New kid on the block

[dshobbies]

TOP,

I'm glad you received a confirmation you were looking for but that doctor was more than rude, he was unprofessional. You pay for his time and he couldn't be bothered.

A knee surgeon once showed how disappointed he was that I wasn't a surgical candidate. He said, 'no fun for me. I don't get to cut'.

One would think a doctor actually wants his patient to understand their own condition for which a second opinion is ideal. But once he realized he wasn't going to get to cut, you were dismissed- done. Where did these egos come from?

Dale

[jsewell]

That was so bad and very unprofessional for your knee doctor to say. Well they are only people and there are some very ignorant people out there too.

I was mildly sedated at my discogram, but let me tell you when my most painful disc was hit, i was moaning and crying it hurt so bad. I told him it was rated a 30 out of the pain scale of 1-10! The only problem is after that being so horrible some of the next ones were probably really bad , but in comparison, i gave them like a 6 or 5, not enough for DrRegan to try to remove them. So he only went for the 2 that i was crying at!!! But the sedation sure did not stop me from knowing what was going on.
When i left the facility a little while later, i was fine .
judy

[TiredofPain]

I agree with you Judy about the ignorant people out there. Dale's knee doc needs to be taken out to pasture. Although, I did have knee surgery last year, my doc was great.

During my discogram, they put me to sleep to insert the needles then woke me when pressurizing/putting the dye in. First one no pain, the next 2. HOLY COW! The doc then asked me to look to my right and he explained the xray to me, starting with the first disc and moving to the others that looked different, obviously. lol The doc that told me that "I had nothing to say about the discogram, was one of the very well educated and probably talented, very ignorant people that roam the earth by day and night.

Now on to my 3rd opionion. Didn't work out quite the way I expected but better. This is a family practice that I had been to off and on for the last 12 years. My original doc had moved on. My thought process was that I had 2 confirmations from reputable specialist. Now I wanted a regular doc to look and see what the thought was. I arrived early because I wanted to get it done and over with because I fasted the night before, because I turned this into a full physical, "TBI said that would be helpful for pre-op". The receptionist was awesome, could tell that I was not normal. She said, did you fast? Yes, Maam. Do you like coffee? Yes, Maam. Then she said excuse me, walked into the back and returned with a delicious cup of black coffee. She said, you look like you could use this. Best cup of coffee I've had in a long time. At any rate. I get called back to the exam room, the nurse does the normal BP and temp, and questions. A short time later the Dr. came in. Exchange of pleasantries, blah, blah, blah. Then started talking about why I was there. I handed her my MRI and CT-Scan results. This is not a young Dr. She told me "I will look at these, and explain to you what I see in the results. I'm guessing that you have been told something that you want to confirm. I have to let you know that I'm not a specialist. Recommendations other than potential physical therapy or chiropractic therapy should be discussed with a specialist in the area that is causing you pain"

I thought I was going to pass out. HOLY COW! No ego, and when she spoke to me she looked me in the eyes and it was evident that not only did she love what she did, but she really did care. She spent almost 1 1/2 hours with me. Very very thorough and had a calming effect. I now have a new primary care provider.

So, now my for my 3rd opinion, I'm going to go the the office that the Dr did my knee surgery. They also have a back specialist. My new Dr. recommended that talk to the knee Dr. prior to surgery. I have bone infarct in both knees. Basically my knees had heart attacks and died, and could potenially collapse. Another constant pain area, but not like the back. Thought my new Dr. had a great idea to have 2 different specialist discuss my situation and make sure that maybe knee replacement might need to be done first. Wouldn't be very nice to have back surgery and then one of my knee's collapse causing major probs or potentially failed back surgery. I'm sure glad that there are lots of people out there that are much smarter than me. LOL. Will keep you posted, and thanks for the replies. Hope all is well.
J

[jsewell]

I am so happy that you found one of the good doctors. I have that in my spine surgeon, also my hip and knee surgeon. and my endocrinologists and my GI doc. Ok enough about my list of issues.
I had a hip replacement and although it was no fun, the pain is far less than from our back issues and surgery that is for sure. So i agree with you there. I have also had knee surgery , but not a replacement and both my knees hurt which makes it difficult to bend with your knees and not your back!!!
That was a great doc you had for the discography , i would have loved to look at the screen. Maybe mine did not suggest it do to my moaning and crying!!!

Let us know about this next meeting with the knee and spine doctor i wish you the same luck you had with this new primary care.
judy

[TiredofPain]

Well, I have my confirmed surgery date, 26 April. My other second/3rd opinnions all say the same. I have been trying to prep physically as much as possible. Working on not smoking. 3 packs a day and now I'm 1/4 pack or less a day. Trying to get my legs and upper body ready for the change, at least as much as possible. My sick mind tells me to do things that don't make sense. Endure pain now and strengthen unused muscles in order for hopefully an easier recovery.

I have been trying to be very positive going into this, and today I finally got hit with a few tons of brick. Afraid this may take me back to the drawing board.

Some years back I was diagnosed with early stages of osteoporosis. Last year severe bone infarct in both knees. Today my latest blood test shows a vitamin D deficiency significant enough for the Dr to prescribe vitamin D at levels that can't be purchased over the counter. Actually, the nurse said the Dr is very concerned.

The doctor performing the surgery did mention the possibility of an external bone similator. I believe that I shared my bone problems with the Dr, but maybe I didn't because I didn't think of any kind of relation. CRAP! 2 Level fusion. Hmmmmm. I'm 98 percent sure that they have 100 percent of my medical history.

I'm sure that all will be fine. I'm pretty nervous about the surgery, but very concerned about the bone probs I have. Is it possible for me to get a fusion? My first thought is yes, however there is reality.

I'm pretty disconnected from most of my family. Both parents deceased 20 years ago. Don't care much for my sisters. Easy family history on my fathers side. Working on my mothers side now, and hopefully be able to provide that to the Dr on Friday.

Sorry if I'm rambling. Guess I needed to vent.

[longroadahead]

Good to hear you have your surgery date and looks like you are going with the 2 level fusion.

I did the physc test at TBI as well but at the time I wasn't ready to totally commit to the proposed surgery so think it was a waste of my time.

Wishing you the best of luck.

[Maria]

A recent bone mineral density test? Any chance you have Celiac's disease? Sometimes it's linked to Vit D defiency I believe altho of course that's not all that uncommon w/osteoporosis. Did your doc recommend getting some direct sunlight like about 15 mins./day?

I'd talk to the specialist that manages your osteoporosis in terms of having multi level spinal fusion just to get that perspective on it if you have a significant bone density loss.

I was on an injectable medicine for nearly 2 years re osteoporosis. Need to get my BMD checked again. I'm late for this and wasn't fully compliant w/the medicine either (full 2 years).