L3-4 & L4-5 Prodisc above existing L5-S1 ADR- Tisury
 

Hello to everyone. Well, I think I am finally on the road to recovery now. Dr. Bertagnoli did a 2 level Prodisc surgery above my existing one level that was done here in the US in Feb 2004. My surgery was on May 22 (Tues) and I was discharged Sat afternoon. Even though my bone density test were okay, Dr. B ended up having to do vertobroplasty (Cortoss) because the bones were softer than expected. Thank God I was here in Germany where this was available. I cant say enough about Dr. Bertagnoli and the Pro Spine staff. Dr. B is the most wonderfully skilled, compassionate, yet down to earth doctor I have ever met. I am so glad I made the decision to come over to him. If he can't fix me, no one can. At home, their opinion was keep me on very high levels of pain meds, possibly spinal cord stimulator and that was it. They had no hope for me. Thank heavens I didn't give up on me as easily as they did.


Time will tell whether I am a success or not, but I have a good feeling about this. I have quite a bit of pain yet, but this is to be expected. The good news is that a lot of it is DIFFERENT........so probably from the stretching to get the two discs in. I walk a lot and this seems to help keep the pain under control. I am on A LOT LESS meds already than I was presurgery. Fentanyl was dropped from 100 mcg every other day to 50 mcg every third day. Had some issues for a day and half with withdrawal which was kind of ugly, but doing well now on this dose. Some of the problem was withdrawal, some of it was from the amount of anesthesia they needed for me since I was on such high levels of narcotic pain meds. I am still using percocet, but not even as much as I am allowed to take. All good signs............I just pray it continues to improve with each day.

Straubing and Germany are beautiful. Have been able to see a few things. Everyone here at the Romerhof Hotel are just so fantastic and helpful !!! Same with St. Elisabeth Hospital in Straubing. There is some language barrier, but if they didnt understand me, they found someone who did. And everyone was so friendly and helpful.

Well, it is supposed to rain most of this week that we will be here yet (Fly out on Friday), so going to go do a little sightseeing.

Mark, it was really good to get a chance to meet you after all these years !
Thanks so much for stopping in to visit me. Maybe some day I will get out to one of your ADR "parties" out there in California. My husband will be going out there for business in a few months, but I doubt that I will be up to the trip by then. (Never know though)

A big thanks to everyone and for all the good wishes sent via email.

Susan

Susan, it was great to meet you too.... especially since everything you had to say was so positive. I know how tough the recovery can be. I look forward to the day when the pain and difficulties associated with your spine problems and surgeries are a thing of the past: Susan... the ex-spine-patient...

You may be surpised by how good you feel in a few months. Keep in touch and if it looks like you'll be coming west... I'll have a GPN party in your honor! Maybe I can get Dr. B to come?

I'm in Straubing until Wednesday morning, so I'll be able to stop by and see you when you can stand up and give me a hug! Send me a PM with your room number or cell phone # and I can call you directly...

I look forward to hearing of your excellent recovery! All the best,

Mark

I was able to stop by to see Susan... this was great because when I saw her last, she was just a couple of days post-op and while she was so positive, she had not regained any mobility yet and did not know what to expect when she started moving around. Today, she's six days out and it was WONDERFUL to see her looking fantastic... smiling... moving easily and looking forward to a new life!

Susan... all the best to you, Tim and your family! I look forward to seeing you again in CA, PA, Deutchland or wherever!

Mark

http://ispine.org/picture_library/Susan-Mark-web.jpg

Susan,

I'm sending you my best wishes for an uncomplicated recovery from across the oceans. Having done this before, you know the ropes.

Having presumed new disc problems (undiagnosed), I'm not sure I would be as brave and do this again. My hat is off to you. I do agree on Dr. B and his staff. Though completely against leaving this country for surgery, I'm now very glad I went over there.

Please take care, Dale

Congrats on your outcome/recovery~
 

Hi Susan,
Just replied to your post over at BPSG, and won't repeat what I said there except to say it's wonderful to hear how well you're doing!

The photo of you and Mark looks like two well people ~ and it's nice to put a face to the person writing!

thanks for keeping us updated and hope you get to enjoy more sightseeing before you leave Germany with as little pain as possible! Also hoping your incision is doing OK~

take good care, Maria

Well had my final check up with Dr. Fenk-Mayer and am cleared to go. Pain has been more severe the last few days.........possibly cause it got so cold and damp over here. Don't know. Just have to deal with it for now. We fly out Friday afternoon. My seat is in business class, so I will be able to recline if the pain is an isssue.

