Marion Cervical C5/6 C6/7 Sept 08

[marion]

SURGERY DATE: Sept 08

AGE AT SURGERY DATE: 48

SURGEON:Mr Shackleford UK

SURGERY LOCATION/CLINIC: Warrington UK

DEVICE(s), LEVEL(s): 2 level Active C

COST = Nil on National Health
AMOUNT BILLED:N/a
INSURANCE ALLOWED:N\A
OUT OF POCKET: N/A
TRAVEL: 500 miles
EXPLANATIONS? N\A


ONSET OF LUMBAR PROBLEMS, DATE OF INJURY, CAUSE, ETC...: I do have some left buttock and heel pain this is 10 months now. The neck symptoms began over 2 years ago. My lumbar Facet has a cyst which is due to be removed in Feb 09 and is hopefully going to address the pain

PRIOR SPINE SURGERIES AND PROCEDURES (IDET, ESI, etc...): None

PRE-OP MEDICATIONS: Paracetamol Ibrufen Diazepam tramadol

PRE-OP DIAGNOSTICS (discogram, nerve root blocks, etc...): MRI x 2 physical exam x 4

PRE-OP NEUROPATHIES (what, where, & degree of pain, numbness, tingling, sexual/bladder/bowel symptoms, etc.):

I have had Cervical spine sugery due to severe constant pain. During the time I suffered with the neck my lower spine has developed problems which I have not had any treatment for yet so sorry if the story it a bit confusing it is to me too!

I had left arm pain after a fall down a bank onto my left arm Xray showed sprain , but pain was like tennis elbow and continued for 9 months .I then developed left trapezius burning , and continuous , after returning from a holiday in India where I had some very heavy Auyvedic massages and treatments.

The pain worsened (6- 8/10) as the months progressed had MRI which although said it might be the discs said it was unlikely and I should see a Rheumalologist which diagnosed Myofacial pain , with no identifiable trigger pointes.

Pain worsened (mostly 7 /10) became larger in area , and like a major toothache all the time , except when lying down when the pain was nil! Had physio and strapping which helped but became allergic to elastic.

Pain spread to the right side of the neck after heavy massage, was burning and remains, pain moved between both sides and worsened.

Pain developed in right buttock then left came and went. Pain developed more throbbing in left buttock and heel. Saw Pain Clinic Consultant who reviewed my 1st MRI, he said my neck was severely degenerated and the cause of the pain. He said I would never be out of pain now, would haveto have a fusion, and would have arms symptoms soon which would worsen til I couldnt stand it and I would have to see a neurosurgeon.

I was shocked and devastated. He suggested my buttock and heel pain was more degeneration in the lower spine and order full spine MRI

MRI was reported on by 2 trainee Radiologists and said formanial stenosis in the neck, affecting C5/6 C6/7 and severe degeneration loss of lordosis etc. The lumbar discs said to be "normal", facets L5S1 degenerated bilaterally It reported a cyst on the left exit formanen of L5S1

Was referred to a local Spinal surgeon who looked at new MRI and examined me.. He said nonsense! the neck was no more degenerated than anyone else my age, and my motion was very good, hypermobile . He said lumbar discs on lower 2 levels had a very slight loss of disc height and facet satisfactory. here is He said I had a pain syndrome.

I asked for a 2nd Opinion with Mr S. He said my neck was severely degenerated and the cause of my pain, left arm becoming a bit numb and sensitive to touch. He offered to do 2 level ADR to hopefully address the neck pain , which is widespread and constant on the upper back He did not look at the lumbar MRI at this stage as the referral to him was only for the neck.

Symptoms in my arms not too bad but left hand lost its feeling in part and typing was a problem before the op This is resolved now

PRE-OP CONDITION (Please include %leg pain/% back pain, pain levels, type of pain, ability to work and function, disability status, etc.... be direct, but be as verbose as you need to):
I became so distressed about my constant pain I had to stop work I had no meds to touch it I couldnt stop crying it was totally awful every day was horrible. Until I took Tramadol , but this was after I went off sick and I wasnt allowed back then because of te lack of diagnosis.

My journey to find out what was really wrong was hard and long/ Although I could do anything , I didnt want to, I couldnt provoke pain it was there !! It did go away when I lay down and still does but not completely now. Leaning forward for any length of time was the only thing to provoke it in intensity.

