When definitive treatment is refused: What then?
Issue -
November - 2025, Posted On: 01 November 2025
He arrived late at night, unable to walk without support. The pain was sharp, radiating down his legs, and the MRI left little room for doubt: a massive lumbar disc herniation compressing the cauda equina. The orthopedic surgeon advised urgent surgical decompression. Delay, he warned, could lead to irreversible damage—paralysis, bladder dysfunction, permanent nerve loss.
The family listened, but hesitated. The cost of surgery—₹1.8 lakh—was beyond their means. They asked for something temporary. Something that could ease the pain, at least for now.
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