Chiropractic Before and After Surgery

[cherylstewart67]

if i had gone by the symptoms rather than what they looked at the mri and said was my cause i'd be better off. they did fusion on the levels that were not the problem. i know those areas needed something, but my problem has always been c6/7. i told them i was having problems with my forarms and hand and which fingers and it pointed to 6/7 t1 but they did fusion on 4/5/6 because of what they saw in the mri. now i am still not better. they nere even did a discogram or however it spelled to see what levels were causing my pain. they did not tell me all of my options for adr vs fusion and at that time i did not have a home computor to research it for myself. clearly adr would have been better for me, the fusion has lead to more ddd from the stress and additional surgeries.

[Maria]

Roll of the dice theory.. could come out better, could come out worse .. stay the same.. not likely tho I guess it happens.

If you know what the limitations are here in the US and are pursuing surgery and you know that there are zero guarantees w/outcome of spine surgery so you go into it hoping for better outcome basically.

A surgeon can do the surgery for which he or she is trained and perform that surgery perfectly and we can still have rotten results .. here there or anywhere with anything.

Maybe less so with one technique or type of surgery over another however I've read plenty of posts from persons that had very bad outcomes even when they used their own $ and went abroad or elsewhere. So failure re spine surgery is not only exclusive to this country and/or the limitations imposed on the medical/surgical practicing surgeons either.

I agree that our medical system absolutely is atrocious as it shouldn't really be called "healthcare" any longer rather wealthcare as you gotta have $ to pursue really good care and insurance companies and big biz is what's making the money really not the average surgeon/doctor.

Having worked in healthcare my entire career I saw many mistakes made on many levels some of which were minor, some much greater, some fatal. It pays to have a really tight system of checks and balances to catch errors rapidly enough to reverse them although some are not reversible and some are fatal.

While I agree with Judy that there are many good/excellent physicians I also think our healthcare system in the US needs a major overall and yesterday.

[ADR seeker]

Originally Posted by cherylstewart67

if i had gone by the symptoms rather than what they looked at the mri and said was my cause i'd be better off. they did fusion on the levels that were not the problem. i know those areas needed something, but my problem has always been c6/7. i told them i was having problems with my forarms and hand and which fingers and it pointed to 6/7 t1 but they did fusion on 4/5/6 because of what they saw in the mri. now i am still not better. they nere even did a discogram or however it spelled to see what levels were causing my pain. they did not tell me all of my options for adr vs fusion and at that time i did not have a home computor to research it for myself. clearly adr would have been better for me, the fusion has lead to more ddd from the stress and additional surgeries.

Cheryl, I don't trust most doctors to have the patient's best interest at heart or always tell the truth. I report on abuse by members of the medical industry. Orthopedics has its share of charlatans.

The docs that push fusions are the ones who do fusions.

Fusions almost always lead to more DDD and osteo arthritis. That means more surgeries and more money. ADRs were being implanted in 1955. I really suspect that the design for the neo disk has been around for decades.

[cherylstewart67]

Originally Posted by ADR seeker

Cheryl, I don't trust most doctors to have the patient's best interest at heart or always tell the truth. I report on abuse by members of the medical industry. Orthopedics has its share of charlatans.

The docs that push fusions are the ones who do fusions.

Fusions almost always lead to more DDD and osteo arthritis. That means more surgeries and more money. ADRs were being implanted in 1955. I really suspect that the design for the neo disk has been around for decades.

no more need be said

[jsewell]

Just remember not all of us are candidates for ADR. I have such low bone density, i never even considered it.
judy

[ADR seeker]

Originally Posted by jsewell

Just remember not all of us are candidates for ADR. I have such low bone density, i never even considered it.
judy

There is a very easy way to increase bone density in many women. It's called testosterone, calcium and vitamin D.

Black women rarely get osteo porosis and they also have slightly more testosterone than White and Asian women. They also have a lower incidence of mental illness.

I am assuming you are peri or post menopuase. If that is the case testosterone will increase your bone density. DO NOT take crap like Boniva and its ugly cousins. It will make your bones thicker but weaker.

Find a non money doctor and get some testosterone. You will feel great and your libido will jump into overdrive but more importantly is will increase your bone density and reduce your cancer risks for some cancers such as breast and uterine.

If they put you on an anti anxiety drug the testosterone will eliminate the need for that too if your symptoms are hormone related.

[jsewell]

Thanks for the advice. I have been on testosterone for about 5 years now. I have an excellent endocrinologist. I flew from Georgia to So Cal to meet him back when i lived in Georgia. He is the greatest for diagnosing endocrine problems especially those that are out of the ordinary.

I did my research for months to find him. All the endo's I saw in the Atlanta area told me i was fine. I have hypopituitarism and replace many hormones. I also have adrenal insufficiency.
I always wonder if the years of untreated endocrine disease created the low bone density.
I always drank my milk and take supplements now and every time my vitamin D is checked it is way high.
judy

[Maria]

I was put on daily subcutaneous injectable Forteo supposedly for 24 months. I think I may have actually used it correctly for 9 months and up to 15 months not daily but it had such a plastic like odor to it that it would make me ill to smell it so my PCP said to hold my nose while injecting myself .. ummyeahh.. so anyway it got where I was so nauseated before and after the injection I just stopped. I Know this isn't so but I kept thinking it smelled like rat poisening even tho I don't know what that smells like!

I've yet to report my noncompliance to my Rheumatologist (prescribing doctor) altho I did to my PCP who didn't really care when I told her that.

I'm about 6 months late to get my BMD testing. Everything got thrown off when I went to Fla when Dad was in the hosp. and passed away and I had to take care of the estate solo.

One of these days I'll get back on track with this and I'll inquire about testosterone as well.

[ADR seeker]

Originally Posted by jsewell

Thanks for the advice. I have been on testosterone for about 5 years now. I have an excellent endocrinologist. I flew from Georgia to So Cal to meet him back when i lived in Georgia. He is the greatest for diagnosing endocrine problems especially those that are out of the ordinary.

I did my research for months to find him. All the endo's I saw in the Atlanta area told me i was fine. I have hypopituitarism and replace many hormones. I also have adrenal insufficiency.
I always wonder if the years of untreated endocrine disease created the low bone density.
I always drank my milk and take supplements now and every time my vitamin D is checked it is way high.
judy

I'm not a doctor but I took the time to think and I smelled an endocrine/hormonal disorder; of course I was not thinking of ways to exploit your illness and turn you into a cash vending machine.

GPs 40 years ago would have figured it out. It really is tragic that you had to go all the way across the country to get the right medical care and it is even more tragic that over 1 million Americans go overseas each year to get the help they need. I can't believe that the doctors today are as dumb as they act.

I hope that the testosterone does the trick and increase your bones. There are other minerals involved in bone growth. Vit K plays a role and vitamin C is also needed for bone growth and maintenance minerals magnesium and fluorine also help bones.