Also settled up on the final bill. OUCH again. The 2 level vertebroplasty was added on, plus quite a sum for a more complicated surgery than expected. In addition, the scar tissue from the first surgery was more of an issue than expected. Oh well. If it works, I won't care how much more I go in debt. Just hope I can return to working more hours before too long. Just pray that it does the trick. Too early to really tell. Some days, I am so optimistic. Other days, when there is more pain, I am a little scared. Just have to keep pushing and thinking posiitive. All in all, I still believe if anyone can and/or could fix me, it would be Dr. Bertagnoli.

Did a little sightseeing today. Was hoping to get down to Passau, but at the time that trip is a little longer than I can stand.

PS Mark, can you email those pictures you took to me??? I still HATE all pictures of me. lol Also, tomorrow is our last day here.............any suggestions on something "not too far" to see. It is just so beautiful over here. But I am getting kind of home sick now.

Thanks again to everyone.

Are you home now?
 

Susan,
Are you back home now? If so I hope your travels didn't disrupt your spine too much~

Hello Maria, and thanks for asking. Yes, we are home. We were supposed to fly out of Munich at 12:30pm Friday afternoon (Germany time) and arrive in Philly at 4:30pm our time. Well, they loaded us on the plane, but then we sat on the plane for 3 1/2 hours before we were finally cleared to leave. Some issue with the air conditioning they said and then rerouting our late flight. Every half hour, they would assure us everything was under control, just waiting on paper work, and we would be leaving soon. (That crap scares me, like hey, what is REALLY wrong - isn't that the way the plane crash movies usually start.....can you tell I am not an avid flyer...lol) The flight was a little over 8 hours, I guess. We made up some time in the air and arrived in Philly around 6:30pm, but then we had a 3 hour drive home. Got home about 11 pm Friday night. Surprisingly though - I handled it much better than I ever expected. Yes, I had pain, but usually after an hour of sitting like that, I would be ready to saw my legs off or shoot myself. I didn't even max out on the pain meds. Good signs. I hope they continue.

I am having a lot of muscle type pain in the legs the last two days. Hot showers, walking, and stretching alleviate it some; but not much. Things may go down hill before heading back up, I'm afraid. But I can deal with it as long as I believe there is an end in sight. Or as a friend said to me, a light at the end of the tunnel without a train attached to it.

The intensity of the numbness of my right thigh seems to vary. This is mostly new since surgery. I would occasionally have numbness in that area, but only if I really overdid something. Hopefully, it is temporary. Still have nerve pain on and off, but that does seem easier to control with change of position, walking, stretching, etc. One day at a time.

Well, time to walk, walk, walk.....as Chuck says. Thanks to everyone.

Susan

how well I know that feeling..
 

Susan,
Once I sat in Tampa waiting and waiting for the plane to take off as it was checked out for nearly the same amount of time.. thankfully I had bought 3 plane seats so actually I didn't sit but lie down and read. The air was very stale and people were stir crazy but I was pretty calm, just wishing the plane would take off so I could get home. I too wondered "what if there is really something wrong w/this plane?" but I figured if so, we would have been herded off to another location~

Sawing my legs off after sitting... well if I sit longer than about 30-45 mins on a plane, or let's say an hour (wiggling around) ~ I'd be thinking of asking someone to shoot me!!!

Sounds like you're doing really well which is great to hear! My best wishes and thoughts for continued excellent recovery! ;)

Susan,

I couldn't imagine sitting for that long in the plane, waiting... waiting... waiting. Being a fearful flyer, I would have wanted to get off! After my surgery we too were in business class. I couldn't imagine trying to get out of my seat to go to the bathroom if we weren't. But glad you made it home in one piece and none the worse for wear.

It sounds like your numbness and muscle aches are just a normal byproduct of the surgery and should resolve themselves in a few weeks or so. Please just remember that your walking, walking, walking should be in short bursts, however frequent, not long marathons. Taking it slow and easy should be your current mantra.

Maria, never thought about buying 3 seats. Even 2 might work!

