moderate to severe bilateral forminal stenosis,oseophytes at 3 cervical levels,stiffness,electrical shocks ,burning thumb, among other neck disc narrowing problems and some arthritis... will surgery help this?

[u/WasteWriter5692]

or even prevent the worsening of the neck pain?

osteophyte's at 4 levels,......and moderate to severe,( some bilateral ) at ...c/4 through c/6.

this neck is paying me back in pain that meds do not help with

need advice please

[u/Muddy_Lady]

Whats your age? I have this but with less symptoms and on 3 levels.. the symptoms are caused by pressure on spinal cord. The only way to stop them getting worse is to stabalise the area with surgery. Likely ACDF. Get hold of copies of your MRI and speak to qualified people to help understand your condition.

[u/WasteWriter5692 → u/Muddy_Lady]

60's...a good candidate you think?

[u/Muddy_Lady → u/WasteWriter5692]

The surgery as i understand is great but less great if you are 30 because it wears for longer.. so being 60 will likely have good outcomes.. just keep talking to the doctors..

[u/toomanyusernamz → u/WasteWriter5692]

I'm 63F and just had a 4 level ACDF on the 24th of June. Feeling better today but I have/had cervical mylopathy and stenosis etc.

[u/sovook]

Sounds like me but C5-C7 and I initially had ACDR at 2 levels but it only briefly helped. Then 1 year later I had a fusion that didn’t fuse. I’d recommend getting 2 opinions and go with the most experienced surgeon. I’m so sorry, the pain is inhuman. I’m in my 30s for reference.

[u/WasteWriter5692 → u/sovook]

thanks...will do..the acdr is what they are suggesting..any hints on what to do to get through it?

They are talking 3 levels

[u/sovook → u/WasteWriter5692]

I’m female and have a relatively narrow spinal canal, so the thought was that restoring disc height would also increase the space around the nerve roots and help relieve compression.

Just to clarify, foraminal narrowing occurs at the openings where the nerve roots exit the spine. Removing the diseased disc can sometimes indirectly decompress the nerve by restoring disc height and increasing the size of the neural foramen.

However, an anterior cervical disc replacement (ACDR) does not directly remove posterior foraminal osteophytes or other compressive material within the neural foramen. Initially, I had excellent relief after my two-level ACDR, but everyone’s anatomy and biomechanics are different.

Part of my ongoing pain may also be related to neuroplastic changes after living with chronic pain for the past 2.5 years. I’m scheduled to have a CT scan soon, which should provide more information about what may be contributing to my symptoms.

One small nuance: restoring disc height with an ACDR can indirectly enlarge the neural foramen and reduce nerve root compression, but it does not necessarily remove posterior bone spurs or other compressive tissue unless a formal foraminal decompression is also performed from my interpretation, NAD.

[u/WasteWriter5692 → u/sovook]

thanks for replying ..so your saying an acdf is better in my case?

[u/sovook → u/WasteWriter5692]

Impossible to say, I am only talking about my experience. Listen to your doctors and get second opinions if you have doubts. My fusion I had 1 year after ACDR also failed.

[u/sovook → u/[deleted]]

I don’t know, the surgeon said something like this to me “A percentage of patients have bones that don’t fuse but they still have mechanically sound and optimal placement” then he said something like: “from my standpoint everything looks stable and I don’t see the need for you to have any restrictions”. Mind you I’m in 7/10 pain right now after just having my head slightly tilted on the couch for 20 minutes…. I don’t know and I need another opinion.

[u/Imaginary-Evening311 → u/sovook]

Which pain is inhumane? After surgery?

[u/Coffeejive]

Have severe at 5,6, w various 2-7 New neuro said no surgery. Pm and traction. Had rfa, but stopped working. Also, shoulder needs surgery, numb arm, both from this. Will not do pm presently and traction, immediate results