Quote:
Originally Posted by treefrog
Can I ask if you got bone density tests done before you had surgery, or since then even?
Also, what was your reasoning for asking to have the Charite discs removed and putting in Maverick discs?
I am struggling to figure out how to determine which disc is better. Though from all I have heard, I don't think I would ever want a Charite. I assume that the Charite was the disc to use though, back in 2004.
Again, thank you for sharing your story, and I hope you find some pain relief.
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Hi Treefrog,
First; I have never had a bone density test done; then or now. Remember, I live in an area where medical treatment is at least 20 years behind the rest of the country! In fact, I just got a post card in the mail yesterday from my GP letting me know that my last x-ray's
(View New Films Here) looked good! They even drew a smiley face on the card!!!!!!!!!! The ADR's have subsided to the point that almost half of the plate is in the bone; there is a non-union of the fusion, and it looks to me as if there is a substantial vertical crack in the vertebra that was not there before. Not to mention what ever is going on at L2-L3. But here in the middle of nowhere - everything looks good!
Second; The reasons that I asked (even begged) to have my Charitie's removed and replaced with the Maverick discs are:
1) I DID NOT want a fusion. I did not want the loss of motion and the progressive complications associated with fusions.
2) The surgeon I had seen in TX talked to me a quite a bit about the problems with the Charitie discs; the degeneration of the core, the problems with rotation, etc.
3) I still, then and now, remember the weeks after my original ADR surgery when the pain was gone and I was doing well. At that time I felt strongly that the reason the ADR's had failed was because I returned to work too soon. Now, I think that may have been part of it, but also feel that too small of a size was used lending to the substanence.
4) The Maverick disc is what Stenum was using at the time I was begging for the replacement.
Third; You are correct. In 2004, when I had my ADR surgery the Chartie was the only disc used at Stenum. The Alpha clinic was using the Pro Disc. At that time, a couple of things that led me to favor the Chartie was the reports that if there was ever a need to have the disc removed it was possible with the Chartie but not the Pro Disc, due to the notch made in the vertebra for the Pro Disc. Overall, it looked like - and posts I had read sounded like- the procedure for the Chartie was less invasive and recovery time shorter with the Chartie. Also, the Chartie was very close to FDA approval here in the US at that time. I assumed if future care was needed, here in the states, I would have a better chance of finding a physician that would take my case with an FDA approved device. Pro Disc and Chartie were the only two options in 2004.
Believe it or not, if I had the money and was given the option of having my ADR's and fusion replaced with new ADR's today, I would do it! But, I do not have the money, or even the means to get the money, for a consultation with Dr. Bertagnoli.