[dbalkema]

Good morning everyone! This is my very first post on this forum, but I wanted to post a thread about the surgery I had this past week and post a progress report.

About a month ago, I was very fortunate to have been enrolled into the new Clinical Trial at Texas Back Institute in Plano, TX. There were a lot of rollercoaster rides getting to that point, but it seems to have been very well worth the wait. The Trial I was enrolled into compared the Pro-disc L to the NEW 2nd Generation Freedom Lumbar disc by Axiomed. I was told that I would have a 50 - 50 chance on getting the Freedom Lumbar disc.

I had been waiting since September of this past year for information about this trial. From TBI pushing back a little, to Axiomed, the disc manufacturer, pushing back the wait was long. I was originally Dr. Barton Sachs's patient, but he left TBI about 2 weeks ago for a new job. Then I was moved over to Dr. Richard Guyer's Patient and he was the one who actually performed the surgery. So there was a little drama before getting to the point of surgery.

I had the surgery at 1:00 PM this past Wednesday, and according to Dr. Guyer, I was his 6th person to have received the Axiomed Disc in the country. I didn't find out what disc I was gettng until they were wheeling me into the surgical room. I received the NEW Freedom Lumbar disc!

It was an overnight stay in the hospital and, OH MY GOSH, the ONLY pain I am experiencing is the surgical pain. Before the disc replacement, I had major pain in my lower right lumbar back area and would be pushing pain around my right hip and sending burning sensations on my right thigh and shin.

I am now home in my own bed and I feel GREAT! Like I said earlier in the post, the only pain I am experiencing is surgical pain. The incision is about 3 inches right under my belly button. I have been getting up pretty well, of course with a brace on.

I will be posting updates on my progress with this disc and often as I have them. I did want to say though that TBI is still recruiting and the TBI staff is wonderful! Cheryl is the research coordinator in charge of the Axiomed trial, so she would be the one to talk to first if you are not a patient of TBI.

If you have any questions, please feel free to shoot me a message and I will be happy to answer any questions!

Thank You,
Dan