Hi Michael (& others...),
So you've been diagnosed with chronic osteomyelitis. Do you know why the docs determined your condition was chronic? I was diagnosed with acute vertebral osteomyelitis. From the reading I've done, the history and pathology of chronic and acute states of OM is different and consequently the treatment regiment is different. Typically, chronic is treated surgically (debridement) first and acute is treated with antibiotics. The reason for this is they're eliminating dead bone under the chronic condition and fighting extreme inflammation with the acute condition. Interesting that your ID and NS docs had different treatment recommendations.
From what you wrote it sounded like they did find an infectious agent, but you also said that it was unusual (?). Did you have an abcess? What did your scans show? Curious too that you've had longstanding knee pain, but are presenting with an infection in your tibia. Is there a connection? As to a connection between your leg and back pain, I'll leave that to the docs. My back pain, however, was not mild -- it was excruciating and immobilizing. That was what my NS first noted, he thought I was in way too much pain for what the radiologist thought was a herniation on a non-contrast MRI. Regardless, I wholeheartedly wish you well and hope you find relief.
A status update for me: I completed 6 weeks of IV antibiotics on 27 October. At the close of the antibiotic treatment my blood work was in the normal range (ESR, C-reactive protein). I'm still in pain, but it's no longer so severe that it brings me to tears. I'm in PT yet. That, and the exercise/stretching I do at home has greatly increased my strength and mobility. I've graduated from a walker to a cane, and don't even need that for very short jaunts. I also started back to work last week at 4 hours/day. Last week went well; I get up from my desk frequently and walk about. This morning I had PT in the pool and only lasted 1 hour at work -- I came home to lie down. I am also experiencing more pain in the thoracic spine now. I lost the disc at L2-3 to the staph, as well as the endplates and part of the surrounding vertebrae. The vertebra are fusing, creating one oversized mass. Don't know if that's why I'm having pain up my back now, the vertebra are offset laterally as they fuse. My NS did tell me that I would continue to have pain for another 3-6 months as my spine healed, but the thoracic pain is new.
So, I'm not ready to go hiking or cross-country skiing yet, but I am making
good progress. My NS has only had two other OM patients, both of whom apparently had a full recovery. My PT, on the other hand, told me that I didn't want to know when I asked her about other vertebral OM patients and said I was very fortunate to be diagnosed so quickly. I think about that daily. I'm not paralyzed, I don't have a colostemy bag, I am alive, so, I can deal with some pain, as long as the staph is gone... I'll have another x-ray and blood work in about a months time.
Thanks for the support.
Cheers, Debra
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