Hubby went to the Dr. today and waiting 3 hours later it wasn't too good. Karen you were right on his L4-L5 disk is herniated with free fragments in the spinal cord. which the dr. told him its sever and his L5-S1 is herniated. The L4-L5 is pushing on the nerve and abstructing the left nural formaminel I think. I am trying to read what dh wrote. The Dr. said that its something that needs to be taken care of he said meds will only mask it and not help. They are going to send him to a nural surgyne in Tulsa and they will look over his MRI and go from there. With his age and everything and being in pretty good shape he will have the surgery sooner than later. I have some questions for you karen what is the typical down time for the surgery I know everyone is different healing but just a ballpark figure. also how long where you in the hospital. We are trying to figure out the best time for him to have it. we are looking at sometime in May the kids will be out of school for summer and dh will have 2 weeks paid vacation coming to him. so he can use that if need be.

By Cybermommyx4 on Thursday, March 30, 2006 - 09:38 pm:

Shann,
I'm not Karen, but I have had 2 back surgeries at L4/L5....unsuccessful for me, but that's another story! Maximum hospital stay for back surgeries these days is 2-3 days (usually 1-2 days! as they can do some of them through a very small incision, as opposed to longer incisions of the past) He will need to be out of work longer than 2 weeks, though. It's not so much the healing of the external wound, but the PREVENTION of the formation of SCAR TISSUE way inside that you can't see! Basically, that means NO SITTING for 4-6 weeks. Standing is Ok, lying down is Ok, and Walking is WONDERFUL. But sitting puts the most pressure on the spine. Definitely speak to the Neurosurgeon (or even two) before having the surgery. Good luck to both of you Sorry to butt in to your post

By Shann on Thursday, March 30, 2006 - 10:01 pm:

Wendy you are not butting in I need all the info I can get. He goes sometime next week to the neurosurgeon and we will go from there butt thank you for input on it.

By Ginny~moderator on Friday, March 31, 2006 - 06:50 am:

First question to ask the doctor - how many times a year do you do this procedure? The more often s/he does it, the better. Experience definitely counts. Of course there are no guarantees of success with any surgery, but back surgery has improved tremendously in the past 10-20 years. Definitely talk about what should and especially should NOT be done after the surgery. No sitting means, of course, no driving.

Has dh been at his job for a year or more, and are there more than 50 employees? If so, he should consider applying for a Family Medical Leave Act leave. This usually means using up all your vacation time and sick time first for paid leave, and then unpaid leave BUT with your job guaranteed when you return and your benefits continue to be paid. Considering that he could really, really, really screw up his back permanently if he tries to do too much too soon, this is a time when he will have to be really, really careful.

I am so sorry for your dh, and for all of you. I can imagine that he is in excruciating pain, and I hope very much that the surgery works for him.

By Karen~moderator on Friday, March 31, 2006 - 08:02 am:

Sorry to hear that. :-( That's just what it sounded like.

When I had my back surgeries, I spent less than 48 hours in the hospital - it was more like 36 hours - each time.

Down time - depends on the individual and their unique injury/situation. Wendy is right about the sitting - that is the worst thing - and walking is the best. However, he should not expect to start walking around the neighborhood the day after surgery. She is also right about the scar tissue formation. In most people, you can't avoid some scar tissue, but you want to avoid doing anything that will contribute to more scar tissue, because you will then be faced with the same symptoms which cause the same pain.

My neurosurgeon had specific activities for each week post-op, which started with nothing more strenuous than standing and doing toe lifts, to walking to the mailbox and back, then up to walking further distances and finally exercises. He was not a proponent of physical therapy, which IMO is a horrible mistake. Physical therapy can help you a LOT, but your body has to pretty much be healed from the initial trauma of surgery first.

Both of my ruptures had the free floating pieces, and when you have that, you constantly run the risk of damage to your spinal cord when they are pressing against it or the nerves. Herniated disks can very often be treated non-surgically, but the rupture is a different thing. Things he should NOT be doing before seeing the neuro doc are bending, twisting, lifting, and a lot of sitting. No yard work, no mopping floors, no lifting heavy equipment or boxes of any kind, no picking up kids, no carrying bags of groceries - basically anything that puts pressure on the lower back - because he can further injure himself that way.

I would say he should figure on at least 4-6 weeks off from work. My first surgery, I was off for 3 months. The first 3 weeks following surgery I was flat on my back, this was due to the severity of my rupture. The 2nd time, I was off for 6 weeks. After 2 weeks I was feeling really good and decided I could do *normal* things. I'm paying for it now, 6 years later.

Above anything else - listen to the doctor! And if his neurosurgeon does not suggest physical therapy after surgery, then I'd suggest following up with a physical medicine doctor and get into physical therapy. It can be the difference between getting *back to normal* and suffering. Strengthening the core muscles are important, as they support the back. The stronger they are, the less chance of reinjuring the back. It would also help the herniated disk, and I know he wants to avoid a rupture there as well.

And follow Ginny's advice - ask a lot of questions, and if you are not satisfied, get a 2nd opinion!!!!!!!