Regular readers will recall my misadventures with medical bureaucracy in May, and the follow-up (mis)adventures last month. Yesterday, Tuesday, most of the results came together, with moderately satisfactory results and a certain amount of pain.
My new CT scan images and analysis were ready, and my pain management specialist (who made the necessary arrangements for them) discussed them with me. There appears to be more going on "over my head" than I'd been made aware . . . it appears possible that the original surgery, twenty-two years ago, might have been - how shall I put this? - sub-standard. Nobody used the word "malpractice" - perish the thought! After all, given the passage of time, that probably couldn't be proved. Nevertheless, it may be one of the reasons why two neurosurgeons, a neurologist and an orthopedic surgeon had all been noticeably reluctant to commit themselves to a potential solution to my problems. Armed with this (strictly unofficial and off-the-record) information, I'm now in a position to ask very blunt, pointed, direct questions when I see the new neurosurgeon, and apparently he's one of the few doctors who's willing to answer such questions appropriately. The next couple of months should be interesting . . .
That said, I had my second caudal epidural injection yesterday morning. The first one (in March) gave me 2+ months of moderate pain relief, so I'm hoping the second one will be at least as useful. That, plus wearing a back brace for all walking and driving, will hopefully keep me mobile enough to see the new neurosurgeon in Dallas before the end of August, and (with his help) develop a plan for short- to medium-term treatment in preparation for surgery. It's a slow, painstaking process, but as I've been told repeatedly, spinal surgery is one of those "measure ten times, cut once" solutions that one daren't rush or mess up.
Right now I can't feel anything in my lower back, the result of the anesthetic used to perform the injection into the spinal cavity. By Wednesday morning I'll be feeling it again, I'm sure.
Peter
7 comments:
I can feel for you. I have a family member that has had two successful scoliosis surgeries (no issues). But the prep and recovery was something to behold.
Good luck with all of this Peter. Having recenly had to deal with some back pain issues myself, I have gained a new understanding of how debilitating this can be - and mine was considered "relatively mild"
Prayers you finally get answers. And yes, careful approaches and pointed questions that actually get answered are needed before any cutting happens!
"Painstaking" is the key word.
Good luck and God be with you, Peter. I hope the new guy has new insights and that the pain this week is on a downward arc.
I am an orthopaedic surgeon, used to do spine surgery until all the hardware was expected. Long time ago. We never say someone did something wrong, weren't there, not sure of situation. But I wish we could without fear of retribution, believe me, it is a real fear if you are still working. Every one of us makes mistakes, but bad surgeons are known to all of us and have little power to stop them. Hope you get someone who can help you. Got a few surgical conditions that I will not have operated on as long as I can walk and sleep some at night.
Peter, I wanted to make you aware of an article in the Oct/Nov/25 AARP magazine (page 44) about an AI assisted spinal surgery system. It's called the Xvision Spine System from Augmedics. Gives the surgeon "a perfect 3Dview of the spine". "It's like I'm looking at the spine for real". They are using an AI-enabled headset for this.
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