Hi everyone,

I'm a year post qualified but unfortunately I have spent the last 2 months off work recovering from L4/5 Discitis. Following a week in hospital, 3 Wikipedia reference-linkMRI's, numerous x-rays, 10 weeks of very strong antibiotics and countless pints of blood given in blood tests, i am on the mend!

My consultant isn't the most proactive of clinicians and with regard to my ongoing rehab, his professional advice was to "take things easy" I want to progress but thought I would try and gain some advice from those more senior than myself.

My main problem is lumbar flexion together with general back pain and sharper sacral symptoms. I originally presented with severe neuro symptoms (L4 dermatomal pattern pain and weakness together with a huge right sided lateral shift and pain through the roof, I can honestly say I was crying with the pain, no medication besides high dose diazepam would help) I am much better now, very occasional shooting ant thigh pain, but lots of VAS 3-4 back pain, almost constant and sharper VAS 5-6 sacral pain when sneezing or posteriorly rotating my pelvis.

I can now just about put my socks on, right foot much worse than left and I can reach the tops of my knees when flexing forwards - this is a big improvement as before I could hardly even drop my chin to my chest. However, things have stagnated.

Infection and inflammatory markers in my blood have now returned to normal (they were 15 times what they should have been). X-rays show no destructive changes to vertebra, but narrowed disc space at L4/5 and L5/S1 (pre-existing).

Consultant has now discharged me as I am no longer medically unfit but as an Muscukoskeletal physio used to training in the gym 4-5 days a week and being very active, my lifestyle has completely changed.

Does anyone have any ideas on how to start getting myself back to somewhere near normal? Do I try and force the flexion? MRI shows a small prolapse at L4/5 and the level below. When do I start stability work and what do I start with? At the moment I'm a little scared to do anything because I can still remember the 10 out of 10 pain when I was really ill!

Any advice greatly received.

Mike

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