My buttocks andd heels joined the problems 10 months ago, they are not constant but are problematic they dont stop me walking its just no fun when you feel you are walking on an electric fence! Also my buttocks, the left is very bad at times but sometimes doesnt hurt sitting is the postion it hurts in mainly the left side its throbbing and severe at times. I am due to have a facet cyst removed to address this

TIME POST-OP AT ORIGINAL POST HERE: 4 months

DESCRIBE YOUR SURGICAL EXPERIENCE: It was smooth and the main problem was I had a haematoma (huge) when I woke , which has stretched my neck skin the scar is really excellent. Mr S was brilliant he came immediately and showed me x-rays of impants perfectly placed for a neck, which is esssentially bad in postion (it is still tipping forward)

The pain when I woke was immense, and I did not get relief from morphine on top amounts. The anesthetist came to tell me I could have whatever I wanted he had rarely seen such a "horrible neck" and they had to do alot of work to get the implants in. He is famous for being really tight with medication! Voltarol was best the pain subsided in 3 days gradually. My throat was very very panful for 2 days, when I swallowed.

RATE FUNCTIONALITY / SATISFACTION AT INTERVALS BELOW:
I had full mobility immediately and still have , although now I can provoke pain on movement doing exercies and I never could beforehand

FUNCTIONALITY:
1. Very poor: much worse... disabled after surgery.
2. Poor: worse after surgery.
3. Neutral: No improvement, or improvements offset by new problems.
4. Fair, some improvement, limitations are still serious.
5. Good, substantial improvement, some limitations. a cross between this and the one above I had return of pain week 2 managed now with drugs and physio. I think I had no choice and was lucky enough to get one of the best surgeons in England. I am glad I had it done and the pain is less than before I dont have limitations its just hard to push through pain and motivate
6. Excellent: no limitations.:;

SATISFACTION:
1. Very sorry I had the surgery.
2. Somewhat sorry I had the surgery.
3. Too soon to tell, or I'm ambivalent about the surgery.
4. I'm somewhat glad I did my surgery.
5. I'm very glad I did my surgery. yes I have no regrets glad I had it

Don't forget the detail update section below!

DATE UPDATED: __jan 08_______ FUNCTIONALITY: good___ SATISFACTION: _good__ [6 WEEKS POST-OP]

DATE UPDATED: good although pain on motion which wasnt ther before_________ FUNCTIONALITY: _good__ SATISFACTION: _good__ [3 MONTHS POST-OP]

DATE UPDATED: _________ FUNCTIONALITY: ___ SATISFACTION: ___ [6 MONTHS POST-OP]

DATE UPDATED: _________ FUNCTIONALITY: ___ SATISFACTION: ___ [1 YEAR POST-OP]

DATE UPDATED: _________ FUNCTIONALITY: ___ SATISFACTION: ___ [2 YEARS POST-OP]

DATE UPDATED: _________ FUNCTIONALITY: ___ SATISFACTION: ___ [3 YEARS POST-OP]

DATE UPDATED: _________ FUNCTIONALITY: ___ SATISFACTION: ___ [4 YEARS POST-OP]

DATE UPDATED: _________ FUNCTIONALITY: ___ SATISFACTION: ___ [5 YEARS POST-OP]

DATE UPDATED: _________ FUNCTIONALITY: ___ SATISFACTION: ___ [6 YEARS POST-OP]

DATE UPDATED: _________ FUNCTIONALITY: ___ SATISFACTION: ___ [7 YEARS POST-OP]

6 WEEKS POST-OP - DESCRIBE LIFESTYLE / PAIN / MEDICATIONS / NEUROPATHIES / ECT... (discuss surgery induced symptoms [leg pain?]):

3 MONTHS POST-OP - DESCRIBE LIFESTYLE / PAIN / MEDICATIONS / NEUROPATHIES / ETC... (discuss surgery induced symptoms [leg pain?]):

6 MONTHS POST-OP - DESCRIBE LIFESTYLE / PAIN / MEDICATIONS / NEUROPATHIES / ETC... (discuss surgery induced symptoms [leg pain?]):

1 YEAR POST-OP - DESCRIBE LIFESTYLE / PAIN / MEDICATIONS / NEUROPATHIES / ETC... (discuss surgery induced symptoms [leg pain?]):

2 YEARS POST-OP - DESCRIBE LIFESTYLE / PAIN / MEDICATIONS / NEUROPATHIES / ETC... (discuss surgery induced symptoms [leg pain?]):

3 YEARS POST-OP - DESCRIBE LIFESTYLE / PAIN / MEDICATIONS / NEUROPATHIES / ETC... (discuss surgery induced symptoms [leg pain?]):

4 YEARS POST-OP - DESCRIBE LIFESTYLE / PAIN / MEDICATIONS / NEUROPATHIES / ETC... (discuss surgery induced symptoms [leg pain?]):

5 YEARS POST-OP - DESCRIBE LIFESTYLE / PAIN / MEDICATIONS / NEUROPATHIES / ETC... (discuss surgery induced symptoms [leg pain?]):

6 YEARS POST-OP - DESCRIBE LIFESTYLE / PAIN / MEDICATIONS / NEUROPATHIES / ETC... (discuss surgery induced symptoms [leg pain?]):

7 YEARS POST-OP - DESCRIBE LIFESTYLE / PAIN / MEDICATIONS / NEUROPATHIES / ETC... (discuss surgery induced symptoms [leg pain?]):

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Last edited by mmglobal; 05-17-2008 at 09:15 PM.

