Question
QUESTION: I slipped on a rug that was on my hardwood floors 5 says ago. (They had been dry dusted with Orange Oil and were very slippery) My husband said my feet went up in the air and I landed straight in my lower back. Since then I ahve severe pain and pressure on my lower spine and butt and on my right side I have severe pain and burning going down the outside of my right leg and is causing my leg to feel heavy and foot to go numb and the pain starts right above my butt and travels down my hip to my leg. I do have a little pain going down my right leg starting at my lower back but it stops at my knee. I have a hard time wlking and sitting. When I stand it feels better that sitting for about 4 min then it too causes pain! I also have a weird feeling from my back to my butt then to both hips and it feels like I have a cell phone on my back that is on vibrate. My Primary care doctors P.A. did an x-ray the day after it happened and she said she really could not tell me much and that she could see some disc compression and straighting of my spine. She called a neurologist and made an appt. For the middle of next week. I am in severe pain and I can't get any answers of what might be going on! Could you please give me your opinion because I can't get on anywhere else!

ANSWER: hi alaina-
sorry for the delay, i've been out of town! Here's the best guess I can give you based on your question:

sounds like you've got a bit of sciatica- your sciatic nerve runs down from about waist high curves around to the outside of your thigh and travels on down. Your fall may have caused some swelling at the part of your back where the nerve comes out, causing the sensations.

I'd recommend taking advil- 3 every 4 hours unless you have a problem with ibuprofen. You can also try using hot or hot and cold alternating on the area of your back near your waistline. 20minutes each, no longer. If you do have some pressure on the nerve there they will easily tell with an MRi scan, can treat it with steroid injections or whatever they deem necessary

hope that helps, and good luck-
leslie

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: I was sent to a neuro-surgeon whom really wasn't much help and unfortunately I could not understand hime due to the fact he does not speak English that well. All I could understand was that the MRI on my lumbar spine shows Bulging Disc L4-L5 (there were two other things that appear in that disc area but could not understand him) He proceeded to tell me that he believes my problem is with my "S" spine and pelvic region primarly SIJ(?) and wants a hip x-ray. My MRI also shows a mass on my L-5 and it says something about a rudimentary disc L5-S1 with sacralization at L-5. I do not understand?????? Could you please help me understand this a little? I am now having severe pain in my left side. It starts at the top of my butt and runs down the outside of my left leg to my foot. It hurts to bend, stand or walk mainly on my left side! Mt thigh feeld like a bottle rocket is shooting down it! The left side of my butt and thigh is very HOT to touch. It stiil hurts in the iddle of my spine but it is a lot lower than it was before. (It hurts about 2 inches above the lowest point of my tail bone.) I am in some god awful pain! The pain meds the Dr. gave doesn't really touch it! Please can you give me anymore info?

Answer
hi-
some interpretation:
-s spine- this means sacral region.. the very bottom part of your spine
-sij- your sacro-iliac joint. see here http://www.sportsinjuryclinic.net/cybertherapist/back/buttocks/sacroiliac.htm

bulging discs at L4, 5 can press into that nerve which can cause the shooting and burning feelings. sadly, nerve pain is very hard to treat- i'd give the hip xray a try and hopefully get to the cause of the pain rather than hope for a medicine to fix it. if you're having a hard time understanding the neurologist, maybe try telling his nurse? if you say you are having a hard time understanding what he's said they ought to be happy to help you

good luck-
leslie