diabetes Radiculopathy Progressed Into Neuropathy?

[rpowell01]

I've been researching this but can't find anything. I've been seeing a Pain Management and Neurosurgeon facility since Sept-October 2014. They decided to give me an EMG yesterday because of the pain and numbness/tingling I have. The pain started down my buttocks into the bottom of my feet and toes back in 2012. Currently I have loss of sensation that has wrapped around to the top of my feet and up into my shins. After the EMG the MD said he had to put everything together for his report and will call me back in for the FULL results. He did say his initial results are that if I only had L5-S1 Bilateral Radiculopathy in 2013 then its getting worse and has progressed into Neuropathy.

I've read in the past on the differences of these two things. Radiculopathy means one nerve is being pinched and Neuropathy means that more than one nerve is DAMAGED.

So my question is how can Radiculopathy progress into Neuropathy? BTW I am not diabetic and never have been. See the Regional Office approved me IU but denied my legs and I and I am thinking they were "hoping" I would get diabetes so they could say "We can't distinguish between the two"....Yes I read this exact phrase on my wife's Uncle Report from a claim.

See I started seeing this Neurologist/Neurosurgeon place because the VA has done NOTHING to properly treat my spine condition. The only thing they did was in 2013 was to send me out for ESI in Clearwater, FL. That was the WRONG treatment because I have DJD and little DDD even though I herniated a disc back in 2012. Now whenever I asked my VA PCP through secure message on declaring me P&T he said no he can't do that. Don' t worry Dr. Bash has already done this and Voc Rehab has declared me unemployable. Anyway my VA PCP had the nerve to tell me that one of James A. Haley PM specialists stated that I had "too many cooks" for my treatment. What such BS (Jesus please forgive me for saying that).

First I was having Thyroid issues that my VA PCP refused to treat me even after 2-3 blood results showed high Thyroid levels since 2013 so now I see my private PCP. Second the VA pain management wasn't doing anything, nothing to help me, nothing. I couldn't even see a surgeon after I requested it to PM. So whenever I finally was able to qualify for medicare I decided to go see a private PM facility. But the VA PM had the nerve to say "too many cooks"?

Guess what I am going to file a complaint with the IGs office because the Neurologist in Pain Management who improperly treated me wrote up a report stating he did a full exam on me. Guess what he never did that exam, I secured messaged PM at James A. Haley about this and secured messages shows he he called me back after I caught him in a lie after reading over the report. He calls me back in to finally do a proper exam. He lied and this is unethical. How many other veterans have been treated this way from James A. Haley?

See, I've complained and complained and complained about my low back and lower extremity issues and James A. Haley with no results. Luckily I secure message everything.

[Andyman73]

Funny thing is, the Podiatrist ony really took my seriously once I told him about my "lazy foot" episodes. I am hoping and praying that the EMG will show something is amiss, to verify and validate what I've been experiencing.

[TALON II FE]

I can totally relate. When you start piling up issues it feels like the docs start to think you are just some hypochondriac and quit taking you seriously. It's not like you would go to the doc because it's fun or because you like them jamming needles into you (well, maybe for one of those sadomasochists, not for me!). The worst part for me is not knowing what is wrong and what is causing it. Besides, with some issues they can be mitigated or even fixed when caught early enough, but that is hard to do if the doc isn't onboard. They identified my nerve as dead but then my new neurologist shrugged it off and basically said it was a waste of time and money to pursue it further. That was only 3 months after I first experienced symptoms. So, a year later, never wearing anything with laces and doing what I can, it is still dead so most likely permanent. I don't even want to know if it was fixable anymore, that would just set me off. Let me know how the EMG goes. Good luck!

[Andyman73]

I tried to be very cautious with not going all out with issues, since I figured I would get denied and even downgraded. So, many years passed with out any treatment for my foot. The only real saving grace from that was the fact that the VA had treated my foot quite extensively to the point of surgery. I turned that down since I had no idea what would happen and how would I be able to support my family while laid up from surgery.

So when I recently filed my claim for foot condition to include plantar fasciitis, I mailed off a big pack of VA sourced and created treatment records. I am still waiting for the C&P to be scheduled.

I go on Monday the 13th for the EMG. I will keep you posted.

Andy