Metal Allergies....Liz????

[Katie]

I think it was Liz who recommended that I get a blood test done for metal allergies before my ADR surgery. I've developed numerous allergies to common foods in the last year, and have always known that I've been very allergic to Nickel, through jewellery.

I just want to thank Liz for her help with this. I can't imagine the misery I would have had if I'd gone through with four level surgery and been allergic to all of the appliances.

My surgeon was quite alarmed when I mentioned the Nickel allergy a few months ago, so I promised that I would have the test done at Duke University. They test for about ten metal sensitivities, and I just got the results back today.

And no surprise to me, after all I've been through...I'm highly reactive to almost every metal, including all of the ones used in ADR surgery. The only relevant one that tested 'mild' was titanium.

The manufacturers of several discs refused to give me the exact breakdown of their discs, saying that only my doctor was privy to that information. I wasn't impressed, and wanted to save him all the time involved in getting those details.

I don't know what the fusion hardware is composed of, so don't know if I am a candidate for that either now. After four years of fighting with the insurance outfit and finally finding a great surgeon who has agreed to work on me as I hoped, it now looks like these allergies will do me in.

I'm just waiting to hear from the surgeon, and his take on this new twist in the story.

Has anyone else ever heard of someone being allergic to this list:

Aluminum, Cobalt, Chromium, Iron, Molybdenum and Nickel. I'm mildly reactive to Zirconium, Vanadium and Titanium

[sahuaro]

I don't know why the manufacturers wouldn't give you that information since it is in the research literature and can be found on the internet. I do know that the Prestige ST is made of stainless steel, which means that it has some nickel in it, and the Prestige LP is made of titanium. Mark (and others here) can probably give you info on other ADR's but I think some are made with ceramic materials.

I am just wondering if you went with a titanium ADR, if there were some way of heading off and/or damping down a reaction.

[Katie]

I can get a rough idea of what's in an ADR, but not the accurate percentages. At least I haven't found a website that gives me that information. If anyone can send me a link, I'd be really grateful.

I'm not sure what you mean by heading off or damping down a reaction???? Maybe I'm more rattled than I think....my mind doesn't work well on a good day, let alone today

[Katie]

I forgot to add that the Maverick/Medtronic rep said that she couldn't give me specific numbers/percentages of metals in content because the disc was not approved yet in the US, and it could be thought of as advertising to give me that information. When I pointed out that I was from Canada, where it was used and approved, it did not sway her.

The rest said that their appliance contained 'some' nickel, a 'small percentage' of something else, etc. But they would tell my surgeon which doesn't make sense as per the advertising argument.

I guess it is a moot point anyway, because if I was only slightly reactive, I might have gotten away with a tiny amount of that certain metal being present, but not when I'm highly reactive.

It's just one more speed bump. There has to be something somewhere that will work, with which my surgeon is comfortable working.

[sahuaro]

I was thinking there might be something (medication) that would block your allergic reaction but a quick goggle search indicated that aside from cortisone--which has its own problems--there isn't anything. The allergic response releases T cells, not histamines.

Sure hope your surgeon can come up with a creative solution.

[Maria]

If it were me I'd be worried about what kind of reaction can occur w/metal allergies (if something used that is known to be high on allergen list for you) as I think there are all kinds of autoimmune diseases that seem to pop up that might be tied to various types of allergies to xyz and some of that being metal allergies.

However that being said perhaps there are meds that could be prescribed for life like the meds used when someone has a heart or other transplant and is on meds to fight rejection.

Again, certainly am not suggesting anything am just *wondering* and adding in two cents for thought...