A friend of mine has been suffering from lower back pains for many years & after breathing down his neck for a few years, was I able to get him to consult a doctor last year. After some x-rays & questioning, the doctor told him that he was born with a missing vertebral column (or something to that effect) and told him to never again ride a motorbike & not lift weight of more than 1 pound max. He was also told that nothing else could be done since this is a birth defect & he would have to live with this condition. Some painkillers were prescibed, but my friend's problem has not been solved. He still suffers from severe pains at times, he cannot sit straight for even half an hour at a stretch, neither can he walk much. He has taken a second opinion, but it was the same diagnosis... Will he have to live like this forever?
2007-02-16 20:01:37 · 2 answers · asked by Sharon 2 in Health ➔ Diseases & Conditions ➔ Other - Diseases
As the previous poster mentioned, your friend does not lack the entire column, because that is not compatible with life. Rather, they are lacking a small segment, which normally prevents the spinal cord from contacting anything outside of the vertebral column. Depending on the severity of the defect, varying degrees of herniation can occur, involving the meninges and spinal cord, resulting in the constant pain that your friend experiences.
Currently, there is no cure for spina bifida, and some situations may be operable, if the defect is small enough, but surgical intervention is usually not indicated unless life-threatening because of the potential risks and debilitation associated with open-spine surgery. So, unfortunately, I'm afraid your fears are accurate and your friend may have to learn to live with it. You can try and get a third opinion, but it will probably be the same -- you can try seeing a neurologist if he's been seeing primary-care physicians, since the neurologist may be more informed regarding newer or more aggressive corrective procedures, if your friend is open to those options.
2007-02-16 23:52:45 · answer #1 · answered by citizen insane 5 · 1⤊ 1⤋
He's not missing a vertebral column but rater a single or a few vertebrae...if he was missing the entire column then he'd have no spine at all...I have a similar spinal defect that I was born with and you just have to live with it as best you can
2007-02-16 20:08:08 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