Annular Tear L5/S1

[longroadahead]

Originally Posted by cp7959

Longroad, sorry to hear your tear has progressed.

A few questions if you don't mind, did pain increase with extrusion? Do or did you have good disk height when the tear was discovered? What is your primary symptoms? Where you diligent about doing all the right things, core strengthening, diet, no bending or twisting and lifting heavy objects?

From what I understand that an extrusion has a better chance to heal. But as Hooch said "No one knows what the future holds".

It is hard to say if the LBP increased. It is different for sure but exactly how I cannot say. For sure the right leg hurts more when I try to extend it out or any stretching to the right leg is painful. The tear was discovered in 2009 with a Lumbar MRI but was not a grade 5 at the time.

Primary symptoms are LBP with right leg pain. I am very diligent and go to the gym at least twice a week for light weight exercises and core strengthening. Try to walk 10,000 steps per day and do PT exercises at home.

Since the nature of my back pain has changed with the 8mm extrusion I am seriously considering a microdiscotomey before fusion/ADR. Realize I may need add'l surgery down the road but by then maybe some of the newer disc will be FDA approved or the treatment for the disc regeneration will be FDA approved.

There are many successful back surgeries and not successful procedures for every procedure I have researched.