Susan, I hope your recovery is uncomplicated and I wish you well. Keep us posted, Dale

3 coach seats
 

This is the only way I can fly back East to see my father or anyone.
The trip to Fla. is 5 hours usually if direct flight and 6 plus if having to change planes which I find is actually easier on my spine.

3 coach seats are just enough for smaller short person like myself to life across on my side. Believe me though, my hips get sore doing this as the seats unless they are leather aren't too plush usually in coach.

I've flown like this now for probably the past 6 years. I suppose that alone is an indication I should be working on some spinal resolution tho it gets me where I'm going in one piece and able to get around.

If sitting like even a flight from LA to SF.. I really am in quite terrible tailbone/low back pain and legs feel like they can't move hardly. I always make sure to get an aisle seat for even a short flight~ then I can get up as needed and move about w/o disturbing anyone too much. I'm probably the only person on the plane that hangs out in the BR just to pass time away!!!
Unless I've had a lumbar ESI then I'm Ok... what a diff those things make for me~

6 week post op update
 

Time for an update. Not much to report. I know it is still very early, but this is definitely a roller coaster ride. I have days that I feel great and other days (especially rainy days) that I hurt like hell. Sometimes it is the old familiar pain, and some times it is strange pains. One day my hips hurt, the next my knee, then my back, then my calves, feet, or my legs. All in all though, it is still better than before surgery and I seem to recoup much faster by changing position, soaking in a hot tub or walking. The morning stiffness has improved greatly. I am still on the 50 mcg patches of fentanyl (reduced from the pre op 100 mcg), and have decreased the amount of percocet and Soma I am taking. At 4 weeks, I started wearing my brace part time instead of all the time and that caused some minor flare ups in my low back. That was expected though. I can only hope that things continue to improve with time. It's tough, since I am not known for my patience..........but that's what I need to be right now.......patient, very patient. Sitting is still a challenge. Wish that would improve so I could get back to working some. Could use the money right about not, but I refuse to push myself and do anything to risk my recovery.

Finally got to see one post op xray. Wish I could figure out how to post it. The bottom ADR at L5-S1 that was done here in the states looks really crooked now. It always was and the surgical report said it was "slightly off center". Now with the 2 new discs above it though, you can really notice how off center it is. Hopefully, this doesn't turn out to be an issue.

I go for a walk 4-6 times a day. Morning and evening (when it is cooler), I go a mile and a half. The rest of the walks are between a half mile and a mile. So yes, I am breaking it up. My leg strength is definetely improving and I have lost quite a bit of weight in these 6 weeks (15-20 lbs). That doesn't hurt either.

Maria - 3 coach seats? Wouldn't that cost as much as a business class seat? In our case, it would have cost the same. I even tried to get coach out (figuring I would just suffer) and business class for the return - but that was more because it involved two one way tickets instead of a round trip.

re your recovery
 

I'm so glad you posted an update! I'm sure someone here can tell you how to upload or get your films posted.. not me tho!

Re the 3 coach seats, to Fla. it's about $1000 r/t and it serves me well as I can side lie all the way or have three seats entirely to myself. I either need to flatly recline when flying or to lie across seats on my side. No compromising with semi reclining.

If only I could get an ESI authorized I could travel so comfortably.. I would gladly pay cash for this in Germany if I were to visit and could get it done there.

Re your walking.. that's awesome with the weight loss. Same thing happened with me actually. Now I walk an easy mile to two a day at one time, and other walks are shorter. It's a bit hot currently tho during the daytime so Lola doesn't want to walk and she's my inspiration really! I do take an evening walk with another back pain friend and we both fair pretty well on this one doing the 1-2 mile walk in a clip.

My longest walk was 6.5 miles to the dog beach in San Diego and then I walked around Ocean Beach looking at clothes/trinkets with my friend and she had to call her husband to pick us up as we had our dogs and we were all a bit tired.

In fact after I came back that evening my neck was actually killing me more than my back but my back was stiff and my feet were murderous with pain (wore only TEVA sandals to walk the distance).

Ok, so again, congrats on the walking and weight loss. I think you're very wise to not jeopardize your recovery with a too early return to work and/or activity that is painful...

Re the L5S1 disc, I too hope it will be non problematic for you and that your recovery will in time be so great you'll be back into everything you did before and then some!!

take care, thanks for the update!

Post op MRI
 

Trying to attach the post op xray...........lets see if this works.