Q: A couple of weeks back I had severe pain in my left butt area after the morning I had a work-out in the gym with weights as usual. There is a lot of pain during any motion, but not at rest. An MRI was done for the lumbar spine which shows no significant abnormality. There is no evidence of thecal sac or nerve root compression. However it also says that there is mild diffuse bulge of L4-L5 and L5-S1 discs (no evidence of thecal sac or nerve root compression). I was on traction for a few days (3 days) and on NSAID (Nimeluside + Tinazidine). Ruling out any Disc injury, the doctor has advised that its a severe muscle strain that would take 4 weeks to heal and NSAID is the only option to relieve pain apart from continuing absolute rest. I have pain in the left butt which radiates upto the left knee when I walk (particularly when the NSAID effect comes down). I would like to have a second opinion on the diagnosis, and the treatment.

A:The pain that you have described could have arisen from two possible sites. One is from a slipped disc which however has been reported on your MRI as not the cause. The second possibility is the joints on the spine. It is possible that your weights could be the underlying cause. I would stop heavy weights and stick to free hand exercises or very light weights. Exercises should be stepped down and started from a lower level going to the higher levels at a gradual rate. Precautions, correct posture are the other essential ingredients to long term cure.