Nerve Damage or Cyst Post Surgery
I had a TLIF fusion at L5/S1 on 10/1/25. A few days before surgery I noticed the outside of my left foot was tingling. Post surgery the tingling was still there, and I didn’t have much feeling down the outside of my left leg.
After 6 months of no improvement in the nerve coming back, I had an MRI and EMG (see pictures for results). The MRI showed there is a cyst at the L5 nerve root. The EMG showed old denervation but with some acute denervation.
This loss of nerve has led to drop foot. I walk with a slight limp (most people don’t notice) and cannot hold my body up with my left foot. If I go on my tippy toes with both legs and let go with my right foot, my left foot drops.
We are debating whether to do another surgery to see if the cyst or scar tissue is causing any nerve damage or to leave it alone and chalk it up to the nerve dying. The surgery would involve removing some of the hardware but likely not the cage.
Has anyone gone through something similar? I am in my 40’s and would like to get my nerve back if possible and at least stop any new nerve damage from happening.
While my pain is mainly gone, I do still have some weird issues. I can’t sleep straight. Something pinches in my lower back, and I have to bend my legs. I’ve never been flexible in my hamstrings, but now my left calf is super tight all the time. I do physical therapy daily with little results.
Here are my questions:
- Why did the EMG show some acute/new denervation?
- Has anyone had something similar? If yes, what were the results?