spine surgery

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chuckrh
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spine surgery

Post by chuckrh »

Anybody here have any experience (good or bad) with spine surgery? I'm having a laminectomy on some vertebrae in my lumbar spine next week & am a bit freaked out. I made the mistake of reading up on the procedure. No question about needing to do it as my spinal cord is getting crushed at more than 1 spot. Things have been moving really fast since I did a nerve conductivity test & a new MRI. If all goes well, won't have to be overnight in the hospital but will be off work about a month all told. Originally the surgery was going to be way more but rheumatoid arthritis complicates things. i've only been operated on once before (hip replacement) several years ago & that didn't go super smooth. The hip is ok now but the recovery was brutal. Sorry for babbling. Very nervous about the whole thing! Not posting this everywhere but I've seen similar posts here before. The 3DD folks are pretty cool & helpful for the most part.

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scotto
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Re: spine surgery

Post by scotto »

Sorry, man. I have no experience with that, but wishing you all the best.
Cheers.

beantownbubba
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Re: spine surgery

Post by beantownbubba »

scotto wrote:Sorry, man. I have no experience with that, but wishing you all the best.
Cheers.
What scotto said, but it also seems like you're short on information you need. Can you meet with your doctor(s) to get more information on what's involved and what to expect? Are there other patient oriented resources at the hospital where the surgery will take place? Would it be worth talking to your "regular" (rheumatoid arthritis) doctors because you already have a relationship (hopefully a good one) w/ them? Generally turning to the web can incite more fear w/out more information but if there's a recognized source or association for your condition or procedure their website could be invaluable.

Best of luck, Chuck and please let us know how it goes as soon as you are able.
What used to be is gone and what ought to be ought not to be so hard

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Clams
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Re: spine surgery

Post by Clams »

I agree with Bubba that you should seek to have all your questions and concerns answered before undergoing the procedure. I bet the doctor or the hospital has social workers/nurses/someone who can point you in the right direction to help get your comfort level up prior to the procedure. Good luck brother, we'll be pulling for ya!!
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LBRod
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Re: spine surgery

Post by LBRod »

Clams wrote: Good luck brother, we'll be pulling for ya!!
X2
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tinnitus photography
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Re: spine surgery

Post by tinnitus photography »

LBRod wrote:
Clams wrote: Good luck brother, we'll be pulling for ya!!
X2
X3

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ramonz
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Re: spine surgery

Post by ramonz »

X4, hang in ther buddy.

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Tequila Cowboy
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Re: spine surgery

Post by Tequila Cowboy »

We'll be thinking about you. Good luck!
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chuckrh
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Re: spine surgery

Post by chuckrh »

thanks to all. i've got great doctors all around. i just put this up in case anybody had any direct experience. i have no doubts about the need for the procedure. i'm in a wheelchair soon for sure if i don't do it. i've had RA for years & the devil is taking his toll. the past year has been absolutely brutal. i missed a DBT show from 6th row & patterson solo show because i just wasn't up for it! hoping to get back to feeling normal crappy as i'm used to that & can pretty much handle it. on the bright side: today is my last day of work for a month. looking at it as a trial run for maybe retiring on disability once i get the bills from this adventure paid. i've had that option for over 5 years according to docs but i wasn't ready. think i'm close to ready now. again, appreciate the good wishes. after today, i've got 4 days to decompress & get my shit together. my boss has had back issues & was good with me taking the extra 2 days. one good thing about working for a big corporate satan is i've got some paid leave that will cover at least a chunk of my pay while i'm down. haven't seen any music since october. i'm hoping i'll be up for the flaming lips in early june. i should be happening for pearl jam in august. am glad i have netflix for the recovery!

