Many of you have asked for an update on my health issues. Some of you don’t know that anything is going on, and I’m very sorry to be so out of touch (especially Anchor ladies). So, here’s all the info. And, I have to say that blogs are very useful in this way!
THE HISTORY
I had surgery for scoliosis in June of 1989, with a Harrington rod, two hooks and lots of wire fused to my spine. There was a complication during surgery where a vertebra hit my spinal cord and caused a loss of ability in my left leg and foot. I had to have physical therapy to walk afterward.
I had little issues with my back or extremities for seventeen years. I noticed a slight difference with my left leg and foot and an occasional "restless leg" sort of feeling on that side. Doctors have noticed my left leg to be "hyper reflexive." During that time I delivered three children without difficulty. After the birth of my third child in April of 2006, I began to notice symptoms. At first, they were very subtle and it took me a few months to realize that something was wrong. I went to my primary care doctor in August complaining of aching down my legs as well as some other symptoms that were indicative of a possible thyroid issue. All of my bloodwork came back normal. My doctor said that he was concerned about my lower back. He ordered an x-ray of my lumbar spine and referred me to a spine surgeon. It was at some point during this time that I began to notice numbness and tingling in my legs and feet.
The spine surgeon seemed fairly confident at my first appointment that the bottom hook was causing the issues. To be sure, he ordered a CT Myelogram. They shot dye in my spine, which resulted in a week long spinal headache and the neuroradiologist sticking me again to perform a blood patch. The results were exactly what the surgeon expected, a gross compression of my spine at the T-12 level. He performed surgery to remove the hook and the lower third of the rod. At this point the numbness and tingling was at it’s worst. He said that it could take up to two years for my spine to recover and that he did not know how much damage had already occurred.
From April 2007 until now, the numbness and tingling has become more pronounced and more recently has moved to my hands and arms. I called my surgeon’s office and he wanted to see me again. He ordered an MRI of my cervical spine due to the symptoms being in my hands now. The MRI looked good from his perspective and that is when he referred me to a neurologist.
My symptoms tend to be constant now. I notice some pain, especially when I put pressure on the numb hand or foot. Cold temperatures seem to make them worse. Also, they seem to be more pronounced when I’m tired. I have had "restless leg" type sensations on several occasions, with the left leg being more prominent.
VISIT TO THE NEUROLOGIST
My appointment last week went very well. The neurologist listened to all of my medical history and conducted a thorough exam. He asked me to do all sorts of things from walking on my toes and heels to running the heel of one foot down the leg of another. He had me close my eyes and tapped one of my fingers and asked me to touch my nose. I think I "passed" most of these tests. Then, he looked at my optic nerve…he looked at the right eye much longer than the left. I’m not sure what that means. I noticed a jar of big safety pins when I walked in. Just as I suspected, those were the pokers. There are pros and cons to numbness I suppose. The con is that I don’t know what’s causing it and it could be serious, but the pro is that the pokers didn’t hurt that much. In fact, there were a few times when I could barely feel the stick. And there was an obvious difference in the right and left sides.
After the exam, the doctor explained all of the diagnostic tests that he was ordering. I will have a brain MRI, an EMG (testing peripheral nerve responses) and tons of blood work. He’s testing me for everything from diabetes, lupus, syphilis (kind of funny), forms of cancer, circulatory issues, thyroid, imbalances and B12/folate deficiencies. I suppose if all of these tests come back negative, I will feel like I’ve been blessed with pretty good health. Still, something is causing the neuropathy. I asked the neurologist specifically about viral and bacterial neuropathy, because I’ve done some reading on this and know someone who had it. He quickly said that he does not suspect an infectious related cause, but rather is curious to know if I have inflammation somewhere in my nervous system.
So, there you have it! We’ve scrambled this week to fit all the tests in our schedule and I have a follow up appointment to review the results a week from Friday. (Thank you to my friend who works with the doctor for arranging such a quick follow-up!) I’ll be in touch with another update soon!
