Conversation: The conversation between human and AI assistant.
[|Human|] I m experiencing pain in the lower back and hurts to walk and stand. I had an appointment this morning with an orthopedic dr and he took x-rays. The disc between thr 4th and 5th lumbar is pretty much just a think line now. I was diagnosed with degenerative disease in the lower back about 10 years ago after an MRI. I will be doing another MRI after pre-authorization with insurance company. Dr. talked today about a possible epidural injection. Is this painful? Will this take care of the pain or will I need other injections down the road?
[|AI|]  Hi, Thank you for posting your query. Lower back pain due to degenerative lumbar disc disease and prolapse of disc is a common problem. It is not a serious disease.  MRI of the lumbar spine would clarify the diagnosis further. Epidural injections are standard treatment for severe lumbar pain. It is a very safe procedure. In addition, you would require good physiotherapy. Epidural injections may have to be repeated after three months.  Best wishes, Chat Doctor.