# l4/5 Pars Fracture & Spondylolisthesis



## heatstroke (Jul 1, 2003)

*Vertebra injury, l4/5 Pars Fracture & Spondylolisthesis*

My doc has me worried. I've been diagnosed with a Pars Fracture L4/5 and Spondylolisthesis (stage 1), just had about 6 Xrays to confirm. I've been suffering a little discomfort for the past 6 months, but things went bad when I was lifting some heavy weights 3 weeks ago. I could barely move. It much better now but I went to the doc a few days ago just to check what was up .... next thing I knew : pars fracture...

He says it is unlikely to heal, and that it is could get pretty serious if I am not careful. He's not sure on whether i should stop riding, I'd hate to quit, it is what I've been doing all my life. But I do not want to end up in a wheel chair for the remainder , I'm 40 now.

I know its not the smartest thing to do to post this on the internet. But I am in a small town in Malaysia, and my orthopaedic may not know the impact of cycling (MTB) on this spinal injury. Are there any orthopaedic surgeons (who cycle) out here who would care to comment?

I;ve been searching the web but there is not much info . Some of what I can find, conflicts with what my Doc told me. He said to continue building core/back muscles but no crunches.. some websites say crunches..... I am not overweight so that helps a bit/

Anyone out there with a similar injury ? Appreciate some knowledgeable input... my Ibis SLR is 2 weeks away and I would like to ride it, but not at the risk of serious permanent damage
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## electrik (Oct 22, 2009)

Obtain second and third opinions...


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## L&A (May 29, 2007)

I also have a pars fracture at L5. Complete fracture on the left pars and hairline/stress fracture on the right pars. Have had the fracture for 8yrs but was misdiagnosed with sacroilliac joint dysfunction and was told I could do anything I wanted. Continued to ride, got into endurance riding, 12 24hr races, and things started going down hill fast. For me it's been a progressive downhill slide and I know eventually I'll end up in surgery with an L5/S1 fusion, but as long as I can stand the pain and keep turning the pedals I'll keep riding. I'd be interested to hear how it's going for you, keep us up to date and good luck.


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## Nimthor (Feb 23, 2013)

Old thread, but how is your back holding out heatstroke?


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