Bike Forums - Neck pain!

Bike Forums (https://www.bikeforums.net/forum.php)

- General Cycling Discussion (https://www.bikeforums.net/general-cycling-discussion/)

- - Neck pain! (https://www.bikeforums.net/general-cycling-discussion/1280151-neck-pain.html)

Quote:

Originally Posted by GhostRider62 (Post 22999004)

You are wrong. Multil-level has been performed successful in Europe for decades. I know all about the **** heads at the FDA and our medical insurances. .

Again, you are misunderstanding, and you are certainly not telling me anything I don't already know. I am well aware of the natural progression of osteoarthritic changes of the cervical spine and had noted changes over time in the thousands of patients I have seen. How many spinal patients have you treated?. Have you ever placed an artificial disc replacement in a patient yourself? I have. I have read multiple literature studies on cervical spine pathology as required in weekly literature study review sessions. Once more. All I am saying is that the original poster did not complain of any radicular symptoms. Accordingly, it is irrelevant what his MRI says nor does he even need one. When that day comes then he can go to the scanner and pursue surgical intervention if he wishes. That all. Not everybody experiences progressive symptoms. No orthopedic surgeon would, or should, operate on him without correlation between subjective symptoms of numbness and tingling in the arm, objective abnormal neurological findings on clinical examination, and specifically identified correlating nerve root compression on MRI. Furthermore,there is also no direct correlation between MRI and cervical spine pain. Some people may feel just fine but may have an absolutely horrible looking MRI, and vice versa.

If you need a study to point out the differences between C1 through C7. then you have a long way to go.

Furthermore, regarding multilevel artificial disc replacement:
"We present the case of a 59-year-old man who experienced worsening paracervical pain a decade after a three-level cTDR procedure performed in Germany, as the US FDA does not recommend cTDR beyond one or two levels. Over time, the patient's pain became more severe, and he developed dysphagia due to a cyst near the C4-C5 level. The patient was ultimately treated with a posterior cervical fusion procedure and has since made a good recovery. This case underscores the potential for long-term complications associated with multilevel cTDR procedures and highlights the importance of careful consideration when choosing a treatment option for patients." Phayal G, Chiluwal A, Zavarella S M (July 24, 2023) Long-Term Complication of Three-Level Cervical Artificial Total Disc Replacement: A Case Report. Cureus 15(7): e42380. doi:10.7759/cureus.42380

Understanding this is a case report, this is by far not an isolated incident. Hence the concerns expressed by the FDA whether you like those folks or not. Considering what we know and the consensus of studies and long-term outcomes of a multilevel disc replacement, I personally would not do it. You pays your money and you take your chances.

Oh, and are you the original poster? No.

Might be time for an ortho and neuro exam, including CT scan and/or MRI to find the problem. That's what I did.

A few years ago neck pain from multiple injuries over many years got so bad I could hardly ride at all. I haven't been able to handle a century ride or long group rides since 2019. Turns out I have severe cervical spine stenosis. No amount of magic touch from chiropractors or physical therapy can fix that problem.

I was scheduled for injections to relieve the pain last year but couldn't work out the clinic's requirements to have someone drive me to the clinic, wait in the lobby throughout the procedure and drive me home. The clinic wouldn't give me more than 24 hours notice for the procedure or specify when the procedure would start or how long it would take. So I finally cancelled and looked for a different ortho/neuro doc and clinic the do the procedure.

Meanwhile I've resumed all the recommended physical therapy and taking fistfuls of pain meds pretty much every day.

If the nerve block doesn't work -- and it will not fix the actual problem, just block the pain -- the next step is a very risky surgery. The nerve block will not fix the occasional physical symptoms from pressure on the cervical spine nerve, notably dangerous spike in blood pressure.

Meanwhile I've limited my rides to 60-90 minutes, usually riding more intensely on rides to retain some cycling fitness. I do my low and slow workouts with jogging and long walks, which don't aggravate my neck. Between the two I've stayed in reasonably good shape. But unless I switch to a recumbent my days of long group rides and centuries are over. And I'm not comfortable with a recumbent. Tried one in 2018 after I was hit by a car, breaking and dislocating my shoulder and aggravating old neck injuries.

That’s crazy. I have had several spinal injections over the years. I’ve taken the bus or a cab alone to most of them. All I need is to have someone accompany me home, and we can even take a cab or Uber. I get a call the night before telling me when to show up the next morning. It has always been early morning. They call my escort when I wake up from the anesthesia and I’m usually home before noon.

TLDR. I did catch the gist of someone babbling on about an ailment and vehemently telling the ortho physician's assistant how wrong he is. How about stop riding a bike if it aggravates the neck injury and seek a support group to dump on?

what kind of terrain are you riding on? I'm a roadie, and when I do an occasional gravel ride, I get neck pain which turns into a headache. I never get neck pain on long road rides.

I've been working on using my eyes more instead of lifting my head. Seems to help. After a consultation with my MD for pain and tightness they found a long healed fracture and the normal thinning in gaps between joints. No meds yet.