Jarrod's surgical outcome in Barcelona!!

[Jarrod]

Hello everyone,

Sorry for the delay, but I'm home and ready to tell my story. Me and my sister arrived in Barcelona on Dec. 5th and checked out the city for a few days before my schedule date for surgery. On Dec. 7th we saw Dr. Clavel and went over the procedure and he answered all of our questions and was very professional and reassuring about the 3 levels that he was going to replace, c56,c67,c7/t1. After we did somemore sightseeing and got a feel for the city.

On Dec.9th, we arrived at the Quiron Hospital at 730 am and were sent down to get x rays and blood work done, which took about 2 hours and then up to admissions for an assigned room. Once we arrived in the room we checked it out and it was awsome, big and private and clean. After we got situated a nurse came in and took my medical history and vitals and said that someone would ve up shortly to take me down to the OR. Within 20 min I was on my way down and met the anastelogist who asked my weight and allergies and then had a nurse run the IV. Afterwards DR. Clavel came over and asked how I felt and I said nervous but ready, he said well let's go get this done, don't worry, within five min I was out and knew nothing until recovery.
Once I came to I was asked if I had any pain and to my surprise I did not, I was quite comfortable and warm with a soft collar on. Within the next hour or so I was back up to my room.the Dr. Had already been up to reassure my sister that everything had gone beautifully and that c/7/ t1 was hard to get to but they got it and it was perfect, he expected a good recovery. He said my muscular neck and trapezious muscles were hard to get by and that surgery took about 4 hours. Once back in my room the nurses came by about once every couple of hours to check to see if I had pain and check my fluids, I really had no pain so meds were not needed. After about 8 hours the DR. Came in and asked how I was doing and I said ok, but I lost my voice and my throat was so sore to swallow, but other than that I was good. He wants to sit me up and walk me over to the chair so I could eat and man I had to pee too. So I got to the chair carefully and went to the bathroom and then finally got a meal. Man I had to chew, chew, chew cause it was so hared to swallow food or liquids, and I coughed everytime I did either. This worried mencause I didn't want to move the discs, but the doc said they were in pretty good and not to worry. So afterwards I fell asleep on off for the rest of the night.
The next day I was up walking by my self and by mid day the PT had come in and took the soft collar off and did some flexion and extension exercises with me and I had no pain, a little stiff but not enough for meds, so then the collar went back on and the PT said I was gonna do fine because of my thick neck muscles. So I watched tv and with my sister the whole day and by sat day I was up in the shower and needed no soft collar. Dr. Clavel came in and removed the drain and had x rays taken and said that the placement was perfect and he expects a full recovery, I was discharged and told to come see him the following Thursday for a followup. So me and my sister did some sightseeing all week, we probably walked forty miles, Barcelona is beautiful.on the following Thursday we saw the doc and he removed the banddage and stitches and said I would be fine gave me all of my records and said if I had any questions to email him and he would get back to me asap.
So I'm 11 days post op and here's what's going on, my neck feels perfect, although I do have some weird sensations like before surgery with flexion of the neck and I have some residual numbness in my hand and ring and pinky fingers. So I'm thinking thy maybe when he cleaned out the c7/t1 disc that maybe the nerve root got irritated and it may take some time to calm down, and I also heard that I may be stuck with the numbness forever depending on the extent of the damage. But he said that the c7/t1 disc had reabsorbed somewhat, so I'm not sure and it's so soon after surgery that I'm just gonna wait at least a month to see what happens, then I'll email him, he's very cool and undestanding by the way, I loved his bedside manner. So well see.
So there you have it, I just wanted to say thank you to mark and the forum members for all the info and stories you all share for others to make an informed decision. Without you all I would not have known what to do or how to go about it, so thank you all so very much. My contribution will be to report my progress every month so that others can continue to get informed honest information on their options and to let them know they are not alone. If anyone has any specific questions please post them or pm me, also my email adress Is jalexander@gmx.com, you can feel free to email me questions also. Again thank you all so much.

