For 2 years coccyx pain without diagnosis.
September 7, 2016 | 35,00 EUR | answered by Dr. med. Ive Dr. Schaaf
Hello,
I am a 29-year-old male, not overweight and regularly exercise. I have been having problems with my coccyx for almost 2 years now.
The pain is always noticeable when pressure is applied to it, mainly when sitting or when pressure is applied with fingers. It only hurts at the tip of the coccyx and it started without any fall or injury preceding it. X-rays and CT scans showed no abnormalities.
Seat cushions or other supports have not helped so far, in fact sitting on a cushion even makes it more painful. I have already been prescribed manual therapy, which did not help at all, and I have had 2 cortisone injections in the coccyx. The injections initially provided relief, but only temporarily, for a few days.
When the pain started, it lasted for about 5 months with intensity. I couldn't sit without significant pain. After that, the pain subsided, but a strange feeling and occasional stabbing at the coccyx tip remained. Sometimes it became more uncomfortable for a few days, and for about a week now, the pain has been stronger at the coccyx (coccyx tip).
I have also had a gastroscopy and blood test, both with no abnormalities. I have visited a urologist and a neurologist, but they couldn't find anything either. I don't know what else to do. No doctor has been able to give me a diagnosis so far, let alone heard of something like this before.
I hope to find someone here who is familiar with my problem and knows how to proceed.
Good evening,
According to everything you've described, it seems to be a local irritation at the point where you experience the most pain upon touch. This is a local issue, and further investigations, as you have already done, typically do not yield any findings.
Treatment options:
- Local infiltrations, as you are already familiar with, can be repeated, for example, every three days until the situation has calmed down completely.
- "Normal painkillers" usually help alleviate the pain, but are not very healthy in the long run.
- Since such pain falls into the category of neuropathic pain, a trial therapy with Duloxetine may be sensible. You should discuss this with a neurologist.
- Other possible approaches are acupuncture and osteopathy. Especially the latter would be a very sensible approach, provided you find a good osteopath (ask around).
The intriguing question of "What triggered all of this?" and "Why isn't it calming down on its own?" is usually not easily answered. While there may be a "stressor" that is likely the culprit, it is rarely as clear-cut as one would hope.
A word about the seat cushion: It should be a seat ring, if anything, but this could tighten the tissue surrounding the coccyx, potentially having the opposite effect because while there is no pressure on the coccyx, there is tension on the tissue, which is just as bad as pressure.
I hope I could help you a little.
By the way, I apologize for the late response; there was a technical issue that could not be identified and resolved immediately.
Sincerely,
Dr. Schaaf
