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Fusion Long ride to a successful Fusion

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Hello, Ibiza, and welcome to BoneSmart.

I have to say that not all anaesthetists are needle happy just like not all surgeons are knife happy! But the nerve blocks are mostly supposed to be a diagnostic tool rather than a treatment. Meaning if the block stops the pain, then it's not RSD but if it doesn't then RSD is confirmed. But they may have to do blocks in various places to confirm it further.

Have said that, I'd say no thank you very much to any blocks for that reason. To have such an invasive procedure I'd only want it for treatment!
 
Hi, Ibizabreezes....welcome to BoneSmart. I'm glad you decided to join our forum.

In addition to the RSD, are you also facing a hip or knee replacement?
 
Hi "Breezes"! Thank you for reading my posts, and I'm so happy for you that you have found some relief with your pain. I agree with Jo...not all are "needle happy", but to find one that is not, is rare indeed!

When that little voice inside your head says "hhmmmm....I'm not quite sure",:sct: you need to listen. I'm very glad that I did, because when I first met with the pain specialist, he told me all I needed was one pain block for diagnostic purposes, so he said. Well.....guess what! After I met with him a second time, he was pushing me sooo hard to have the nerve blocks....BLOCKS, as in MANY! He was then trying to tell me that it would be worth it to have 3 or 4 a year if that gave me relief.
I said "WHAT"???? !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :shk:
Didn't make sense to me, as the pain meds were working and I was not uncomfortable and could manage. So....why put me through several nerve blocks at well over $2,500 each? I think you know as well as I do......WOW!!!!
I can't tell you how much this Dr. and my first OS made me feel like I was stupid or something...not wanting the blocks. I know they thought I must enjoy being in pain.

Luckily, I listened to myself and knew that things just "didn't seem right". Everybody's case is different, and some people may very well benefit from these nerve blocks. I'm not saying they are useless by any means. I know they have helped people. I'm just one of those people that if it doesn't feel right, question it! And...do research!

I'm so very happy that you have your pain managed now! I know what a relief it must be for you! Welcome to "BoneSmart"! :gphg:
 
I appreciate the nice words of welcome! Jamie, I have had neither knee or hip problems specifically. Just terrible, debilitating pain, neuropathy, and a near paralysis of my lower right leg and foot following an accident. There was significant damage to the proximal sciatic nerve.

Josephine, it may be that the terms are different in the UK - In the US, MD's who do anesthesia are anesthesiologists. What I have found is that they have pretty much one procedure in their arsenal for pain, and that procedure is a nerve block.

Like wanttoride, it did not make sense to me that a spinal injection that was supposed to be for diagnostic purposes was going to also be their answer to long term treatment. After the first one, I felt a wee bit of numbing effect at the end of my foot. The anesthesiologist told me that that was a good sign...that it meant future spinal injections would be useful.

I felt I was being sold a line of ________ !(fill in the blank as you choose!) I still had to go home and live a life of days and nights filled with relentless pain. I was dumbfounded? appalled? that the anesthesiologist was happy with his result. My knee and ankle were the sources of horrific pain - I called it a whole "symphony" of pains. I had complete foot drop.

I quickly saw that the "Pain Center" where the blocks were administered had a certain mindset - essentially, it was that if the patient was not a happy camper after the injection and did not report control of their pain, they could choose to come back for more of the ineffective treatments, live in pain or be regarded a "seeker" of oral pain medicines.

You are so right wanttoride...One does indeed have to listen to the little voice in your head. Mine told me these people were not going to be the solution to my problems. They really didn't get it that I was in so much pain I couldn't think of much else. Or, that I was normally a happy, non-complaining, busy, active person.

I took it upon myself to seek out competent and compassionate neurologists, neurosurgeons and, for long-term care, an excellent M.D. who is a Pain and Re-hab Specialist.

Yes, the nerve blocks must work for some. I have a hunch though that countless nerve blocks are done, paid for by Insurance companies and give, at best, little to no relief....Oh, except to the cash flow in the clinics that administer them. I have a little experience in Health Care myself...:blush:
 
Josephine, it may be that the terms are different in the UK - In the US, MD's who do anesthesia are anesthesiologists.
Click to expand...
Same jobs, different names! So what's in a name! :wink:

But I think you did exactly right. In this kind of situation you have to find yourself a doctor you can totally trust and in whom you can have total confidence. I wish you all the very best and an early end to this nightmare.

I'm praying for you.
 
Wow! You hit the nail right on the head!!! I too, was looked at as a "drug seeker" because I wasn't "cooperative" in THEIR road to MY treatment. I only found this out AFTER getting my OS notes from check-up visits. Nice, huh? WOW! I was to say the least....ticked!!! I wish you luck and good wishes with your Dr. who will talk with you and listen to you as well!