God Bless, Jarrod

[Maria]

Jarrod,
wow that was a very good update! Well actually it sounds like you had an awesome surgery and recovery in the hands of a wonderfully skilled spine surgeon in one of the most beautiful and interesting cities in the world!

Walking 40miles in one week.. hmmm I wonder when the last time I've done that?! Guess if you didn't hurt after being that active then you're not going to hurt at all! A bit of numbness surely sounds like a good tradeoff even if it doesn't resolve tho I think your plan sounds very prudent waiting to see if there's any irritation around the nerve that will ease off w/time.

Look forward to your updates and if you get real busy with life that's ok too~ just let us know how you're doing from time to time whenever you're able!

take very good care and enjoy the holidays!

[dshobbies]

Jarrod,

What a fantastic recovery you're having. Good luck - keep it up but a word of warning. Please take it slow and don't rush it. I know you feel great but you still have a major surgery on your spine. Let it heal slowly.

And those little aches and pains from your nerves - will most likely subside over time, especially is you had them pre-surgery. Even if you're left with some residual numbness - it's better than pain.

Keep us posted and congrats, Dale

[mmglobal]

Jarrod... thanks so much for the updates. We look forward to your continued progress.

Isn't Barcelona great? I hope to meet Dr. Clavel some day... I'm sorry I didn't know about him when I was there earlier this year.

Did you get one of those bamboo whistles?

Mark

[Jarrod]

Mark,

Barcelona is amazing, so big and beautiful, you could stay a month and not see all it has to offer. By the way you were right c7/t1 was a hard one to get to, doc said once he got to it that the placement for the ADR went beautifully! Also emailed Dr. Clavel about some symptoms I was having 2 days ago, same type as pre surgery and he said that the nerves were irritated from the Forman being decompressed at c7/t1 and that usually takes 3 + months to calm down. He returned my email within 2 hours, I liked that alot. So thanks for the info.

Jarrod

[Jarrod]

Hello everyone,


Its been a while since i updated my post and recovery from my 3 level cervical ADR surgery in Barcelona, Spain with Dr. Clavel. I have had a roller coaster ride for recovery but things seem to be looking up.

To start Dr. Clavel is amazing and a very good surgeon with outstanding bedside manner. Also he has no problem responding to emails in a timely manner. As it stands now I have had spinal epidurals at levels c5/6, and c7/t1 with no improvement and also had an ulnar transposition surgery to move my ulnar nerve from behind the elbow. My hand dexterity is almost back to normal but yet my last three fingers still have numbness in varying degrees. This damn shoulder blade/ trap pain is still there but less intense as before. I noticed that it did not seem to matter what activities I did it would just come and go at will nothing really sets it off. I am back weight training but at a lesser degree than before. I do this because I dont hurt any more than just sitting around so why not be active.

My back ache pain has taken me to Dr. Robert Thompson (Thoracic Outlet Syndrome Specialist) to see if maybe my pain is due to my bracial plexus being impinged. He thinks that I have TOS and would like to operate when I am ready. Just not sure if I can do another surgery yet. Also I am going to St. Petersburg Fl. in August to get an MRI neurography scan of the nerves that make up the plexus to see where the impingement is before I commit to surgery.

Overall I am doing ok but life is different and i try not to get discouraged and keep trudging along until I find my pain culprit. I also must mention that I had a myleo ct done and everything looked ok, a little foraminal narrowing at c5/6 and c6/7 but nothing for alarm. C7/t1 looks great. I still feel very blessed to come out of a major surgery and live a somewhat normal life, but will never give up trying to get pain free.

Sorry for the delay in posting, but I had to get through the negative part of recovery before I could give any real advice. The United States is so far behind in terms of real patient care and the insurance and political bs is really holding up progress in our Great country. I have the spinal kinetics m6c which is made in CAliforina but not fda approved. It is the most widely implanted disc in Europe as we speak. Anyway i wish everyone I great and quick recovery. God Bless.