chuckrh
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Re: spine surgery

Post by chuckrh »

hello. tomorrow will be 3 weeks since i had the operation. it appears the surgery went ok but because of the RA, recovery is slow & there were some complications. originally was going back to work next monday but am extending to day after memorial day. still have some nerve irritation that knocks me off my feet.
this whole ordeal was a horror movie. thought i would share so that people can know what to look out if they have to go under the knife. i'd been in the hospital about 13 years ago for a hip replacement & things have changed a shocking amount in regards to care. the doctors really have no say any more about hospital stays, etc. the insurance companies make those calls ahead of time, often without looking at the total picture. it's not about the patient any more but about the stock prices.
i had a 3 level laminectomy, which means they cut pieces out of 3 vertebrae in my lower back. 2 hour + procedure under general anesthesia. someone in the insurance company who i can guarantee never had this done has decided that this is a day surgery. i have a nurse friend in england who says there it is a minimum 4 day hospital stay. they don't let you go until you can function on your own. after waking up it was clear there was no way i was going to function on my own. i was admitted & had a private room. in the whole ward, there were only 4 people staying overnight. next day i came down with a small fever. after fighting (ongoing) with the insurance company it was decided to keep me another night. i was released friday afternoon. after care was a very basic sheet of instructions, big bottle of strong pain meds & best wishes.
situated in my recliner, i woke up early saturday morning in a literal pool of blood. once i figured out it had stopped (thought i was a goner for a few minutes), i called the surgeon's emergency line. hit the option to leave a message. it said thank you & hung up on me. in the meantime i had called my friend who sped to my place. i called the switchboard for the hospital & they got me through to doc on call. my friend told him what she was seeing & he didn't think it was life threatening. so, she put a dressing on it & came back next day to do same.
monday, i call the surgeon first thing. left an urgent message about situation. no reply & called back again. in the meantime, the insurance handling the medical leave decided this was a good time to hassle me for some redundant paper work. info they already had. of course, it had to be faxed so i had to crawl to my car & get to UPS store to send fax. i think this company makes things so convoluted on purpose so that if you mess up, they don't have to pay out. tried doc again on tuesday, again no call back. finally on wednesday, i got through & was in to see doc the next day. ended bleeding for 2 weeks, the probability of which was never shared. nice!
i was supposed to return to work next monday but now am hassling to extend 1 more week after that. have to start the process now or will never be done on time. this was kind of an abridged version. i'm coming around slowly but still have to be very careful as i don't have an immune system. just ask lots of questions & get things spelled out about what to expect. i'm spoiled with my regular docs but the surgeon is more like factory medicine. i'm sure surgeon did a good job but with him its all about churning patients through the system as quick as possible. the whole system is just appalling & getting worse. IMHO, health care for obscene profits is just immoral. lot of evil in that field (same with prescription drugs) & its getting worse for actual people daily. i know another nurse in denmark & both her & the friend in england had the same term: barbaric.

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Beebs
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Re: spine surgery

Post by Beebs »

Gah. That sucks man. Something like going through a surgery is so personal and invasive... and to feel like those involved don't give a shit. Again, Gah.

Best of luck with the mend.
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beantownbubba
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Re: spine surgery

Post by beantownbubba »

Yeah "barbaric" sums it up pretty well.

Unfortunately what you describe is all too common and becoming more so. It sucks to read/know about it and it's absolutely horrifying and painful to go through. So sorry that you're a victim of this absurd, terrible system.

As a general observation not directed to your specific situation, Chuck, 2 things to look for in a hospital (though frankly I don't know how one can know until it's too late,i.e. you have to experience it to know) are how good* the hospital is at working with (read manipulating) insurance companies for the patient's benefit and how good their coverage system is so that you can be reasonably certain of getting through to a doctor or other qualified, competent professional when you really need to.

*Unfortunately, "good" is a relative term and the harder the insurance companies squeeze the less hospitals can get from them even if they do a good job of fighting with the insurers.
What used to be is gone and what ought to be ought not to be so hard

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Jonicont
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Re: spine surgery

Post by Jonicont »

Chuck--As the former medical director of a large group of physicians, I can assure you that this doctors behavior is unacceptable and could be considered abandonment. At the least, I would have put him on probation. I don't know what the regs are where you live, but it's pretty universal among hospitals (to maintain priveleges) and malpractice insurance carriers (to maintain coverage) that a physician provide emergency medical coverage 24/7/365. I would write a letter of complaint to the Chairman/Director of the Dept. of Surgery and cc the CEO/President. I would also send a letter to the OPMC--(Office of Professional Medical Conduct) (or whichever state agency manages physician behavior where you live). It would be helpful if you could include telephone logs showing that you made the calls
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chuckrh
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Re: spine surgery

Post by chuckrh »

Thanks to all. I'm hanging in. Now fighting to get my medical leave pay. Dealing with this stuff is another full time job.

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