Magnetic Resonance Imaging

So, next week I'm off the the local hospital for an MRI scan of my cervical spine.

I've had strange headaches, neck pain and shoulder aches etc quite randomly over the last two or three years. There is also a strange lump on the right hand side of my neck which comes and goes but is not painful.

No one seems to have any idea what the cause of this could be.:blink:

Anyway, I saw the consultant at the hospital last Wednesday. He didn't say much. In fact, he seemed more interested in whether or not I had a girlfriend and what the psychiatrist said to me back in 2005:eyebrow:. But he sent me for an X Ray there and then (apparently this one is 'different' to the one I had done last year) and referred me for an MRI scan.

Hopefully this might reveal the cause of the problem.

I was wondering if anyone else here has had an MRI scan?

I've not, but my Mum has has quite a few. She had a bad fall down the stairs at home and broke her neck, another bone further down her back and bashed a hole through her skull (so did a good job of it). She had to have loads of different scans and tests, including several MRIs over time. She said it is a little strange as you can feel the pulse of the magnets, but nothing bad.

Interesting that you have a lump in your neck as I also have one on the right hand side of my neck. I went to the doctors when I first noticed it in my teens and he just said it was a gland that probably was more susceptible to infections. However it has always remained feeling fairly solid/hard. So I will be interested to know what they find out with you. What did you have done last year?

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Originally Posted by Harrison

Interesting that you have a lump in your neck as I also have one on the right hand side of my neck. I went to the doctors when I first noticed it in my teens and he just said it was a gland that probably was more susceptible to infections. However it has always remained feeling fairly solid/hard. So I will be interested to know what they find out with you. What did you have done last year?

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Snap! The first Doctor I saw said that. The lump does come and go a bit and moves around when I am walking. It is very hard and doesn't hurt when touched. I've no idea whether it is related to the pain I get or not as something does feel like it could be in the wrong place (my Mum says there is something wrong with the alignment of my neck). I also get aches in my right shoulder and can dislocate it.

The second Doctor who I saw had a quick feel at it and sent me for an X Ray. The report said that there was nothing wrong.

I saw another Doctor a few weeks ago. He had a good fiddle with my head and suggested that the lump could be something which is calcified (didn't catch exactly what he said) and hence it wouldn't have shown up on the X Ray. He said it is probably related to the shoulder problem. He referred me to the Orthopaedic Triage Clinic. The lady there had a good feel at my neck and said that the lump could probably just be a growth of bone as a result of sitting in funny positions. But she referred me to a consultant at the hospital so we could be 100% sure what it is.

Strange that you opened this thread. I already had many, as you perhaps know I already had a back surgery in 1990. Since then I often have problems and pain in my back.

When I was in Prague for Easter, one day I really had tremendous pain and I had to call the doctor to my hotel, I got injections pills and also a brace to wear to stabilize the back. When I returned to Luxembourg I immediately took an appointment in the MRI, I will go next week, the 27th of May, and then I will go to the doctor the 6th of June to see what happens.

I always have a vertebral disc dislocated, and this time it's the same. So usually they cut a bit of it off, but you can't do that forever, as sooner or later you won't have a disc anymore at all.

A friend of mine had the same problem, also had already one surgery, and now went for the second time some months ago. They replaced her disc by a prosthesis with a ball bearing, and she says that she feels now perfectly. Might wanna do that too, will see.

Anyway I will let you know once I consulted the doctor.

I hadn't heard of them being able to replace the disc with a prosthesis. In the UK people I know with similar issues have only ever been offered fusing of the bones, which I can imagine should be a last resort as it must restrict mobility a lot.

DC, I hope your back is OK and the results of the MRI are not bad.

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Originally Posted by Harrison

DC, I hope your back is OK and the results of the MRI are not bad.

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Well, I was hoping that too, but on the other side I want it to be better, so I want to ask about the operation and about all the options I have. Until now, nothing really helped and since 21 years I live with it, sometimes good, sometimes bad, and even sometimes (last 6 months very often) almost unbearable. So if a new surgery would help me eventually getting out of this up and downs, I would really decide to do it, instead of doing again exercises for some months and later it would start again.

I had the MRI scan today. I was in the scanner for about 20 minutes and got to listen to Radio 2. It was a Siemens scanner.

I made another appointment with the consultant, but it is in July, so I will have to wait some time to find out the results.

Hope they find what the cause is and it is good news.

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Originally Posted by Harrison

Hope they find what the cause is and it is good news.

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Hope that too.

I'm going tomorrow afternoon.

Went back to the hospital today. After waiting about 45 minutes, I saw Mr Bdsohfeorhgoerhgoehro Eoieurhgeuhgoegoergo.

To cut a 45 second long story into a 5 second one. There is nowt wrong with my neck and I can use it normally.

In the 45 seconds that he was there talking to me he seemed more interested in whether my Grandmother was with me :huh:.

Glad everything was OK.

I love doctors names these days. Impossible to pronounce, let alone remember how to spell. And even harder to understand when you are talking with them. Are there no English doctors? I don't remember the last time I saw one.

Still a bit pissed off tbh, as there is obviously some issue, though I haven't had any problems for a few months. However, I am very surious to know what this lump is.

I did not catch todays Doctor's name at all.

English doctors do exist. The GP whom I see regularly is both english and female. One of my old GPs was also english. There are certainly plenty of foreign ones though.

GPs are a different matter.. maybe all the English doctors go into being GPs for an easier life compared to working in the hospitals. :unsure:

Btw, I forgot to tell you. I also finished all the stuff, the IRM and also a scintigraphy. I then went to the doctor, and he told me that it doesn't look too good, as one spinal disc (L4-L5), the one I already had a surgery, is in a really bad shape.

I then asked him how it would be if he would replace it with an artificial disc, which they sometimes do, and he told me that there is one major problem. My disks above (L3-L4) and below (L5-S1) are both also in a quite bad shape, and they have to support the one between them, but if it's the old one, or an artificial one doesn't really matter, as it would not necessarily get better.

So I asked what would then be the best, and I then got 2 injections on either side of the bone, and told that if I would feel better, I should start making some sport, that running would f.ex. be good for back muscles and abdominals.

At the moment I feel quite ok, and I bought a treadmill, got it last week and started using it yesterday. Now I will have to see how this will evolve.

Btw, treadmill is a Kettler Track Motion :)

Something I haven't really mentioned is my shoulder trouble. Basically, is partially dislocates. It isn't painful as such, but can ache quite a bit. Anyway, i saw the doctor the other day, and its back off to the orthopaedic clinic next weeks.

Demon, how are you getting on with the treadmill? I recently joined a gym and have been using the treadmills and find that running helps my back a lot.

I only did it twice so far, don't have too much time at the moment, was planning to start it weekly from next week on. I think it really helps, because it strengthens the back and belly muscles.