[mmglobal]

Marion, thanks for posting.

I'm unsure about your result... you mention functionality and satisfaction. You talked about bad post-op pain... did it go away? how long?

I'm sorry this format is so confusing...

Mark

[marion]

Hi Mark,

the post op pain only lasted a couple of weeks and decreased from awful to ok during that time


Now my pain is under half of what it was in my shoulders and neck, however it remains pretty constant , apart from when I lie down and then its fine , and I sleep really well.

I had also developed buttock and heel pain about a year or so after the neck pain started which led professioals to make assumptions about me, and also I was told I had Fybromyalgia and myofocial pain syndrome ,which is not true. My buttock and heel pain is hopefully caused by a facet cyst on the L5 S1 nerve root exit, this is being aspirated in a month or so, I am waiting for the date. I am in the UK on the NHS so have to wait like everyone else.

I hope you feel that my feed back is constructive. Its hard as a newcomer to fill out the template, and for me , some isnt relevent, and to read other peoples would be a bit of a trudge in my opinion. I expect that initially it was a good toollbut its a bit impersonal for me.

Maybe a signature summarising the member's experience, and condition would aid people replying and giving support and advice?

Marion

[SandyW]

Go to User CP and scroll down to edit signature. You can summarize there.

[marion]

Thanks Sandy did it! Marion

[marion]

Hi all, I havent posted for a while my brother died suddenly at 52 and its been very tough. I wanted to just update and see if anyone has any advice on where I should go next. I am still in constant pain post cervical ADR on 2 levels. My surgeon said there was no nerve compression it was the discs that were hurting me. I aid I was still in pain at 3 months and he said it was chronic pain! He was disappointed I was in pain and on Pregablin , but I am and need help. Recently I have increased the dose to 450mg and developed burning hands, I suspected the drug , so redcued it to 100mg a day, when I reduced it these symptoms went away but the pain was awful , as bad if not worse that pre surgery in the neck and shoulders, and the heel pain was very bad so the drug has been masking this.

I returned back on it because I would rather have burning hands. Last night I woke with awful pain like scalding in my arms and hands and I was dreaming cats were attacking my hands (not nice!!! but mad dreams on this drug , and I was in pain) It eased when I got up and about, but I am at a loss as to where to go now. I am supposed to be having a facet cyst rmoved soon from my L5/S1 nerve exit in the hope this will help with the buttock and heel pain but I am begining to wonder if I have something else other than mechanical problems. I read alot but dont find anyone quite like me symptoms wise ,any bells ringing for anyone?? thanks Marion

[dshobbies]

Marion,

Another UK spiney was also told her pain was the source of her pain, chronic pain syndrome. Glad to say she is almost pain free 3 yrs post op.

Tramodol did not work for me and perhaps it doesn't for you either. It's one of those drugs that either do or don't. I'm not familiar with Pregablin? You might want to try Neurontin or Lyrica for your nerve pain. Makes you feel stupid but functional. Also, there are some pretty effective drugs available for your pain. Have your tried contacting a pain managment doctor? That's where I would go next.

I do hope your cyst surgery is successful and at least you get some relief. And don't be too discouraged about being in so much pain post op. I've seen turn arounds at both 1&2 years. For me, my recovery took 2 years. However, don't let this stop you from investigating the source of your pain.

I'm also very sorry you recently lost your brother. I understand your devastation, especially because he was so young. The grief you feel when losing someone close is difficult to deal with, especially when you're especially when dealing with your level of pain.

You are in my thoughts, Dale

[marion]

Thanks Dale,

your reply is much appreciated. The Pregablin is Lyrica , thats what it is called in the UK. I used tramadol (or Ultram) before the operaion and at first it took the pain away totally (for exactly 9 days) and then in crept back but I still used it hoping it was doing something and I think it was to a degree thats why I am using it now, As I decrease the Lyrica so the burning goes down my hands , its very odd, and I need the Lyrica for the pain!

I think I am down and feeling s hopeless because of my brother and thinking the cyst removal wont work when I havent even had it done yet! Also as you say there are amazing recoveries after 1-2 years and I am oly 5 months best wishe to you too

Marion

[Terry Allen Blackburn]

MAZ:

Remember it took me all of twenty months to really start feeling top shelf. You had a major surgery and your body needs time to settle out. I really liked being on the Lyrica as it was so effective in getting rid of, or severely lessening, that nerve pain.

I am so sorry about your brother. I just turned 52 myself so, I think that is so young now days.

I hope and pray for a turnaround for you. Hang in there and become a patient patient.

Terry Newton

[marion]

thanks Terry so good to hear from you I will be patient and try not to lose hope. keep you posted Maz