor. ( LOL !! )

Workers comp systems are well aware of the issue since they have been paying millions of dollars for no return in most cases and would be more than happy to see the IW under the care of a surgeon rather than the so called Pain clinics if you read the Disability Industry newsletters etc.

In other words, for the most part ESI/ facet blocks etc have turned out to be more a scam than a treatment for the majority of patients, IWs included.

[thunderirc]

does it make it worse? the injections? more less make it worse than help it?

[Cycler]

It may. Paraplegia is a complication of a hematoma due to a bleed fro the injection. The increased pressure due to the influx of additional fluids often causes problems such as loss of bladder control, leg weakness etc but that is transient.

[thunderirc]

thanks for that cycler , id rather not do something if it dont help it , but thats just a piece of the cake
wc regulations say i have to. as far as the annular tear and the collapsed disc "rupture" how will this be treated other than the block injections? i know it will be with me for the rest of my life and thats just the standing point. with it being said "work related" and if they only offer injections etc... would i have to deal with wc for the rest of my life? i know ruptures dont heal w/o surgery and probably never will. alot of members here have or had the same surgery etc.. injections,surgerypt,etc...and i think i deserve a second opinion.
i go for the lower lumber mri,monday and i fear that it will show ruptured discs there too , cuz of the back pain and or leg weakness. i guess his final desicion will come when he looks at the results from the lower mri. god speed!

[Cycler]

annular tears are one of the few things that responds well to an epidural steroid injection and certainly you would want t explore all non-surgical options.

The other fact is that almost al "ruptures" do heal themselves and resolve with no anticipated future problems and there is quite a large body of literature on this point and the general recommendation is actually to do nothing except act intelligently; ie; normal activity/work as tolerated, reasonable excerise, walk a lot,eat right and give it time. Since time may be measured in months that is a difficult thing to do for months when there is a job and workers comp makes this a difficult proposition but more and more large employers are getting on board and understanding that supporting the IW should not mean a rush to questionable treatment just because a DR. says you need it. It sometimes hard to tell who the patient is, the individual or the Drs bank account.

Did that answer your question ? I've been accused of over editorializing.....

[Still in Limbo]

Cycler, I couldn't Agree with You More about the Ineffectiveness of ESI Shots, but Most Cases in Pa. at One point in Time or another, they Usually Send You for ESI Under Flouroscopy. Most Times they Try before Surgery, for Me it was to try and Relieve Pain, and Soften Scar Tissue. I have a Friend with Lower Back Problems that are much less Severe than Mine and He Swears by ESI, I think it's Psychosomatic Personally. He Feels they Really Work for Him, so that's the Best Route I Guess. but if We are told Here in Pa., I'm not Sure of other States for ESI, but if We say No, and don't get Medical Evidence as to why, We could Lose Our Benefits for not following Their Course of Treatment. That was the Point I was Making when I said sometimes You have to get the Shots as Part of the w/c Treatment. Mine was Total He**, but I had to Endure to keep My Case Open at that Point!!

[Cycler]

Huh..I didn't know that. Even given the risks ?

[Still in Limbo]

For Sure Cycler. It Depends Mainly on the Dr.'s and NCM's, which We have all come to know that there are some Good and Many Bad, (NCM's) are Usually the Ones that want to Use the ESI as a Quick Fix to get a Person out of the w/c System. If they Say it Works, the w/c Dr. will Send the Workers Back Usually under Modified Restrictions, and then to Full as soon as they can. The Biggest Shame with w/c in Pa., is that there is NO W/C LAW , We are a Commonwealth, and there is Only Rules and Regulations that are Open to Interpretation by the Lawyers and Judges. If You make it through the w/c System, and the Appeals Process, as I have, We can then Appeal to the Commonwealth Court of Appeals, and they can Use Laws as they are, Plain and Simple, without any Spins on it. I Honestly Believe that approx. 80% of the w/c Cases never go to Hearings, nor is there Attorney's Involved, because the NCM's are Pretty Good at Hoodwinking Injured Workers. This System has been so Corrupted by Lobbyist from the Ins. Co.'s, again I'm only Speaking of Pa., Most of the Congressmen and Representatives have been bought Off by the Ins. Co's. The Saddest Part of this is, I'm not a Conspiracy Theorist, it's just Plain Fact!