Revision L5-S1 Surgery - Removal of ADR ---- SUCCESSFUL!!!!!!!

[Blairsara]

Hey everyone
It's been a while hasnt it. Well, I have great news. I went to the doctor this week and found out that I am completely fused!!!! He said the xrays looked great!!! It's such a relief especially after having a failed surgery. Now I just have to work on getting off the medication. I decided to go the detox route. I've been on some sort of pain medication for at least 6 years, with a few breaks. But i think it's the safest decision. The plan is to start the program with my pain management doctor mid-November.

I've been weaning off my medication since October. Now I'm down to 120 mg from 180. And let me tell you, one week feels like a month. But I want to know the pain that I actually am in and considering I can't be evaluated while on Morphine... well that means time to get off and then see where to go from there.

Dr. Regan said that I'm always going to have pain. I knew this going in to my second surgery. I think if I heard that a few years ago I would have been really upset. But now, I feel like I've come to terms with that. It's absolutely amazing how one small moment in time can change the rest of your life forever. But I finally feel like I'm getting my life back after all of these years. In physical therapy I did an exercise that I havent done since before my first surgery!!!

It's been such a long road, and that hope that I have been holding onto for all of these years is finally here. More and more people are having facet problems from their ADR. It sucks. But for those who have this same problem, if there is anything that I can do I'm here. I can finally say I had a successful back surgery!!! FINALLY!!!!!!

Blair

[dshobbies]

Blair,

I'm so happy to hear that your surgery was successful. Good for you. As for your pain and detox, all you can do is one day at a time. I'm hoping you find you can tolerate the pain without any meds at all, save for a time or two. That would be the best news on top of good news.

It actually sounds like you post is smiling . How's everything else?

All my best, Dale

[johnb]

Great Blair. It is good to see you in good spirits.

John

[Maria]

Hey Blair! Been thinking about you and glad to see that you're doing so well! Wishing you the best with the detox, I've thought about that myself but am afraid I'd be in an OR Stat w/pain so am still holding off on surgery. Imagine that, we were scheduled for surgery at the same time and you did it!!! Congrats!!!!!

[Jim M2]

Blair,
OMG

OMG!!!

I'm sooo glad for you! That is so awesome! You blazed a new trail!! You're the only patient I know first hand who has done this. I consider ADR removal the only surgical option for facet issues. Fusing in-place is only 50% success according to Zeegers at the 2005 seminar in Fountain Valley.

Take care
Jim

[wilsonrob]

Blair,

Who did the revision? Does anyone know if it can be done with the Maverick disc?

Thanks

[Blairsara]

Hey there
thanks for all the awesome comments! I liked the big red OMG Wilson, Dr. Regan did my revision. He also did my initial adr surgery. Maria - I thought you had your surgery?? What happened? I vaguely remember reading one of your posts a while back that you postponed your surgery.. but that's about all I remember.

[sharman]

Blair, I'm so grateful to you for sharing your difficult experiences. I hope you don't mind me asking a lot of questions.

I know you said that your facets started to go a few months after the ADR surgery, both at the operated level and adjacent, and then also the adjacent disc. How did these problems manifest pain-wise? Did you get any benefit from the ADR? Did you have pain relief immediately after the surgery, then a few months later painful again? Was it a different pain from pre-surgery? Did it get progressively worse, or quickly?

Where are your symptoms now? You said you are better than before the revision. Are you better, worse or same as pre-ADR? Is it the same or different pain? Is it back pain alone, or also leg pain?

What did you do to diagnose the problems brought on by the ADR? What did you try (e.g., RF ablation) before electing to revise?

What is your understanding of where your continuing pain comes from? The same problems as pre-revision, the same problems as pre-ADR, the adjacent-level disc, the adjacent-level facets (I assume the facets at the ADR (now fused) level were removed--true?), who knows?, other?

What do you think has been fixed by the revision surgery? What if anything was fixed by the ADR?

Do you have any diagnostic or treatment plans going forward?

I hope we hear good and better news from you, soon and with each new post.

[mmglobal]

Blair, thanks for posting... I'm so happy that you are doing so much better. How is the detox going? BTW, I have a client who did rapid detox with Dr. Graff, a colleague of Regan's.

I hope to hear more great news... please keep us updated,

Mark

Rob, Maverick explantation story here.