2nd appointment for injections for spinal stenosis
Posted , 4 users are following.
Hi,
Going into hospital this week for a second round of spinal injections. Last time it worked really well and I was something like 80-90% down on pain levels for about 9-10 months. I was advised that they now only use a local anaesthetic but they told me that last time and I still went out like a light :-).
I'm hoping this time round it will work as well as last time but I wonder if I should push for the full operation to clear the blockage / narrowing of the spinal canal that's causing the problem?
I'd appreciate hearing from anyone who has had the full operation and, obviously, their outcome.
I suspect that my pain levels are probably not considered high enough for the operation but, even with self-assessed pain measuring 5-7 /10 and a gait like Stumpy in Rio Bravo, it's still causing mobility problems in everyday life. I would have thought that catching it early, i.e. before pain levels reach 10/10, would be a better use of the NHS's funds? Also less risk of nerves being permanently damaged?
I'm also suffering from mild arthritis in most joints and a specialist who reviewed my MRI results said I'd probably need my hips "doing" at some point :-( . He also said that they might do the spinal operation AND hip replacement at the same time!!
Cheers,
Stuart
PS, I made this mistake of watching hip replacement surgery on YouTube.......
1 like, 23 replies
stuart1953
Posted
Had my procedure at Colchester General Hospital today. Everything went well and I give the much-maligned NHS 10/10. Couldn't have wished for better experience.
In at 13:00, ready to go home at 15:10 after coffee and biscuits! Luckily I was first on the specialist's afternoon list :-). Felt sorry for one guy who was extremely nervous and was still waiting for his turn when I left though.
This was my first time under a local anaesthetic and, if I'm honest, the local anaesthetic injections themselves did make me wince a few times but the rest of the procedure was pretty much painless. I'd liked to have been able to watch the screens but, as you have to lay on your front, that wasn't possibe.
If it's anything like last time it will be a couple of weeks before we really notice any improvements. I say "we" because it was my wife and kids who noticed a huge improvement in my posture before I did.
Anyway, fingers crossed and taking things easy for a few days...
Stuart
frustrated61 stuart1953
Posted
How long would you say your injections last?
stuart1953 frustrated61
Posted
Difficult to say really. Last time started badly with a couple of weeks of increased pain and then things improved very quickly with most of the pain going and, an unexpected bonus, a marked improvement in posture which physiotharapists had been trying (and failing) to correct.
It was probably 8-9 months before I noticed that the pain was returning gradually and by the time I had the recent shots, 14 months after the first round, the pain was back to the original levels, possibly worse.
So a gradual change really, which makes it impossible to give you a definitive answer. The one thing I do know is that everyone responds differently to this particular procedure so YMMV (your mileage might vary!) as they say (allegedly) over the pond.
This time round the back pain went pretty much immediately but the arthritic pain in my hips and shoulders is still there :-(
Stuart
stuart1953
Posted
frustrated61 stuart1953
Posted
Have you ever tried taking DE Food Grade? It's a natural way of cleansing the body and this DE does help with arthritis. Read up on Food Grade Diatomaceous Earth as I've read up on it and when I was taking it, it did help with the arthritis I have. I will go back on it as soon as I find out what course my doctor is going to take as far as medication for sarcoidosis....most likely, methotrexate.
I spoke with the distributor of DE and he told me that people with arthritis takes a bit more than others (most start out with 1tsp for a week then up it to 2 tsp and with severe arthritis the distributor said they take up to 3tbls.) but since it's a good thing for your body, why not try?
DE is finely crushed ancient sea shells. Anyway, the best way to find out about it is to read up on it and check out people's comments. You can order it through Amazon.
cheshireguy stuart1953
Posted
the amtripyline is fine with me, was slightly sleepy in the day at first, but fine now, and i can sleep at night without undue leg aches- which was the problem.
A cousin's daughter has spinal probs and takes it. i asked her about having a glass of wine !!! as it says avoid alcohol........... but she says yep on glass does no harm !! and i find i am ok too
A
stuart1953 cheshireguy
Posted
cheshireguy stuart1953
Posted
I just have a glass of wine at the weekend...... as usually have a friend over for dinner most saturdays!! yep a glass tonight and i am fine........
with a small glass of sherry first too!!!
not looking forward to mt c5 c6 fusion but the neuro guy deems this priority over the spinal stenosis - goly - no idea when he will tackle that bit
kind regards
A