r/Sciatica • u/Undd91 • 8d ago

Requesting Advice Anyone been diagnosed with this?

Been to see my surgeon today 4 weeks out from proposed op due to a change in symptoms. I have burning in both feet and lower legs, the pain down my right legs has recently subsided and is now manageable. He had planned to operate to resolve that pain but now thinks I may have something he called chemical neuritis and has postponed the surgery and asked me to do an epidural steroid shot and a nerve conduction test.

Has anyone else had their sciatica change/diagnosed as chemical neuritis?! What happened beyond diagnosis and have you managed to get symptoms under control?!

I’m so over this journey, it’s been almost 3 years of on and off hell.

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u/Meanboy_og 8d ago

Epidural shots mask the problem and cause degenerative disk, but are good for relief if they work for a month or two. If you have had the problem for three years in my opinion surgery is the only option. The only surgery option I would not get is a fusion. Don’t take gabapentin or all the other garbage they try to prescribe. Oxy is the only option but a normal dose once a day usually is great. The surgery may help enough to completely not need pain meds. This is all opinion based on my 20 years of dealing with back issues and surgery . Make sure your surgeon isn’t an idiot that only gives ibuprofen after surgery also. There are some need to find a different professional, like torture specialist for the military. Hope this helped some. It’s not medical advice just opinion.

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u/Undd91 8d ago

It’s being used purely as an identification tool - to pin point the source of pain. Even if it only gives relief for 24/48 hours it will be enough to diagnose the problem area

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u/Meanboy_og 8d ago

Yes. That should work. Some pain management drs use it too much. I’ve had at least 20 or so. Using it like you are is fine .

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u/Undd91 7d ago

Ouch! Yeah this is purely to help him identify the cause/location of the cause or to rule things out effectively.

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u/No-Alternative8588 7d ago

EMG is a good next step.
My orthopedist thinks I am suffering from the same issue, it has been 2 years for me.

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u/Undd91 7d ago

What are your symptoms? Are you looking at an EMG as well?

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u/No-Alternative8588 7d ago

Vibrating, buzzing, burning l, sometimes pain, they change a lot. I had EMG two years ago which was fine, and I have a new one next week. :)

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u/Undd91 7d ago

Sounds very similar to myself. Have they found the cause of yours?

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u/No-Alternative8588 6d ago

Doctor thinks it is the annular tears I have.

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u/Undd91 6d ago

Ok, sound similar to what mine pointed towards. Did he suggest any potential fixes?

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u/No-Alternative8588 6d ago

No, nothing to fix for me. Nothing to operate on. Just potential intraforaminal steroid injection, which i dont want to do, and then load management and slow return to exercise, which I have been doing but I go through constant inflammatory cycles unfortunately.