Sincerly, Jarrod

[Maria]

Thanks Jarrod for the update and glad to hear that you're doing better. It is sad to read that one has to go out of the country for cutting edge technology to be obtained. I agree re the insurance/politics type of stuff that goes on in US and it's just disgusting really.

Back to you~ hope you continue to heal and do well. If more surgery is in your future I only hope if and when you undertake it relief and success will be yours.

take care~ Maria

[jsewell]

Jarrod,
I'm glad you got over the bad or hard part of recovery. I agree i would and don't ever stop until i have found all pain generators. I don't know much about TOS but will look it up to be more informed . Keep us posted on your progress.
judy

[mmglobal]

Jarrod, I have a client you should talk to. She has been through the mill diagnosing problems that may be cervical, TOS or others. She had some procedures aimed at TOS that were unsuccessful. Contact me off the forum and I'll put you in touch with her.

TOS is one of those specialties in which the doctors who embrace and treat the diagnosis may have a tendancy to overdiagnose what they are looking for. Be careful.

For most of us, pain free is not a possiblity... once we get a significant distance down the road of spine procedures and surgeries; putting us back together in a pain free state is for a lucky, small percentage of us. That does not mean to stop trying... just beware. You don't do surgery to go from a pain level of 2 or 3 to zero. A pain level of 2, 3 or 4 would be considered success AFTER surgery.

All the best,

Mark

[Jarrod]

Mark,
Thanks for the imput on TOS. I am planning on getting a neurography scan to confirm the diagnosis. I want to make sure that they can see the nerve entrapment before I go any further. I am hoping for the scan in August. They actually have a neurography scan center that just opened in St. Petersburg Fl. so at least I can stay in state for it. Tos is very tricky and before nueurograhy there was no clear diagnosis for it. Im hoping to get to the bottom of my pain generator sometime soon, but am being very cautious about surgery. My St. louis surgeon was quick to want to preform surgery, but I wanted a more comprehensive diagnosis which is why mri neurography is in my future. As far as my ADR surgery I feel very confident that it was a success and feel very blessed to have found Dr. Clavel. who was and still is involved in my recovery. I email him and he responds within the day. My recovery has been up and down and the past 4 months has been so much better than the previous 6 month period that was just unbearable at times. I even considered taking out the discs for fusion, but Dr. Clavel said to wait and that it would get better slowly, so I did and it has gotten so much better. I had 3 levels which is very big surgery, and I think I was expecting to just get it done and be back to normal in 6 months.

For all of you out there who have had ADR surgery or thinking about having it done,,,,(It will take you all the way up to 2 years to get back to yourself and feel like it was the right thing to do.) I was in great shape (280 pound bodybuilder) before my herniation and surgery and it has taken me 19 months to get to where I feel somewhat normal and not in pain for half the day. So please take it from me Mr. Impatient that it takes time and to expect ups and downs throughout your recovery period. Please use the forum for suppport and to vent as i did, the people are great and they truely understand what you may be going through. Keep your head up and stay motivated to get through the rough phase of recovery, it will get better, I was so depressed and worn out, physically and mentally, but now i am 80% improved and feel my life comming back.

May everyone improve and have a quality of life after spinal surgery, GOD Bless!!

Sincerly, Jarrod

[DixSea]

Jarrod,

Thank you for sharing your story... I am in the decision making process & so frustrated, so confused that I really do not know what to do. I have heard that insurance might pay for surgery in Germany, but Dr. Clavel was my first choice. I understand that Dr. Clavel will travel to Stenum Hosp. and do surgery with Dr. Ritter Lang. My doctor here initially suggested ADR, then he changed and said fusion, then last week he said 2 level ADR but he immediately informed me that insurance would not pay for a 2 level ADR. My head is spinning - well, no its not that would cause way too much pain.
Reading testimonials such as yours does ease the fear of traveling across the big pond, but its still a very scary proposition. Any suggestions?
Any advice?
I'm open...
Thank you.

