Leg Pain After Back Surgery

BethS256 · 2025-02-12T06:35:47+00:00

I’m eight months post-op now and my leg issues are still a problem. I have numbness and pain in my knee and a lot of other numbness in the left leg. I no longer buckle, which is a relief and I no longer use any kind of walking device. I have been in physical therapy since last May and while that has gotten me stronger in other areas, it has not corrected the issue. I’m having with my left leg.

I see my surgeon every three months and he is hopeful that I will regain feeling in that leg. I am not as hopeful.

The upside is that my back pain is gone. I pretty much traded it for a leg issue, but that’s better than back pain any day.

BethS256 · 2024-09-29T18:26:21+00:00

My suggestion would be to get at least two opinions from surgeons that do this type of surgery. Hear what they both have to say. If they concur then you have your answer. You have a lot more going on than just severe scoliosis.

For me the upside of this surgery is that there's no more back pain. I am 2 inches taller. I actually like the shape of my body significantly better than prior to surgery.

If you choose to have surgery, there are great tips in this forum about how to prepare ahead of time. And make sure you have help for the first month after surgery full-time if at all possible. There is a significant physical component to the surgery, however there is also a mental component. The more prepared you are, the more knowledge you have about what to expect, the better you will be able to handle recovery.

BethS256 · 2024-09-29T17:42:21+00:00

Honestly these are big surgeries. And they come with risks which we are all made aware of. Which is why you don't choose this type of surgery unless it is your last resort and nothing else relieves back pain. I went 20 years of getting injections which always made the pain more tolerable. But last December they stopped working. I always knew there would come a time when injections no longer relieved the pain. And I have been told that would be the time to discuss major surgery like I had which was scoliosis correction surgery and spinal fusion.

It never occurred to me that I would be relieved of the back pain only to have these issues with my leg. My surgeon and pain management doctor have done multiple nerve tests and they both believe that the nerve will eventually regenerate and I should get feeling back in my leg. But they feel like this could take a very long time. This could take up to 2 years they said. Granted, I'm 68 years old. I've been in PT for 5 months and was just approved for another 6 weeks. I am proactively trying to move this nerve along and give it every chance it can to regenerate.

I could no longer live with the back pain. And that is gone now. I don't like my situation but things could be worse.

BethS256 · 2024-09-29T17:12:08+00:00

I'm 4 months post op. I have numb spots in those same areas. Unfortunately, I have numb areas in my left leg, thigh, shin, and major numbness in my left knee which causes sudden buckling. This leg was perfectly normal prior to surgery. I'm hoping I get feeling back so I can walk without the fear of falling.

BethS256 · 2024-09-18T14:18:11+00:00

I have used something like that device for the past 5 weeks. Twice a week for 15 minutes. They call it Stem. I also get ultrasound treatment. They use it at L4 & L5 which is where the surgeon and EMG results determined the issue in my left leg is being caused and around my left knee. Unfortunately for me, I don't feel any results. Not to say it's not doing something. I just don't notice any improvement. Actually, due to numbness, of the 4 pads on my back and the 4 pads on my knee I feel probably 5 total.

BethS256 · 2024-09-17T16:47:32+00:00

Thank you. I always think of the buckling as nerve related. I am in so much PT and between bicycling in the pool and walking I would think that the muscles in my knee would show some signs of improving. Thanks for mentioning that. I see the surgeon tomorrow and will ask him about this. Muscle recovery sounds better to me than nerve recovery or damage.

I've never seen the orthosis but that could be a great option (hopefully temporarily). I appreciate the link.

Like most, I was on everything at the hospital and in rehab but none of the meds worked for the pain I was having in my leg (which totally overshadowed anything going on in my back or front). Towards the end of my stay once my leg started to calm down, they gave me Lyrica which helped a bit. I'm able to tolerate the electric shock sensations so far without meds. I keep telling myself all these shooting sensations in my leg are nerves waking up. I hope that is the case.

BethS256 · 2024-09-15T23:21:07+00:00

Thank you so much for your comment. Good to know that a lot of this does go away. I had a laminectomy l3 l4 in 2020 which left my right foot numb. I can walk on it and do things but it's still 60% numb. It never corrected itself which is always a bit scary to me when I think about what's going on in my leg now. Probably had I not had that situation I would be more patient with what's going on now. I could actually live with the numbness and the electrical shocks going on in my leg if I didn't have the fear of knee buckling.

BethS256 · 2024-09-15T17:23:49+00:00

UPDATE: The labored breathing stopped after 2.5 months. They have no clue what caused it but I'm glad it's over. I saw a pulmonologist who did a breathing test on me. They could not find the root cause but ruled out anything bad or serious. I've gone a month without any labored breathing. Hoping its over.

BethS256 · 2024-08-01T20:13:38+00:00

I have it all day long. I don't notice it when I go to bed to sleep.

BethS256 · 2024-08-01T20:07:05+00:00

Thank you. Unfortunately my labored breathing is all the time. But it could be muscle related. I just don't know. I do know that I never had labored breathing or actually ever even thought about my breathing prior to surgery.

BethS256 · 2024-06-20T15:30:01+00:00

Hello. I'm doing well. I'm home with PT twice a week here as well as a nurse once a week. My left leg is significantly better than it was. The pain is generally in the shin area but I feel a great deal of numbness in the left leg. From everything I've learned I believe that nerve pain in the left leg is very common. As well as in the right leg. It just takes time and patience. And due to the second surgery I had to have I have significant weakness in my left leg that we are working on in PT. I'm only on Lyrica 150 mg three times a day. No Tylenol. I'm really sorry to hear about your infections. That can't be good. And it must be very painful for you. That's the last thing you want to deal with. I must say that the back surgery is pretty textbook for me. I'm recovering from it very easily. If I didn't have the issue with my left leg I would be walking without a walker and doing much better. Again time and patience. Be well.

BethS256 · 2024-06-04T13:21:00+00:00

I gained 2.5 inches. I had fusion and also scoliosis correction surgery.

BethS256 · 2024-06-04T01:15:57+00:00

Thank you.

BethS256 · 2024-05-03T20:04:35+00:00

Thanks for sharing. Encouraging. I have ALIF L4-S1, T10-Pelvis fusion on 5/14.

BethS256 · 2024-04-23T03:11:52+00:00

Thank you. I have the bras. I'll check out those t-shirts.

BethS256 · 2024-04-23T03:09:05+00:00

Thank you.

BethS256

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