It will be about a month, and I'll be going in for my surgery.....getting a little anxious, nervous, but remaining hopeful that this is going to at least get me to walk correctly. My back (finally) went out the other day....it has had enough of this lurching side to side. Been on bed rest for 3 days....feels much better today! My (good) knee has also been taking a beating, as it's doing the work of both, especially when I have to stand up from a seated position. Got good muscles in my arms, though!
 
Hi everyone! Sorry...I haven't been very good at keeping up with my Bonesmart support group. It's been a busy couple of months with family get-togethers, reunions and such. I'm all set for my upcoming surgery next week (Sept. 22nd). I was seriously thinking about NOT having it...my nerves were getting the best of me, and I almost backed out. Well...I'm ok now, and ready for whatever this brings. Hopefully, my hip/knee/ankle will be straightened out and the RSD will not rear it's ugly head. As I was told..."there is a lot going on in your knee"...so who knows what the new surgeon will find. My quad muscle is still "dead" in an area, and I almost fell to the ground (again) yesterday when it gave out on me when I was walking. Because of my "limp and lurch" style of "walking", my back and hips are killing me now. They put me back on LYRICA (75mg) daily before the surgery, but how soon we forget......the Lyrica gives me extreme headaches and migraines. I put a call into the Dr. office today to let them know, and I'm sure I'll be taken off the drug. I hope all is well with everyone, and I will be online with Bonesmart as soon as I am able to get back home (inpatient rehab for a minimum of 2 weeks after surgery) and on the computer! :dogkiss:
 
Hello there - good to hear from you again. I sincerely hope and pray that this will work for you. Have you discussed with your surgeon not using a tourniquet?
 
It's wonderful to hear from you and I'm glad you didn't decide to cancel your surgery. I sincerely hope this gives you the relief from pain that you need to go forward with your life. You have been through so much.....hang in there!!!

Please do keep in touch as much as you can. You are in my prayers!
 
Hi again, and thanks! Yes Jo....we did discuss not using a tourniquette. He told me he would try not to use one, but if he does, he will use it for the shortest possible amount of time. He is concerned that anything can trigger the RSD to rage again, and neither of us want that! I had to call my surgeon and ask him if I could be taken off the Lyrica. A pounding migraine headache almost every day for the past 9 days is just too much....now I remember that was one of the reasons I wanted to get off of it. Also...I've never been on a drug that puts weight on sooo quickly! Geez....one thing right after the other! Anyway....I picked up my "new best friend" today....my very own walker with wheels!!! Woo hoo!!! :lvros: I'm ready as I'll ever be for this next "go round". We are trying to keep light of it all....went shopping with my Mom and got 3 VERY brightly colored capri PJ pants for when I'm in the hospital and rehab....they'll see me coming for sure!!! Maybe I should get a flashing light for my walker, too? .....gotta laugh now 'cause I know I'll be a hurt'in surfer next week!
 
Flashing lights on your walker? You're going to make your presence felt, then?
 
Good luck on Wednesday, wanttoride. I hope it all works out for you!
 
My surgeon told me that he and his partners average 550 "redos" a month to correct work done by surgeons who don't know what they are doing..........so I'm not surprised. I would not go back to the first guy unless you want to sue. Finding the right surgeon the first time is the hardest thing to do. Good luck.
 
Hi!
I have been reading your posts and I am so sorry for what you are going through.

It is awful when the Doc basically ignores complaints.

When there is not a good outcome, regardless of the cause, if the Doc doesn't reach out, try to figure out the problem, the patient ususally infers (unfortunately correctly) that he/she doesn't CARE.
A lawsuit usually follows not because of negligence (there may have been none, just a bad outcome), but because of a lack of communication and full disclosure.

I'm happy you are going to at least get this re-operated on. Will you be at Maine Med Ctr?

Get on your way to healing this and get all the notes from the new surgeon, especially the OP Note.

Once you are on your way to better, move on with the case if your lawyer has one.

BTW, I am NOT a Lawyer. It is basic Risk Management.
Good Luck,
Sandy
 
Hi Everyone! Well ... I'm back from my surgery and about 5 days in rehab. OMG ..... I don't even know where to start. I'll try to condense this and then try for more detail later.

As you all know, my new surgeon took a CT scan of my entire leg from hip to ankle in June and found that the femoral piece was set crooked, which caused my foot to turn outward and my hip to rotate inward. He knew there could possibly be more going on inside the knee, but wouldn't find out till he "opened it up" again.

