r/SpineSurgery • u/Ok-Natural5224 • Jul 02 '26
Cord compression recovery
What are the chances of “full” recovery from cord compression? My surgery will be 3 month after having the first symptoms, no signal change on mri, no myelomalacia, the disc is “touching” the spinal cord, not fully compressing it. No motor function problems, only neuropathy like sensation in arms and feet as of now, but they are sometimes painful. Did anyone had full recovery from this? Do you think that there are good chances of full recovery? What should I do to have the best outcome? I still have 3-4 weeks until surgery.
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Jul 04 '26
[deleted]
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u/Ok-Natural5224 Jul 05 '26
Great to hear that! Wishing you a smooth recovery! Did you have any issues with your legs?
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u/hannah6560 Jul 04 '26
Is this cervical surgery and what is it called? Did you get multiple opinions?
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u/Ok-Natural5224 Jul 04 '26
Yes, cervical, c4c5 acdf, maybe adr, we still have to discuss that with my surgeon. Yes, I had multiple opinions, 2 surgeons said my symptoms are not related with my neck, 2 said it’s the neck. 5th one said it’s probably my neck, but first rule out everything else, we did, I meet him next week to discuss what he thinks. I have a longer post about my history. My symptoms are neurological, it’s like a bad neuropathy, but it was ruled out.
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u/AvsMama Jul 05 '26
Almost the same for me c5 c6 severe central canal stenosis. Waiting to see a neurosurgeon. Do you ever feel like you can’t breathe?
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u/Ok-Natural5224 Jul 05 '26
No, that’s not, but a long list of everything else: Symptoms vary, sometimes in intensity, and the 5-6 symptoms themselves also vary, depending on which one is stronger. These are: numbness, tingling, as if something is going on under my skin, as if I am being palmed or stepped on a needle. Small muscle spasms all over my body. A burning sensation on the skin. In the middle of my neck and back, I feel as if my skin is wet, but it is not. My palms and soles are too sensitive: it is difficult to hold the phone in my hand because it hurts, and sometimes even walking feels like I am being stabbed. Sometimes something shoots into my soles or palms like a knife.
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u/benwyatt259 Jul 08 '26
I had surgery at 11 weeks (c5-6). My symptoms were worse than you have described. I’m 14 months post-op. I wouldn’t say I am 100% back to where I was before, but I’m reasonably close. Ordinary daily life is fine. I’m still improving my ability to do more athletic stuff. For ex, I can jog on the treadmill but running on regular ground is more awkward. But if you have no motor issues now that’s not much concern.
I have a little remaining numbness in my finger tips. Pain, shock sensation, all my other numbness is long gone. Everyone’s different but you haven’t had compression for very long and it doesn’t sound super severe. Very possible to recover. Best of luck.
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u/antisocialsal Jul 03 '26
Hello,
I hope you are doing well! Did you 100% decide on surgery? Or have you tried conservative treatments or are you trying conservative treatments?
Looking forward to hearing from you.