Back Pain Forum - Coping with lumbar stenosis

Conditions and Diseases > Back Pain Forum > Coping with lumbar stenosis

What structures make up the spine? We review basic spine anatomy here...before identifying potential causes of back pain....

Q: Coping with lumbar stenosis

asked by: DoctorQuestion on July 16th, 2009

My son started to complain about back pain about 3-4 months ago, because he has had similiar complaints before,(he plays football, volleyball and basketball at his high school) we just had him ice and take OTC meds for pain and swelling. The symptoms didn't subside, but they didn't get worse, a couple of weeks ago, we noticed he walked differently, and now started to complain of numbness down his leg. We took him to the MD had plain views taken to rule out SI joint, the films revealed nothing, I had another doctor order an MRI where it was revealed that he has DDD and lumabar stenosis, we haven't met with the spine specialist yet, but he told us over the phone,that my son is way too young to have that dx. Will he ever be able to play football ( which is his #love) or any other sports ever again. What does Lumbar Stenosis really mean? and is it as serious as I read it is? Everything on the web freaks me out.

Replies(1)

Dr. Antonio Marotta , D.C.

replied on September 8th, 2009

Back Pain Answer A7218

Lumbar stenosis is when the hole that the nerve comes out of in the spine gets smaller and pinches down on the nerve. He is not too young to have DDD (which is arthritis) because he is playing a lot of sports and causing a lot of wear and tear on his body.

I had the same exact situation when I was his age and my primary told me to stretch it out (which made it worse). The only thing that helped me was a chiropractor. That is why, now, I am much better, didn't need surgery or drugs, and am a chiropractor myself. Good luck!

Antonio Marotta, D.C.

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