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15 Replies

  • kathy07828
    kathy07828 Enna1

    Posted

    Oh boy does this sound like the the webpage from the Clinic in Florida that I went to. I knew of someone who had a procedure done there which was very successful. I had a much more complicated condition that they were unable to address. This Clinic used arthroscopic laser surgery, which sounded wonderful. My first two surgeries went very well and I was back at work a week after the second. (They only performed surgery on one level at a time.) About 5 weeks later I began having more pain in a different area of my back. I returned and had surgeries on two different areas to address disc issues. Following this I had no relief, returned and the Dr performed more surgery, removing more bone. I wound up having 8 surgeries, 6 in the L4/5 area. These had made my spine even more unstable and I could hardly stand. I went to a neurosurgeon closer to home who recommended a fusion due to the fact that I now had bone on bone because the disc was completely gone, there was no cadaver split evident that had supposedly been placed between L4/5 to keep this from happening just a month earlier, and I now had so much scar tissue from all of these surgeries that my surgery was difficult. It took 6 hours instead of the 3 estimated, and my nerve was damaged because it was so entangled in the scar tissue. I was left with neuropathy in the right foot. I might add that in laser surgery you're given anesthesia, but must remain alert enough to answer the surgeon each time he asks where you feel the pain. I found each to be an hour and a half of extreme pain and anxiety, and I regret spending thousands of dollars for procedures that just made me worse..
    • Enna1
      Enna1 kathy07828

      Posted

      Hi Kathy I don't know whether it is or not but I try to read Adams articles but they are hard to digest. But you have been through the mill dear, I don't quite know how all these mistakes happen as the drs have MRI and x rays to study. In fact my drs in Spain seem to like studying x rays. I know when the first surgeon I had he told me I had spinal stenosis I just sat there shocked. There was no explanation or anything. He did actually experiment on me but didn't know till afterwards - but then surgeons don't seem to advertise their ops let alone their successes. And I could find nothing on the one I have in Spain its like a mysterious journey....

      Normally English people don't have private insurance we were told the heath service would look after us. Of course companies give their employees insurance but my daughter pays for it through her employer. In Spain grandparents pay for their grandchildren insurance including dental. But....I parted with over 10,ooo pounds over 10 years trying to get treatment quick and to be truthful as Adam says in his articles ,pound notes make some drs dizzy thinking what they can do with it....golfing in Portugal, saving the world in India. I am very cynical now.

      Do you think you have what's called dropped foot now? Honestly I truly feel for you does your condition stop you doing what you want to do. I am not sure what neuropathic pain is.

      I know I have just come from a day in Valencia in pain and tired!!

    • kathy07828
      kathy07828 Enna1

      Posted

      Hi Emma! Are you a British citizen in Spain? Did you go there for your surgical care? I don't quite have dropped foot. The nerve affected controls my ankle and most of my foot. Although my ankle is no longer strong, I don't quite have dropped foot where I need a sturdy leg brace. Neuropathy means that you've had nerve damage and have numbness, the feeling of pins and needles at times, lack of proper muscle function and poor circulation in the area . It would appear that I can't do much to improve my condition since my surgeries in 2012 with the fusion in 2013, despite my best efforts so far. It has changed most of what my life used to be, forcing me to leave teaching and go on permanent disability. I'm hopeful as are all on this site seem to be that something will come along to help things improve. I'm blessed that I have a supportive family that help me. All 3 of my kids are still living home ranging in age from 21 - 30! They all have college degrees but can't get jobs here in NJ in their field. Unemployment is a big problem here for many, but I'm not complaining that they're home. My husband was let go after 42 years with his company when it was sold in 2013, so he helps me a lot too. Thank you for your sweet thoughts.
    • Enna1
      Enna1 kathy07828

      Posted

      Hi Kathy, I spent some time writing to you but it seems that it hasn't gone through and I have a message.  So I will write another tome when I come back from shopping later. 
    • Enna1
      Enna1 kathy07828

      Posted

      S orry Kathy, we have been away and then I have been writing it up with our pictures. Strange place. 

