Itunes doesn't acknowledge my ipod classic 160, but it can be found in My Computer, HELP!

I have had my ipod classsic 160 gb for about 2 1/2 years, for the past 2 weeks, whenever I plug it in, itunes does not acknowledge my ipod. Actually it freezes until I unplug it, and it says that the ipod can not be found. It doesn't acknowledge it at all until I unplug it. It can be found in My Computer, I have tried different USB ports, restarting the ipod, uninstalling and reinstalling itunes. Am I screwed here? Any help is greatly appreciated.