Question
Hello Dr. Starbuck,

Thank you for taking the time to answer my question.  I was recently involved in an automobile accident on January 28th of 2007.  We were hit from behind by a vehicle traveling in excess of 85 MPH which flipped out car into a median strip.  We were taken by ambulance to a local hospital where the ER did a conventional back x-ray which revealed no damage.  We were told to contact our local physicians for further follow up.  My symptoms at the time of the accident were severe back pain in the lower lumbar region and in the upper cervical shoulder region. A few days later I began experiencing numbness and tingling in my leg and toes that would appear after driving, sitting in a chair for a period of time or sleeping at nigh. My primary care physician referred me to a neurologist who ordered an MRI of my lower back.  The MRI revealed that I had conjoined nerves at L-5 S-1. I was told that this was a hereditary however it did not appear in a similar MRI 7 years ago. Could the conjoined nerve be confused with something else that could be a result of my accident? The MRI also revealed Type II degenerative endplate change in the bone marrow at L5-S1

My symptoms have persisted so the doctor authorized 2 additional MRI's one for the cervical area the other for my brain.  The brain scan came back fine.  However the Cervical scan showed mild to moderate disc bulging at C#-5 and C4-5. There is also disc bulging at C5-C6 at the right ventral cord that "probably exerts mass effect on it" according to the letter. The conclusion according to the radiologist is that there is degenerative disc bulging at C3,C4-C5,C6-C7 laterizing to the right most severe at C5-C6.Posterolateral disc bulging at C5-C6 likely exerts mild mass effect on the right ventral spinal cord.  "Mild spinal cord impingement cannot be excluded"

Quite frankly this is all Chinese to me.  However my primary care physician said "I have a very weak back and it is something that I will have to learn to live with the rest of my life.  He is also giving me blood tests as the next diagnosis.  
The problem that I have is that both my primary care physician and my neurologist simply dismiss the auto accidednt as part of my problem.  I on the other hand think that the accident is the cause.  Before the accident I was perfectly healthy. After the accident I have trouble sleeping at night with the numbness cold and tingling sensation in my leg and toes.  I also experince pain across my lower back that feels as if I was hit across the back with a baseball bat. I also experience the same pain across my back just below my should.  There is a continual pain that radiates across my back down my shoulders.

I asked my primary care physician if I should consider chiropractic care as an alternative since he has not been able to give me an exact cause of my pain since he attributes this all to age.  Again as I mentioned earlier I never had these problems before the accident. The doctors response was "don't waste the money"

As you can see I am clearly confused looking for first and foremost a diagnosis of my current condition.  I do not buy the old age diagnosis since this was not present prior to the accident.  Secondly I am looking for some direction.  If I do have disc bulging and herniation I am sure that chiropractic adjustments would have a positive impact on my condition.

Thank you again for taking the time to read all of this.  I look forward to hearing from you soon.

Sincerely,
rob conners

Answer
You are correct in thinking chiropractic can help.  With out a proper exam I am just speculating, but the leg numbness can come from a couple different problems, one being your spine.  If there is any kind of "bone shift" or subluxation in our terms, this can interfere with the nerve and cause the numbness.  The problem could be in the muscles of the glutes (butt muscles).  The nerve that goes to the legs go through the glutes and if there is any bony misalignment of the hips or upper legs, the muscles could be is spasm and interfere with the nerves.  Either way chiropractic treatments can definitely help.  As for the midback pain, the ribs could be affected.  All this can be explained better in person at a doctors appointment.  I am a member of a group of chiropractor located all over the U.S. and I suggest them to everyone that writes to me because I trust their judgements and treatments.  If you are interested go to www.sorsi.com.  I am located in St. Paul, Minnesota and would be more than happy to see you.  If you have any other questions or concerns or need help with locating a doctor, email me.

Dr. Starbuck