      Yes I am a British Citizen but crossing our fingers that we can stay in Spain just a couple more years before my partner draws his pension. I don't know how pensioners can live in England any more. It depends on whether we come out of the EU

      I had pins and needles at the beginning of my problems, it drove me mad I just couldn't get relief but thats years ago so I sympathize with you but the pins and needles was in the buttocks.   Yes I keep thinking, is anyone researching our problem or are these seminars they go to just a jolly for some of them, apparently leicester is the place - so I keep hearing.  I had 2 failed ops too, a bit earlier than you but one I know was experimental, it was called Inspace which is to explain a piece of equipment that goes between each disc and jacks the top one up. Didn't work first off and I did a fair bit of research. Also in the same category was X Stop which I believe was done a lot in the US. However, the research I did involved contacting the reps and I felt quite safe when the rep said he goes into the operation room with the surgeon.  No it wasn't.... Didn't work immediately and to say that I was in agony, I know what agony means I couldn't even climb the stairs. X Stop was "the thing" in England at the same time and I hear that a lot of patients sued their surgeons and they don't do X Stop any more. Did the same thing as Inspace, it impacted on the bottom disc until that slipped. I don't know what happened after that, its heresay I know but think its all true and its a long time ago.  But one of the reps went to live in Valencia and we meet up now and then. He introduced me to two surgeons (2 opinions) and both unknown recommended that they did fusion with rods and screws but they quoted 15,000€ which was OK but then after my MRIs and X Rays in Bendirom the price went up so I decided not to have it done. 

      You are having some bad luck too, do you have medical insurance. I think it is essential in this day and age and if I had kids and could do it would pay their medical insurance. As they do here in Spain. Has your husband found another job, in England you would probably get a carers  allowance for your husband to help but all thats changing too.  Its a cruel life isn't it.

      I have a bit of a theory about how people get prolapsed discs - did you fall or did you have an accident ?

      My daughter knows NJ, we had friends who lived at Franklin Lakes but probably not there now.  We used to contact each other via phone, we didn't have computers then.... IOne of the side effects of Lyrica I take is that I can't remember names, just silly things really but it annoys me, but the husband (as I say can't remember his name) used t work for an engineering company.  Do you think your husband will get another job or will he help you around the house?

      Peter does the hoovering and hard work, I do the washing, dusting and believe it or not the gardening, but i just have a garden at waist height. The man down the road is growing orchids so we are swapping plants.

      Do you think that the medical people will give you one of these stimulators (I nearly said simulators!) I didn't go much for a TENS, but its there if I ever need it.  The leads were annoying if you wanted to lead as normal life as possible, and it hurts like hell if you get it wrong, you get zapped - also I lost my leads down a filthy spanish toilet so don't fancy it now.  There are the ones they put in internally and it has been spoken about but we will see.

      Do you think they did your surgeries too quickly? It seems we all have problems around that area.  The surgeon that did my decompression, we were talking about it the other day, he was just out for money, never looked at my X Rays but everyone said how wonderful he was, no-one every said he was crap and no-one reported any problems. Well since I spoke last, I have been to the drs/hospital and he said that this surgeon only "partially" decompressed so looks like what with this and the "Inspace" slipping, that I have had two bad surgeries.  Which is why Dr March in Valencia said that any operation would be dangerous. Unlike anywhere else, in Spain you can't find out anything about anyone except politicians ha ha so I don't know how good Dr March was - he was the only one that stuck to his job when the government didn't pay staff a few years back the rest of the surgeons went private.

      I will give you my email on private messaging Kathy, if you want it sometime for a chat also you can update me...

      I am going for cortisone injections, unfortunately i wanted them in my thigh but think its going into the spine.  Lose weight he said, how do you lose weight when you can't walk far - 

    • Enna1
      Enna1 kathy07828

      Posted

      kathy i can't find the messaging link so i can send you my email, can you do yours?   Thanks I had to cut the message short cos my washing finished.... Speak hopefully to cheer you up....Anne
    • kathy07828
      kathy07828 Enna1

      Posted

      Hi Anne, I found it and sent you my mail address. Thank you! It really helps to share with people who are on this journey of unresolved pain as well. ~kathy
  • jehward
    jehward Enna1

    Posted

    Hello

    i am a medic (Anaesthetist) who has had spinal stenosis for years, symptoms getting worse over the last few years. Before the new year (2016) I developed new neurology & have had major surgery (L3-5 decompression & L4/5 fusion). ANYWAY... I have researched & researched spinal stenosis until I'm blue in my face! Crouching over a PC for all those hours may even have worsened my lower back - ???. BUT there is no simple answer as everyone is different. back pain is a nightmare! All the scientific studies are difficult to read because they are either poorly designed, population studied not big enough, too many variables etc.

