Subluxation C1-C2? | Arthritis Information

 

Does anyone have C1-C2 Subluxation? Can you give me any info about your symptoms, treatment, etc? I have been having pain and numbness down my left arm and pain in my upper neck for about a month now...had an MRI done on Wednesday as the rheumy thinks I may have this. A bit nervous about it as he says this is one of the disasters of RA! Have done some online reading but not much info available...except from chiropractors!

I have about a 5 mm subluxation.  My main symptoms are pain at the base of the skull and headache coming from that.  Plus the inablity to look down with the neck or side to side when it is in a flare.   So far I do not have any neurological symptoms.  Standard RA treatments plus using a heating pad at the neck help as does wearing a soft collar on occssion.  Watch how you position the neck as you sleep..  The surgical fix is fusion but because of the location it is generally a subluxation of about 9mm or serious neurological involvement. hi doreen. 4-5yrs ago i was told i have a slight instability of the neck
this has never been reassed.  my neck locks sometimes when i bend it
foreward. and i gently bend it more foreward to make it crack and unlock.
then straighten up again. it is very stiff and cracking on motion. i get a lot
of headaches. and have  numbness burning in my lips fingers shins
i had the nerve test for carpal tunnel etc but that was ok..
i was then told i have arthritis of the spine due to long standing severe ra
not sure how they know without a scan. doc must have I was at the Neurosurgeon on Friday to check out my C4-5 disc prolapse.  He gave me 4 excellent reasons why I wasn't such a good candidate for a disc replacement that I was hoping for.  He suggests a fusion would be best for me mainly due to my age (they like to do them on 30-40 year olds and I'm almost 50_ and the RA (increased possibilty of osteoporosis and the implant sinking into the bone over time).  BUT....he wants me to have some more x-rays of my neck at C1-2 because apparently RA can cause instability problems there. Doreen, my neck problem is a bit lower down, C3-4 and C4-5 but my symptoms are the same as yours. I have very limited range-of-motion, although the RA drugs have helped with much of the pain.  I don't quite understand this because I am under the impression that this is not RA related, but OA.  Like Buckeye, I was told, no roller coasters and no whiplash type accidents (OK, I'll tell that to the other drivers!).  I also was told by two neurologists and my PCP (who refers patients to chiropractic care for certain conditions) NOT to see a chiropractor for this type of neck problem.  Since you mentioned a chiropractor, please be sure to get a couple of opinions from MDs with no ax to grind and find out if it's safe for your particular case.  Chiro can be helpful or it can be a disaster, depending on your condition.  Thanks everyone! About 2 years ago I had a herniated disc at C6-7 and a partial herniation at C4-5 which was treated with PT. That affected my right arm in much the same way that my left is affected now. I was surprised when the Rheumy seemed so concerned this time. He says that C1 and C2 are more serious because its so close to the brain stem and the top of the spinal cord. From what I've read on the web it doesnt sound great...but will wait till I hear from him to see what happens next!