I just had an MRI on my cervical spine. The results show cervical spondylosis at C-5 C-6 and C-4 C-5 with moderate spinal stenosis. A shallow central to left para central disc herniation and mild spinal stenosis at C-6 C-7. That is a brief recap. There are other terms such as discogenic sclerosis, osteophyte effacing of the right ventral the cal sac etc etc I have constant pain in my left shoulder and worsens if I scrunch my neck down. I have had six rounds of epidurals dating back to 2008. They have been less successful each time. My orthopedist is talking two level fusion now which is the same thing he performed on my lower back at L4 L5 and S1. Should I seek a second opinion?
Hi, i go throw your history sheet your problem is multilevel cervical spondylosis, but MRI shows only degenerative changes in your cervical spine which happened with everybody with us due to aging process, but surgical decision is med on your signs and symptoms. If you can tolerate your pain and your surgeon explain you after neurological examination that this is not a serious problem and you also not fill and weakness, gait disturbance, urine and stool problems, so you can go for conservative treatment. But if you can not tolerate the shoulder pain and fell weakness in arm then you have to go ahead with surgery. And levels of fusion can be decided only after seeing the MRI. Thanks