Originally Posted by Jarrod

Mark,
Thanks for the imput on TOS. I am planning on getting a neurography scan to confirm the diagnosis. I want to make sure that they can see the nerve entrapment before I go any further. I am hoping for the scan in August. They actually have a neurography scan center that just opened in St. Petersburg Fl. so at least I can stay in state for it. Tos is very tricky and before nueurograhy there was no clear diagnosis for it. Im hoping to get to the bottom of my pain generator sometime soon, but am being very cautious about surgery. My St. louis surgeon was quick to want to preform surgery, but I wanted a more comprehensive diagnosis which is why mri neurography is in my future. As far as my ADR surgery I feel very confident that it was a success and feel very blessed to have found Dr. Clavel. who was and still is involved in my recovery. I email him and he responds within the day. My recovery has been up and down and the past 4 months has been so much better than the previous 6 month period that was just unbearable at times. I even considered taking out the discs for fusion, but Dr. Clavel said to wait and that it would get better slowly, so I did and it has gotten so much better. I had 3 levels which is very big surgery, and I think I was expecting to just get it done and be back to normal in 6 months.

For all of you out there who have had ADR surgery or thinking about having it done,,,,(It will take you all the way up to 2 years to get back to yourself and feel like it was the right thing to do.) I was in great shape (280 pound bodybuilder) before my herniation and surgery and it has taken me 19 months to get to where I feel somewhat normal and not in pain for half the day. So please take it from me Mr. Impatient that it takes time and to expect ups and downs throughout your recovery period. Please use the forum for suppport and to vent as i did, the people are great and they truely understand what you may be going through. Keep your head up and stay motivated to get through the rough phase of recovery, it will get better, I was so depressed and worn out, physically and mentally, but now i am 80% improved and feel my life comming back.

May everyone improve and have a quality of life after spinal surgery, GOD Bless!!

Sincerly, Jarrod

[Jarrod]

Dix,

Some advice for you! Dr. Clavel is a great surgeon with wonderful bedside manner Also he replied to my emails for as long as I sent them to him up to a year later. My surgery went as smoothly as possible for a 3 level ADR, 8 hours after surgery I was up and sitting in a chair eating some soup, and 2 days after I was taking a shower by myself. I needed no oral pain meds execpt for 800 mg Ibuprofen, and that was needed rarely.

The nursing staff and hospital Qurion were top notch and I had a private room with a great view. My sister and I were out of the hospitial in 3 days and touring barcelona at about 5-8 miles per day (walking). The plane ride home 10 hours was a breeze and I am very pleased with my m6 c discs.

It was about 6 months after surgery that I had my worst symptoms that had me going crazy and wondering if the discs had migrated or were malfunctioining, but im at about 18 months post surgery and feeling very good, back to bodybuilding and doing things like I use to. I cannot thank Dr. Pablo Clavel enough for giving me back my life and letting me enjoy things the way I use too. Be aware though that it takes time for your body (spine) to adjust to the discs and the trauma that it has been through. I hit the turning at about 1 year and believe me I was very worried that I was a failure surgery...so be prepared to go through ups and downs during recovery. I have heard good and bad stories on Dr. Ritter Lang so for me it would have to be Dr. Clavel and demand that he and only he operates on you no interns. It was the best 40,000 $ investment I ever made and suggest you go ADR vs FUSION for the adjacent protection it seems to offer. Dont be scared of going to Spain, Barcelona is gorgeous and the people and hospital staff are amazing. I hope this helps as I was nervous before my decision, but I guarantee you will not be dissapointed if you choose the m6 disc and DR. Clavel, he is amazing!!! Feel free to contact me at jalexander@gmx.com as I would like to help other spine patients with this difficult decision. GOD BLESS!

Sincerly, Jarrod

[mmglobal]

Jarrod, great news!!!!! I'm so happy to hear that you are getting back to your life. Your story is especially important to those who suffer setbacks (as you did at 6 months), but should not lose hope.

Thanks for posting... you made my day!

Mark