“Can any Radiology Techs/Physicians tell me if these MRI images show Cauda Equina Syndrome taking place?”
I have uploaded the most detailed photos of my MRI, which are about 40 photos in this publicly available online album: https://flickr.com/photos/jmr1068204/albums/72157719130154021
About 6 months ago I hurt my back lifting a lot at work. Warehouse job of 2 years that involved lifted 30-pound packages of product about 75,000 times per year. No prior back issues. I'm a 38-year-old Caucasian male, muscular, and in good physical shape, 5'6 165 pounds. I also lifted dozens over my head every day onto a 7-foot high shelf and had to bend a lot to stack 30-pound trays full of products onto floor-level wooden pallets.
Couldn't stand up straight and had some issues with walking after the injury. Saw a worker's comp doctor and had physical therapy for nearly 2 months. Discharged with the same pain and she then blatantly lied in the documentation and said that I didn't attend pain management, but she never referred me anywhere. It's not on any documentation and they cut my worker's comp benefits shortly after, so nobody would have paid for it anyway. She did it to get my employer out of being responsible because they send all of their workers to her clinic for drug testing and such.
Since that time, my symptoms have increased considerably. I have a worker's comp lawyer dealing with the insurance company and trying to get me a new treating doctor visit with a spine doctor. Because the first worker's comp doc lied in her doctor's notes, the second treating doctor (specifically a spine doctor) refused to see me when he saw her notes. I've been out of work since February and can't work any job like this. Over the past couple of months, my symptoms have progressed. For months, at first, I had been having soft stools sometimes 3-4 days apart. On certain days, diarrhea once or twice and burning colon pain for hours afterward. Strong contractions felt in the colon at certain times, stomach and bowel noises 24/7 ("borborygmus"), Sciatica down the right side into the foot.
My worker's comp doctor told me to check with my neurologist and when he mentioned sciatica in his documentation, the worker's comp doctor brushed it off. Bending in all four directions while standing causes massive pinching pain in the lumbar. Lightheadedness, decreased blood flow, and malfunction of the autonomic nervous system. Bladder discomfort, incontinence, and little warning (seconds) between not having to go and nearly peeing my pants before getting to the bathroom in the other room. As of the past couple of months, my gait has changed considerably and I walk in an odd way because my legs feel weird and the stabbing pain in my lower back doesn't stop. So I have to walk bend over forwards. Both legs tingle, burn and feel quite weak. I have voiced serious concern with my worker's comp lawyer about possible Cauda Equina Syndrome and the insurance company is dragging their feet with letting me see a new doctor. My lawyer has a doctor picked out and he's waiting to hear from the insurance company to see what I have going on in my back.
Could this have progressed into CES over this time or could they have missed it on the MRI the first time? Naturally, the worker's comp doc requested the cheapest non-contrast, lumbar-only MRI that she could. The actual quality of the images isn't that great. She told me to see my neurologist and when I did and he said I had Sciatica per the MRI disc and exam and she wouldn't listen to him. Her discharge paperwork contradicts itself and she discharged me in pain and with ongoing lifting and bending restrictions. I've had autonomic malfunctions out of nowhere since December 2019. Could this all be related to my back? It hurts walking, standing, sitting, and lying down. I feel like enough blood isn't reaching my head, as well. My ears ring sometimes.
About 6 months ago I hurt my back lifting a lot at work. Warehouse job of 2 years that involved lifted 30-pound packages of product about 75,000 times per year. No prior back issues. I'm a 38-year-old Caucasian male, muscular, and in good physical shape, 5'6 165 pounds. I also lifted dozens over my head every day onto a 7-foot high shelf and had to bend a lot to stack 30-pound trays full of products onto floor-level wooden pallets.
Couldn't stand up straight and had some issues with walking after the injury. Saw a worker's comp doctor and had physical therapy for nearly 2 months. Discharged with the same pain and she then blatantly lied in the documentation and said that I didn't attend pain management, but she never referred me anywhere. It's not on any documentation and they cut my worker's comp benefits shortly after, so nobody would have paid for it anyway. She did it to get my employer out of being responsible because they send all of their workers to her clinic for drug testing and such.
Since that time, my symptoms have increased considerably. I have a worker's comp lawyer dealing with the insurance company and trying to get me a new treating doctor visit with a spine doctor. Because the first worker's comp doc lied in her doctor's notes, the second treating doctor (specifically a spine doctor) refused to see me when he saw her notes. I've been out of work since February and can't work any job like this. Over the past couple of months, my symptoms have progressed. For months, at first, I had been having soft stools sometimes 3-4 days apart. On certain days, diarrhea once or twice and burning colon pain for hours afterward. Strong contractions felt in the colon at certain times, stomach and bowel noises 24/7 ("borborygmus"), Sciatica down the right side into the foot.
My worker's comp doctor told me to check with my neurologist and when he mentioned sciatica in his documentation, the worker's comp doctor brushed it off. Bending in all four directions while standing causes massive pinching pain in the lumbar. Lightheadedness, decreased blood flow, and malfunction of the autonomic nervous system. Bladder discomfort, incontinence, and little warning (seconds) between not having to go and nearly peeing my pants before getting to the bathroom in the other room. As of the past couple of months, my gait has changed considerably and I walk in an odd way because my legs feel weird and the stabbing pain in my lower back doesn't stop. So I have to walk bend over forwards. Both legs tingle, burn and feel quite weak. I have voiced serious concern with my worker's comp lawyer about possible Cauda Equina Syndrome and the insurance company is dragging their feet with letting me see a new doctor. My lawyer has a doctor picked out and he's waiting to hear from the insurance company to see what I have going on in my back.
Could this have progressed into CES over this time or could they have missed it on the MRI the first time? Naturally, the worker's comp doc requested the cheapest non-contrast, lumbar-only MRI that she could. The actual quality of the images isn't that great. She told me to see my neurologist and when I did and he said I had Sciatica per the MRI disc and exam and she wouldn't listen to him. Her discharge paperwork contradicts itself and she discharged me in pain and with ongoing lifting and bending restrictions. I've had autonomic malfunctions out of nowhere since December 2019. Could this all be related to my back? It hurts walking, standing, sitting, and lying down. I feel like enough blood isn't reaching my head, as well. My ears ring sometimes.
Male | 38 years old
Complaint duration: 06
Medications: Sertraline 100mg to calm autonomic symptoms off-label
1 Answer
Apply for Medicaid. Try acupuncture and GI consult. May try medical cannabis.
