Question
i was diagnosed as having disc disease about ten years ago.  I have been on meds since then, because the pain was not so severe after meds.  Lately, however, i have been having a lot of pain in my neck (feels like it is swollen also); the pain goes to my shoulder and dow to my elbow.  I am in a lot of pain, at the moment.  I have tried all my meds, including over the counter meds.  I have tried cold/hot compress, but it doesn't help.  In addition to this pain, i now have pain in my left lower back. If feels as if i cannote walk without feeling the pain in my lower back (feels like my disc).  What could be the causes?

Answer
Dear Elba,

I am sorry that you are having so much pain.  You actually likely answered your own question in your opening sentence... "I was diagnosed as having disc disease about ten years ago."  I am assuming that this disc problem of which you talk is in your neck region.

When a disc is degenerating, (what is commonly called disc disease), the disc will often bulge or herniate. When it does so, it places pressure on the spinal cord or the nerve roots that exit the spine at each vertebral level.  This "pinching" of nerves will cause significant pain in the neck, as well as anywhere that the particular nerves travel. In the case of nerves pinched in the neck... they travel into the shoulder and arm, exactly where you say that you have pain.

There are many things that can be tried, but you need to understand that NOTHING will make the discs in your back re-generate.  Medications only provide a temporary relief of pain, but they do nothing to improve the mechanical function of the neck and its discs and joints. You need chiropractic and/or physical therapy, possibly even spinal decompression traction therapy. You also need to realize that if you find relief with therapy and chiropractic, you will need to continue the therapy and chiropractic indefinitely.  

If physical therapy and/or chiropractic care doesn't help you to manage the condition sufficiently, you can try epidural injections (which also only provide for temporary relief), or spinal surgery (which is risky, may or may not help, and causes loss of movement and additional degenerative changes at the joints above and below the surgical level.)  Surgery should only be done as a LAST RESORT, after everything else has failed.

The one big mistake that many people make is that they keep searching for the "cure", as if there were a magical pill or procedure or treatment that will eliminate the problem. Such a cure does not exist. So.... if you find that chiropractic helps, CONTINUE DOING IT as long as it helps!  If you find that Physical Therapy helps... KEEP DOING IT.  Make sure that your therapist/chiropractor teaches you things that you can do at home, and then DO THEM.

Oral pain medication is not a good long-term strategy, and again, surgery is only recommended after EVERYTHING ELSE HAD FAILED.

I hope that this helps you to get things straight in your mind, and to help you to decide a course of action.

Keith Biggs, DC
http://www.eastmesachiropractor.com