Arthritis and Hemorrhoids.Am I a goner?

[joehansen12]

I had an MRI done on my Lumbar spine and also a colonoscopy yesterday. The results are...
1. Arthritis between L3-L4 and L4-L5
2. Hemorrhoids

The doctor says that hemorrhoids are minor and would be gone if I eat high fiber diet and drink lots of water.

I am really really worried about the arthritis of L3-L4 and L4-L5. I am beginning to wonder if this could be the cause of all my symptoms (or at least a contributing factor).

Where do I go from here! Am I in deep s**t??? Please advise guys!!

Thanks much!
Joe.

[webslave]

Arthritis of the spine is nearly universal as we age (I have it too), and something like 50% of people get hemorrhoids.

I think you'll survive!

However, you are a little young for spinal arthritis ... look into ankylosing spondylitis.

[joehansen12]

Thanks for a quick reply, Mark!

I sincerely apologize for the depressing tone of my previous post. The nurse from the doctor's office had just called with the bad news and it hit me real hard.

I am now back to senses

http://www.pelvicpain.org lists 2 PTs in my area (Utah).
1. Farnsworth, Cheryl, PT
2. Hensley, Bonnie

I went to see Bonnie a couple of times (after she claimed to have read a part of AHIP and said that she does something similar to SP). She probed me internally for a minute and said that there are no internal trigger points. She used Strain/Counterstrain for some external sore spots. It did not help much. She seemed a bit confused at the end of my second visit. They she tried traction on my lower back and I was pain free. Basically, she put a towel underneath my buts, asked me to relax and raised my but off the floor. She said that there could be something going on in the lower spine and asked me to get an MRI done. That was the reason for me getting an MRI. So, thanks to her, I now know about the arthritis in my lower back.

I've just read that arthritis is of many forms (can't believe I have had to learn about so many medical conditions these past 6 months).

I rarely had pain in my perineum, which is the most common symptom here. Most of my pain is in my upper glutes (mainly) and lower back . Can this arthritis be playing a part in my chronic prostatitis / chronic pelvic pain syndrome symptoms? Mark, can you please tell me what you feel about my case?

Who is the next specialist in line that I need to visit now?

The quest continues....

[webslave]

I would see, in your shoes, an orthopaedic specialist and a rheumatologist. The upper glute pain is not typical of CPPS/PM.

[joehansen12]

I would see, in your shoes, an orthopaedic specialist and a rheumatologist. The upper glute pain is not typical of CPPS/PM.

I would definitely consult an ortho. May be I need to talk to my doctor first to get a referral. I hear people talking about pain in glutes here. I am surprised that you say its not typical of CPPS/PM.?

[webslave]

Lower back and upper gluteus pain as the major feature points to spinal problems, especially if you have unusual MRI findings. It may still be CPPS, but you should first rule out the spine.

[joehansen12]

Findings: The vertebral body height and disc height is normal. The disc signal is well maintained. There is not disc protrusion. The neural foramen are widely patent. This patient does have some facet joint disease, particularly at L3-4 and L4-5. There is some overgrowth at L5-S1 on the left. However, at other levels it is bilateral.

Impression:The patient may benefit by having steroid injection into the facet joint.

I have an appointment with a physiatrist on Wednesday. Googling "Facet joint disease" gave the following info...

Low back pain from the facet joints often radiates down into the buttocks and down the back of the upper leg. The pain is rarely present in the front of the leg, or rarely radiates below the knee or into the foot, as pain from a disc herniation often does.

Mark, you could be right about my buttock pain/spasms! But I can't be so sure as many people here have talked about buttock clenching/spasms.

I'll have to wait and see what the physiatrist feels.

Peace out!

[joehansen12]

Back from my visit to the physiatrist. The physiatrist feels that almost everyone has some arthritis symptoms on their back and therefore the facet joint disease in L3-4 and L4-5 should not be contributing to my pain/spasms.

However, the physiatrist looked at my MRI films and found that my spine was abnormally straight! He says that a normal spine should be curved when resting. He said that the shortened muscles have straightened the spine and hence the muscles are spasming.

He injected cortisone into the sacroiliac joints and also somewhere midback. He said that those injections combined with a right stretching program should relieve me completely of my butt spasms and lower back pain. Then he proceded to show me a few stretches.

So, a totally unexpected finding by the physiatrist! Could he be right? Should I go for a second opinion? Mark, any inputs please?

Also, did anyone try traction to lower back? Is it safe for CPPS?

Thanks,
Joe.

[webslave]

You got me! Thanks for sharing, keep us updated.