Well....let's just say that the first surgeon pretty much BUTCHERED my knee. Not only was the femoral component on "wrong" but so was the tibial component. The first surgeon took waaaay too much bone off when fitting the pieces, which left NOTHING to work with on this surgery. The entire knee was unstable, and the pieces (remember ... I did not have a cemented TKR) never adhered to the bone. Basically ... they were pretty much floating in there. He said the pieces pretty much "fell out in his hands".

As you all know, I was never able to straighten my knee (got to 8 degrees but that was it) and the first surgeon had me doing all sorts of stuff and told me that I needed to work harder. Well ... no amount of PT or working on it would have gotten it straight. When I had my MUA he probably did more damage when he forced it straight.

Remember all the worry about having the nerve blocks? well .... had I had them, it would have masked the problem with the TKR he did. It's a good thing I listened to my inner self and held off and asked all those questions!

We will never know this for sure, but it's a good probability that I got the RSD after the surgery due to the massive amount of pain (which was caused by the surgery being done wrong) and forcing the PT with excessive amounts of pain killers.

Yup .... you can bet I'm really, REALLY ticked off and yes ... this WILL be pursued. So many people came up to me after this second surgery and said they've never seen such a mess .... and how LUCKY I was to find a surgeon that would listen and do more testing, rather than just pass me off to a pain specialist. I now have a rod going from the implant down into my tibia (about 6-7 inches long) in order to stabilize my knee, and another rod going into the fibula that is about 4 inches long.

There will never be another surgery on my knee, as there is nothing left to work with. My new surgeon told me that he could not make the knee as tight as he would like it to be, because the tighter the knee, the sooner it will wear out. So .... it's a bit unstable on the outside, but I will be able to wear a brace to help that out.

We don't know what the end result will be as PT is going to have to be slow but progressive due to the RSD, AND to re-train my body and mind to walk heel-toe and swing my hip correctly.

I'm using arm crutches now and can walk a short distance with them with some pain, but manageable. I have a Fentanol pain patch for the next 2 weeks, along with Tramadol for pain. I can use Oxycodone for break-thru pain also. Remember how much pain meds I was on last year at this time? Holy cow!!!! This is sooo much better .... and .... my foot is straight and the back pain is starting to go away! Yay! It's still going to be yet another long road for "recovery", but I know what to do.
I'll be seeing my surgeon in 3 weeks and he's going to go over in detail what he found and what he did and how we are going to proceed with this.

I had soooo much detail thrown at me, and I got VERY depressed for a couple of days because I was soooo ticked!!!! One of the nurses told me that her opinion was the first surgeon basically did my first TKR like an oil change. She told me not to even think that the first surgery was a TKR because it was done sooo badly. She told me that not enough people advocate for themselves and don't listen to that little voice inside your head when it tells you "something just isn't right".

So, my friends ..... there are good surgeons out there and there are ones that aren't. Do your research, and don't just think that because they've done TKR's before that they are the one for you. Find one that is PASSIONATE about their profession and will take the time to answer any and all of your questions. GET A SECOND OPINION also!!!!!

I'll post more detail when I have it, but I think you all get the idea ..... I'm very glad to be home, and I'm gonna have that person answer to what he did to me!!!!!!
 
I'm so glad to hear that things have finally been corrected for you properly. Sounds like your second surgeon is a real keeper. I will hold you in my thoughts and prayers for a speedy and comfortable recovery. You have put up with way too much already. Take care and God Bless.
 
I'm glad your 2nd time around went okay, but am sorry to hear about the damage that was caused in your knee.
I noticed you are from Maine- I am too and have also been struggling with some problems caused by my right tkr that I had in June. I had the same surgeon for both knees and my left went well and I had a great recovery. My right has had problems since the beginning. My surgeon doesn't really want to admit that he might have done something wrong and instead told me that he has done total knees for 26 years and has never had to go back in to correct one (in other words, there is nothing wrong with you, so just buck up and deal...)
I've tried to get a 2nd opinion but my appointment is a long ways off since getting into an orthopedic surgeon in northern Maine is pretty much impossible. I also don't know of any surgeons or their reputations in the Portland area, so I don't know if I dare go that way. It's been frustrating to say the least.
I hope your recovery goes well.
 
Hi Wanttoride
As a fellow horse person, I wish you all the best, and hope that this new surgery will have you back riding
As you might recall, I had Bi laterals last Nov30. Right knee can still really hurt at times, and I sure hope my 0ne year check up does not reveal I need any more surgical intervention.
Still can't jog on foot for halter classes, but I did show all year, for which I am very thankful.
Riding actually is much better pain wise than before surgery. In fact, when just trail riding, I am pain free.
If I need to put a lot of leg on a horse, to keep them in frame, as in western pleasure, then I do have some pain, but even that is getting better
I hope you also will get there. keep us posted!
 
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