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Background

I have had lower back pain on and off for 20 years. I would “tweak” my back and end up seeing the chiropractor. I would alternate ice and heat and manage the pain well enough to continue on with my life. I am a videographer. In 2023 I was cleaning up after a photo shoot. I bent down to pick up two large sandbags that we use to anchor equipment. I moved forward and felt an immediate pain in my lower back and the back of my right leg. I thought “Oh, I just tweaked my back again.” I went home immediately to rest on ice. My back and leg pain increased over the next several days and I could not get out of bed without assistance. I finally returned to work two weeks later.

I was seeing a Chiropractor at the time who was unable to ease the tightness and pain in my low back and leg. I consulted with a second Chiropractor who was able to provide a small amount of relief. He thought my lower back pain might be coming from my hip but was unsure what was causing my increasing leg pain. I saw a spine surgeon who sent me for x-rays and an MRI. The results showed disc bulges at multiple levels L3-S1. He suggested I continue with my Chiropractor, massage, and dry needling. None of these provided long-term relief.

My wife was seeing a pain management specialist at the time and suggested I set up a consultation. He did trigger point injections and put me on Gabapentin and Hydrocodone. We did additional x-rays and a CT scan. It was noted I had stenosis and mild disc herniations at numerous levels. We continued with injections and added facet radiofrequency ablations. This did settle things down for a brief period of time. He then suggested my SI joint could be my pain generator and referred me to another pain medicine specialist who had experience treating SI joint dysfunction.

The pain medicine specialist wanted to review all options and sent me for new x-rays and another MRI. We continued with injections and nerve ablations. I was also being weaned off Gabapentin because it was not effective in relieving my leg pain. Since I was not improving, he decided to do a diagnostic SI joint injection. I had immediate pain relief from all my symptoms for 24 hours. He offered an SI joint fusion as a permanent solution for pain relief. At this point I was walking with a cane and was at a desk position at work. My quality of life was awful. We had to cancel a family cruise, and my wife was having to do all the chores around the house. I had to jump through a few more “hoops” for insurance to approve the fusion procedure which included physical therapy for 6 weeks. Insurance finally approved and I had a right SI joint fusion utilizing the iFuse TORQ® Implant System in September of 2025.

Update

I had surgical pain after the procedure, but it was manageable. I used a walker and then advanced to a cane and then on to independent walking within a few weeks. My leg pain resolved quickly. I still attend physical therapy to build my muscle strength and endurance. I am back to working at full capacity with no restrictions, although I am cautious when lifting sandbags!