Of Neck pains and Al Ahli Hospital

I’ve been having chronic neck and shoulder pains for the past 8 months or so. I’ve gone to different doctors, Orthos and Physiologist to get a diagnosis and treatment. Usually the doctors would tell me to get Physio treatments to alleviate the pain. Since I really haven’t had any success with the treatments nor was I given a proper diagnosis, I decided to try and see the Neurologist at Al Ahli hospital.

Bringing a referral from my company’s medical department and my Axa Insurance card, I went to the plush Al Ahli Hospital yesterday afternoon. Surprisingly, I didn’t have to wait too long for my turn. 10 minutes at most. The Neuro, Frank, asked my of my troubles but was easily convinced that whatever I had was not related to problems with veins. Still, he made a physical checkup and recommended I see their Ortho. Although he could have charged me for seeing him (since I had Axa, the charge was already approved), he asked the head of Ortho if they could just remove the charge as I’m seeing their department anyway. This surprised me as he could have left it at that and get paid for whatever he just did.

I did get my schedule and got an Xray to boot. Apparently, i have Cervical Facet Syndrome.

Cervical facet syndrome is a cause of pain in the spinal region and more noticeably in the neck. When suffering from cervical facet syndrome, the facet joints become inflamed and may bring with it soreness and or stiffness. Cervical facet joint pain can be felt in the areas of the base of the skull, upper back and shoulders, mid-back or neck.

The doctor was able to explain to me well what was causing the problem, how to remedy it and steps and options I have in treating it. After seeing 4 other doctors, it was the first time that I got to know what was the problem! This syndrome is usual in Qatar, the doctor says. And if pain medications and therapy can remove the pain, I might undergo Thoracic Facet Injection where under a fluoroscopy or x-ray, an injection is made into the joint to numb the area and gives temporary relief to the affected area. This is not a permanent solution as it may bring about months to a year or 2 of relief.

Anyway, I’ll try out the medications and the therapy and see where it goes from there.