Medical Case Report: 48 Year-Old Patient

As per medical report dated 4/19/16, a lumbar MRI with and without contrast was requested to evaluate for a discogenic and/or facetogenic etiology for pain. MRI would also allow evaluation of conditions such as spinal stenosis.

Per the medical report dated 03/29/2016 by Dr. Waghmarae, the patient believes that her left buttock pain has increased over the last month. She describes her pain as aching, throbbing and stabbing. She rates her pain symptoms as 8/10. Pain is relieved by medication, heat, ice and use of a Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulator (TENS) unit, and is increased by movement and standing for long periods of time. She states that her bilateral legs have also increased in pain severity over the last month. She believes because she is doing a lot of standing and trying to clean up her house. She states that pain is increasing in her left buttock. She is not involved in physical therapy, chiropractic, massage therapy or acupuncture. Palpation of the lumbosacral spine reveals abnormalities along the bilateral facet joints. There is pain in her axial lower back in all planes of lumbar motion that is

DOI: 06/23/2011. This is a case of 41-year-old male maintenance worker who sustained injury to the low back while taking off a sliding door of a patio. As per OMNI notes, patient is diagnosed with lumbar disc disorder with myelopathy. MRI of the lumbar spine dated 6/28/15 revealed recurrent left paramedian L4-5 disc herniation with caudal extrusion of a 10 mm fragment into the left L5 lateral recess. As per office notes dated 7/25/16, the patient is status post redo left L5-S1 discectomy performed on 4/20/16. It was also noted that the patient had a prior L5 laminotomy several years ago. He subsequently did well. However, he had recurrence of his pain. Pain is radiating into his left leg worse on the right leg. This was unresponsive to conservative

Based on the medical report dated 12/22/16, the patient was last seen on 10/13/16, and was recommended to have continued therapy. He has not had therapy secondary to insurance issues over the last month or so. He presents with ongoing right elbow pain status post cubital tunnel release and medial epicondylitis debridement, worsening with motion and activity, lifting, reaching, bending, upper extremity dressing, household

She reports tenderness to the posterior aspect of the cervical spine, trapezius region and scapular region with deep palpation.

02/09/16 Progress Report noted that the patient has neck pain, upper back pain, and shooting pain down the arms. The pain is on the left side. It is rated as 3-4/10. It is stabbing, burning, and pins and needles. Medications and rest alleviate the pain. Work, standing, walking, and activity aggravate it. The patient has tried muscle relaxants, strong pain meds, PT, hot packs, and ice, all of which have helped, but he continues to experience substantial pain. The exam revealed that the DTRs were mildly diminished in the left upper extremity.

DOI: 2/11/2014. This is a case of 37-year-old male production worker who sustained a work-related injury to his back when he bent over to scan the rack tracking bar. As per OMNI, he was initially diagnosed with lumbar spine sprain/strain and gastritis secondary to non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs. Patient is status post left-sided L4-5 discectomy on 03/11/2015.

Per the medical report dated 08/12/16 by Dr. Gunderson, the patient had neck pain, as well as headaches, dizziness and blurred vision. The neck pain radiated into both shoulders, but more so on the right, and occasionally she had tingling in her upper extremities. She described the neck pain as severe and intermittent, and not related to any specific activity, and relieved with massage. The pain in her lower back was in the beltline and radiated into both lower extremities, more so on the left. She described the pain as moderately severe and constant, and not related to any activity, and only relieved with nerve medicines. On examination, the patient had tenderness in the lower cervical region about C5 to C7. Range of motion of her neck was 75% of normal. Motor, sensory, and reflex examinations in the upper extremities were normal. On examination of the lumbar spine, the patient could dress and undress without difficulty. She had a bent forward posture and gait. She had reduced lumbar motion and with maximum forward flexion, her fingertips were 12 inches from the floor. Lateral flexion was 50% of normal, and she had no active extension in the lumbar spine. Motor, sensory, and reflex examinations in the lower extremities were normal. There was paravertebral tenderness about L4-5 bilaterally, as well as in both sacroiliac and sciatic notch regions. Straight leg caused hip and thigh pain at 50 degrees bilaterally. Of note, X-rays of the cervical spine demonstrated disc degeneration at C5-6. X-rays of the lumbar spine were normal. Patient sustained

As per office notes dated 5/4/16, the patient is seen for bilateral elbow pain and bilateral wrist pain. She rates the pain as 3/10 with medication and 7/10 without medication. She is active for at least six hours a day and has energy to make plans. Her activity level has

12/16/15 Progress Report indicated that the patient wakes up with headaches. She mentioned headache in the frontal vertex or temporal occipital areas. She also feels imbalance. She denies bruxism and has no significant neck symptoms. She reported having some minor neck tightness. She was being treated with acupuncture 2 X per week and craniosacral therapy 2 X per week. She noted that she was able to read better in the past two weeks. She had difficulty scanning a written page in the past. She also mentioned that her insomnia has slightly improved since initiating these 2 therapies. Physical exam showed no palpable spasms in her cervical region over her muscles of mastication. Cervical range of motion: backward flexion 70 degrees and forward flexion 60 degrees. She was able to turn 60 degrees to each side. She is able to tilt 40 degrees to other side. Comments: Based on the absence of objective findings, she has reached a medical end result with no need for any further treatment. No additional treatment or diagnostic testing is

Per the IME report on 4/28/16 by Dr. Pierce Ferriter, the patient reports that he is actively treating with physical therapy and chiropractic treatment at a frequency of 3 to 4 times per week. The patient’s diagnoses include resolved lumbar strain, resolved cervical strain, resolved left shoulder strain and resolved right knee strain. There is no medical necessity for further physical therapy, orthopedic treatment of diagnostic testing based on examination.

He reports no major changes in his condition, since his last visit. His pain is rated as 3-6/10, described as dull, hard, aching or worse. Pain is increased with sitting, standing, walking, lifting, looking up and down, turning to the sides, bending, and twisting. He is unable to work. He is very limited physically. He has to modify or avoid social and recreational activities to manage the pain. He feels like his quality of life is severely affected. His pain is 80% in the neck and 20% in the upper extremities, mostly on the

DOI: 5/13/2014. The patient is a 29-year old female manufacturing lead who sustained a work-related injury to her back when she was lifting two ostellation trays which weigh about 30 pounds.

12/31/15 Progress Report described that the patient has cervical spine, right shoulder, and right wrist pain. She rates her cervical spine at 8/10-scale level and frequent; right shoulder pain at 8/10-scale level; and bilateral wrist pain at 6/10-scale level. The pain is frequent and improved since last visit. Rest and medications make the pain better. Weather

On examination of the lumbar spine, there is moderate to severe muscle spasm and tenderness of the paraspinal muscles and spinous process at L4-5. There was painful active