Possible Problem?

[MiddyB]

I'm a Naval Academy Reapplicant and am also applying to PLC. The Marine Corps wants my DoDMERB records which I will give them but should I notify them of a back injury I received this past winter in wrestling? The injury was in my lower back. My team doctor said the muscle was either severely pulled or even torn. The inflammation was bad enough that you could literally see a bulge in my back, it also pinched my sciatic nerve that runs to my right leg and would cause it to go numb with physical exertion. I refused to get any tests done nor did I take any medication for the pain. After wrestling season I took it easy and a few sleepless nights and two or so months later it is completely healed and at 100% use. Worth telling or not?


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[Jcc123]

Honestly, I'm not an advocate of circumventing the medical process, but if there is no official diagnosis or medical documentation, AND it's 100% healed, I wouldn't mention it. While your team doctor could guess at a diagnosis by looking at your back, imaging studies would be required in order to actually have a diagnosis.

At this point, it's really no different than saying "once my knee was hurting, but now it's not. I never went to doctor, so I can't say for sure what was wrong with it". What would be the point of that? Everyone has pulled muscles, etc., that are no big deal. I'd be inclined to treat it as such.

 

[ABF]

Put it this way... If you were not diagnosed (by your doctor) with an "injury", you were not injured! My kid made the mistake of mentioning (on the medical form) a strained lower back from a year prior. He hurt it playing HS basketball. He took it easy for a few days and was back on the court. No problem, right? Nope.

Fast forward a year (and a baseball season, football season and another basketball season)... he has his DoD physical. He gets a clean bill of health from the "hands on" doctor, but can't get the green light from DoDMERB due to his "history of orthopedic injury". He's told to have his own MD produce a letter clearing him. Well, his medical plan won't let him see the pediatrician he had seen his whole life. His new MD doesn't want to say he is clear for full release for physical activity as he has only seen him that one time... for an "injury" that wasn't even treated the year prior.

My son had to jump through hoops to convince his (newly assigned by the HMO) doctor that he was healthy. He finally got the letter and the clearance.