ask: Can pregnancy worsen my spinal stenosis?

Hi AKnight316-

I'm sorry you are going through this, because spinal stenosis is painful and difficult. There are treatments, but at this point they are most likely surgical. We have a page on spinal stenosis: http://www.empowher.com/condition/spinal-stenosis

I am wondering what type of specialist you've been seeing. I suggest an orthospine or neurospine surgeon. There are arguments over which is better. I've worked with both, and the better surgeon is always the one who does more of the type of surgery you need.

Pregnancy will definitely irritate this condition, as would plain weight gain. Often during pregnancy women suffer from sciatica which is also a problem with the lumbar spine. It's from the pressure in the area that comes with being pregnant.

Spinal stenosis is dangerous if your spine is unstable and left untreated. You can end up with permanent spine and nerve damage. If you wait too long to treat it, the nerves just don't recover. I'm guessing if it's been going on for three months and you've been off work that you've been through physical therapy. You can also get epidural steroid injections, which help some people. But ultimately, spinal stenosis means pressure on your spinal cord, and that is something that must be dealt with, especially at your age. Otherwise you may be looking at a lifetime of pain.

The American Association of Orthopaedic Surgeons has a good page on spinal stenosis. http://orthoinfo.aaos.org/topic.cfm?topic=A00329 as does Mayo Clinic http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/spinal-stenosis/DS00515

If conservative treatments such as medication and therapy have left you unable to work, surgery may be your next option.

I wish you luck and if I can help further, please let me know.

Thank you for the quick response! I have been sent to numerous doctors, none of which dealt with the back pain, they thought it was a pelvic/bladder problem. I finally convinced them to do an MRI which showed the stenosis in the lumbar spine. They also found that I have spondylosis, so the disks throughout the lumbar region are bulging and the vertebrae are growing osteophytes. The L5 has already fused with the SI. No one has recommended physical therapy yet, which I find strange. The doctors just keep throwing narcotics at me for pain. I will check out the links you sent. I will hopefully be getting referred to a surgeon this week. Thank you so much for the advice!

i am 30 yrs old. i was diagnosed with arthrosis (lower back) spinal stnosis (lower back) and several buldging disks..i just got married and i want to have a baby although my husband doesnt want me in anymore pain than i already am. will my pain worsen if we decide to go through with it?