Diagnosis

At long last we have a diagnosis for the back pain. It is an annular tear. Say what? Apparently, "the annulus is the fibrous ring of the disc structure which surrounds the centrally located soft nucleus of the disc. The nucleus and annulus function together to create a pressurized structure that acts as a shock absorber. The annulus is a ligament and like any ligament in the body can be torn. Tearing of the annulus can produce pain because the annulus has pain fibres within its structure."

On Thursday we may know more about treatment options. But everyone seems pretty vague about them. I've read online about intra-discal electrothermal treatment, don't know if that's an option. They mentioned the possibility of an epidural. It would be nice for him to be out of pain even for one hour, the downside, as I pointed out, is that you can't move. Apparently that's okay as long as it's during a world cup match!!!