    SO - I have seen many web sites advertising minimally invasive spinal surgery, it sound brilliant! But - as shown by all the replies on this web site - can be unsuccessful, or even worse! Ask yourself - why do they need to advertise? If the treatment worked, spinal specialists would jump at recommending it.

    my recommendation is 1) do your own research, you'll need to know what people are talking about when they recommend therapy/treatments/surgery

    2)try to get 2 specialists opinions (or see a specialist where they work as a multidisciplinary team) - this way your getting recommendations that fit the best known knowledge at that time (remember treatments change) 3) put off surgery for as long as possible & try other active means of managing your problem - see: http://www.spine-health.com/conditions/spinal-stenosis/videos It's a good web site! 4) be realisic about surgery as it won't cure everything!

    im afraid you may have to realise that you have a weak back, I am slowly coming to realise this. There is some genetics involved, but really - humans are not supposed to be bipods who live to 90!

    good luck with your treatments - don't be sucked in be trendy adverts.

    talk to your GP who will have an independent view. Many surgeons just want to chop away & fill their wallets!

     

    • Enna1
      Enna1 jehward

      Posted

      Going for cortisone spine injection this is the 4th and this one 4th none of them worked just to tell you not looking forward to it I can tell you but know it won't work because the Dr says he wants to see me an hour later.....well each of these has been differently approached and none of them have worked more than a couple of months. In fact I paid 1,000Pounds for one and it was no different excdpt I couldn't get off the bed for 2 he's. The only ones that have are the ones in my thigh and bottom. I too had decompression at l4/5 and according to this Dr it was only done actually - done by the same books as £1000 job. Two private. Surgeons here recommend fusion but not sure the Spanish surgeon on the state tells me too dangerous. Have you seen the spinal stenosis newsletter?

      Got too rush bothered about the hospital....anne

    • kathy07828
      kathy07828 jehward

      Posted

      I agree jehward! Two pain dr's and a neurosurgeon I'd gotten a second opinion from as well as the one that performed my fusion all agreed that eventually the people getting these laser surgeries wind up in their offices in pretty bad shape. Although the laser seems to help for a while if your condition is not too severe, you always wind up going back for more. Those Dr's will never tell you that this type of intervention will no longer herlp you, continue to make your spine weaker and more unstable because of the additional bone they take away with each surgery, as well as create more scar tissue which will complicate anything you need done in the future if more aggressive surgery is warranted to help stabilize your spine. They totally sucked me and my savings account in with their false promises, leaving me a mess for any dr's to try and fix once they were done with me.
    • Enna1
      Enna1 kathy07828

      Posted

      Kathy I have looked on the messages in case you wonder where I am, but the email address you gave me keeps on coming back.  Anne
    • Enna1
      Enna1

      Posted

      Just to tell you that I have had a flipping mix up with the hospital this morning. I was supposed to have an injection at 1 and then they changed it to 8.30 in the morning and then back to 1 and this morning rang at 1/4 to 9 to say the appointment was at 8.30 so we rushed down to the hospital, put our SIP card (to qualify for free health) to find that it was 1 all the time So we have come home.   Had this before at this clinic.  They said 3 years ago (I think) when you come back again we will do a back cortisone injection) when I got there, the nurse or dr I don't know their qualification was tapping on the computer to see my notes, eventually he said is Lyrica working OK, I said yes, He said OHeh thats good and I never had another appointment I expect they thought I was terrible not keeping the cortisone injection appointment but nothing was said so presumed that the cortisone injection didn't matter if Lyrica was taken. 

      They said the UK is not organised but neither is spain.Hope you got my message about the email address.

      Anne

    • Enna1
      Enna1 kathy07828

      Posted

      Kathy, I got your private message and the one on Patient but still can't email you.  I want to chat before you have your op.  Unless of course you haven't ticked following this conversation.... Anne
    • diannemcgee
      diannemcgee jehward

      Posted

      Since you have done so much research maybe you can help.  I've been told I have spinal stenosis primarily in the lumbar area. My main complaint is not being able to walk very far because I get short of breath and feel like my pelvis and lumbar area Is being squished downward. I briefly ran acrossed a post sometime ago that stated this person was also short of breath and they added (paraphrase) "to also carry something at that time would be impossible". I figured I'd come back and read the post thoroughly because it described my symptoms to a T. Course I never found the post again. Have you heard of these symptoms before with spinal stenosis? Dianne
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