The
MRI photo to the left is my neck from December of 2008 and the photo to the
right is from November of 2009 after surgery. You can see that C5-C6 is
still pinching my spinal cord, which is where the surgery was done.
I just received the results of my MRI this week. I have mild protruding disks into my neck's spinal cord at C2-C3-C4 and C5. C3-C4 is now also newly herniated since my last MRI. C5-C6-and C7 disks were removed during my recent cervical discectomy and spinal fusion surgery.
Unfortunately, the MRI shows that my spinal cord is still flattened (stenosis) where the surgery was done. They didn't fix the problem at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center. I'm back to square one. It's been 4-months since the surgery and I haven't had even the slightest improvement. My doctor says that improvement isn't likely at this late stage. The bone spurs that should have been removed at the time of surgery weren't.
The neck pain is actually worse now than before my surgery, and the tingling in both arms is more intense. The pain extending down my right arm is sharp and intense at times.
I
also have multiple osteophytic (bone spur) formations at the area where the
neck surgery was done. My neck is a mess and the pain is absolutely unbearable even with the pain
medications. My doctor wants me to see a different neurosurgeon soon and
thinks I need more neck surgery. So here I go again. The problem is finding
the right neurosurgeon to help me. So far, all I've heard is that no doctor
knows what is causing the neck pain. My doctor wants a pain specialist to do
a 4th steroid injection into my neck (since it's been 5-years from the first
three). So I'll try that again in desperation to find relief from this pain.
I also have a fractured bone in the arch of my right foot, which has caused the bone to grow out underneath over the past 2-years. It's painful to walk on. I live alone and haven't been able to get the surgery as I have no one to help me. So I really need your prayers at this time for my health and ministry. Thank you.
Even so, come, Lord Jesus, the Great Physician!
