Hello Doctors. For over 4 weeks I have been experiencing shooting pain in the neck, shoulder and arm as well as tingling in the thumb and forefinger. I went to the clinic here at work where the MD gave me a 5 day course of 60mg prednisone and referred me to a spinal surgeon and an MRI. The spinal surgeon described an ACDF but first ordered a cervical epidural steroid and a nerve study. I’m waiting to hear back for scheduling on those matters, though at this point I’m not too keen on the spinal injection so will likely decline.
I made an appointment with my PCP but that is not until January. Of course every body you describe symptoms to says to go to the chiropractor. Research into the matter says many cases self resolve in 8-12 weeks. That seems like a long time for this level of discomfort.
I was just wondering what other options you may recommend to pursue.
Thanks
Hey there!
Welcome back to the forum, though I wish it was under better circumstances. Hope you feel better and heal up quickly!
Regarding the recommendation to see a chiropractor, I would generally advise against that. While there are some chiropractors who know what they’re doing regarding pain management, patient education, narratives, etc., they are few and far between. To be clear, spinal adjustment or manipulation is something i would strongly recommend against.
Depending on the cause and nature of your symptoms, things may resolve on their own, but we’d need more information to comment on that. I think a consultation with our pain and rehab team would be beneficial at sussing out the next steps.
-Jordan
Thank you much Dr. Feigenbaum. Getting old is so much fun!
First a kudos for your content, it is of great assistance in these times for a) minimizing catastrophizing, b) continuing activity as tolerable and c) setting expectations for recovery.
I have two appointments tomorrow: first with the ortho to have a look at my shoulder as there is a lot of clinical overlap in the neck and shoulder area, and second with the physiatrist for an EMG nerve conduction study. I hope to get a bit closer to a more focused diagnosis between any neck and shoulder issues. At least rule out tumor 
For the moderate term I will definitely consider a rehab consult and/or shoulder rehab template, as I have in the past used the knee rehab template with great success.
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