Opinions on treatment for herniated disc between C5-T1

[Stewie Griffon]

any opinions or experience anyone has had with this situation would be helpful

herniated disc is causing my right pec to atrophy, and slightly less atrophy of my right tricep, there is a dip that has developed in my upper chest, like a groove. there was no specific injury that precipitated this, it has been gradually getting worse for about 9 months. it was so slow at first i just attributed it to age. i started going to massage therapy (one of my ex's) i thought that would fix the problem. she said my discs didnt feel right so the chiropractor with whom she worked came in and felt my back. he said it feels like i have 1 or 2 discs between C5 and T1 that may have slipped/herniated - i have to get x-rays to tell which exactly. it is causing no pain, except for maybe a slight bit in my neck occasionally. it only affects my right side. sometimes, not really often i feel a slight tingling in my middle finger - VERY slight. it causes weakness in all bench movements - which is depressing. i feel as if i dont have that drive or control which is developed through years of heavy lifting.

any help would be greatly appreciated as to how to fix this. i must say my opinion of chiropractors is low, so i dont have faith in them. i dont have health insurance either, which means i can afford a chiropractor but a doctor visit is most likely not a possibility right now. maybe this chiroprator will change my opinion of them

 

[scrapper13]

my herniated disk was much lower in my back (L4/L5). it would cause shooting pain from my lower back on the left side all the way down the back of my left leg. i went to the first spine specialist and he was ready to cut me open. i was only 20 at the time so to me surgery had to be a last option. a second doctor pointed me in the direction of a pain management specialist. i went saw the guy and when i told him that a doctor had recommended surgery he laughed and said ill have you feeling perfect in a few weeks. so i had 2 injections and just like he promised the disk retracted and i have not had a problem since 6 years later. every situation is different but surgery on ur spine is no joke so make it your last option. not sure where you are in the country im in the northeast i could give you the name of the doc if your in the area. pm if u want that but otherwise i would also look into an inversion table. they work great. good luck bro

 

[Quad-smack]

Your symptoms are exactly like the ones I experienced. I had two herniated disc's - C6-C7 to the right side and C5-C6 to the left (left was asymptomatic).
I had loss of strength, size and control. The areas affected were my tricep, my pec-minor and my middle finger was numb/burning.
I had to have surgery - but chiropractic may be an option. I was seeing a chiropractor that I feel has "the gift". He actually got the pain to go away after two treatments that lasted until it completely went out.
Please feel free to PM me if you have questions. My Neuro-Surgeon gets personal training with a colleague of mine - I might be able to pick his brain here & there.

P.S. I have a cervical traction unit that I can no longer use due to my surgery that I will ship to you if your chiropractor feels it will help.

 

[johndoe]

L4 and 5 like scrapper and did alot of physical thep. and long recovery. Alot of back exersizes and beleive it or not dead lifts. 100% good now. I dont think its recommended though.

 

[dcshores]

X-rays and MRI First. Then decompression with low force chiropractic adjustments. The Pettibon decompression table works wonders for the neck.

 

[Mike D]

find out the exact place where the disc has slipped with an mri you wont be able to see a slipped disc with x-ray just spinal abnormalities so you will need both. Stick with chiropractic you will be suprised how much it can help you. Nobody knows the spine better than a chiro, if you need treatment beyond what they can provide im sure they will know the right direction to point you in. Most disc herniations usually occur in the lumber spine and herniations other places are more rare especially without trauma to the area that would have caused a slipped disc so it may not even be a disc injury at all could be arthritis or something like that placing pressure on the nerve root. you can also determine which nerve it may be through muscle testing as well.

 

[Mike D]

you also CANNOT feel the discs through palpation or massage...i am in chiropractic school and know this from experience. Just look at the structure of the spine from a simple anatomists pov, you can feet the facets spinous processes and the tip of the transverse of c1 but thats about it...the discs are too internal to "feel" especially if you have a thick muscular neck way too muscle muscle and connective tissue to feel through...you will only be able to tell what the problem is through diagnostic imaging..do some research on this chiro before you let him make your opinion on all chiros ...just like not all mds are good all chiros are not either...i am in the norheast and know a lot of very good chiros who work with pt and mds so if you need help i can point u in the right direction

 

[knucklehed]

I have been working through the same type issue, except my problem is at C5-C6. It effects mostly my shoulder and biceps on the left. I have been able to relieve the impingement caused by the swollen disc, but the nerve has not fully recovered,leaving me with about 60-70% power in the effected muscles.
In my case I had the MRI and consulted with a nuerologist. It has flaired up twice in 2 years. I have successfully treated with neck traction and chiro adjustments but will eventually need surgery. I plan to hang in there as long as I can before going under the knife.
Best of luck to you.

 

[burman]

ex-rays and doctors diagnosis is critical right now, make sure you know all about your issues and the treatment and ask lot's of questions

 

[jetset]

You need to get an Mri first. I highly recommend talking to a spine specialist. If they are good they wiil not just rush to surgery. I saw a great one for my L4/L5. ANd had great results. Be very careful with with chiros, there are alot of really good ones but there are alot of bads ones. I know a few guys that the chiro made their back much worse and they had to have surgery after seeing them.

 

[Downtowncb84]

I ripped my L5-S1 in half, then it began to rot inside of me and caused rapid degeneration of the rest of the disks in my back. I had surgery and got the L5-S1 replaced with the pro disk, and i still need a fusion of 3 of the C? (midd back) vertibra, cant remeber which ones at the moment cuz i turned the surgery down. But recovery sucks, they went in through my abdomin 2inchs below the belly button, i guess its safer that way cuz they dont cut in your back blindly.

What ever you do, do it quickly.

 

[Stewie Griffon]

thanks for the reply's guys, still waiting for my appointment day to come

 

[Michaelthomasj]

you also CANNOT feel the discs through palpation or massage...i am in chiropractic school and know this from experience. Just look at the structure of the spine from a simple anatomists pov, you can feet the facets spinous processes and the tip of the transverse of c1 but thats about it...the discs are too internal to "feel" especially if you have a thick muscular neck way too muscle muscle and connective tissue to feel through...you will only be able to tell what the problem is through diagnostic imaging..do some research on this chiro before you let him make your opinion on all chiros ...just like not all mds are good all chiros are not either...i am in the norheast and know a lot of very good chiros who work with pt and mds so if you need help i can point u in the right direction[/QUOTE

Very very true!! It would be almost impossible to give such a diagnosis without using imaging.