Question
I have been having headaches & neck pain for 3-4 months.  For the last month I have had numbness & tingling in my right shoulder blade, down the arm & cold numb fingertips.  I recently had an MRI but my family dr.  did not explain it well & I am very confused.  It appears all levels look okay except at c4-5 showed right paracentral disc protrusion extending into the neuroforaminal opening resulting in right-sided neuroforaminal stenosis.  I have been scheduled for an emg/ncv.  I am very uncomfortable to say the least most of everyday.  Can you shed some light on these results?  Thank you.

Answer
Shannon,
Sure, You are having the disc which is in between the bones in your middle neck protruding out backwards and into the space where the nerve is. This is what is causing your shoulder, arm, and finger problems.  The word stenosis is a medical term that they use to suggest that the area to accommodate the spinal cord is too small.  In all actuality I have yet to meet a patient that actually has that scenario.  It is always a subluxation (or spinal bone that is out of alignment) which can fixed by an Upper Cervical Specific Doctor of Chiropractic without drugs or surgery.  This is the logical approach which at the very least should be attempted first and foremost.  Do not be fooled into believing that this is a problem that has only one solution of surgery, because that could not be the furthest thing from the truth.
Send me the MRI's to look at, and I will explain it to you and prove it to you myself.
It is funny how they use their medical terminology because they don't want you to understand what they are doing, but the bill comes to you in plain english.
In Your Best Interest,
Dr Robert Arnone
St Louis, MO 63141