Making a difference in the future...Won't you help too???

From: Helen Dynda (olddad66@runestone.net)
Sat Jan 5 13:57:17 2002


Please consider writing your story - to be used as a petition letter to the U.S. Government - and send it by January 8th at the very latest!! This petition is intended to help Medicare (some day you will be of age for Medicare) and Medicaid establish a special code for surgical adhesions. It is very important that we tell our government about the serious problems connected with adhesions related disorder (ARD). I hope that you will consider voicing your concerns about adhesions to the government; so that some action will be taken to rectify the problems caused by adhesions!!!

You need to know that surgery IS NOT the answer to adhesions; because there are NO guarantees with any surgery that involves adhesions!! Each repeated surgery will only cause more adhesions (scar tissue) to form and consequently, cause pain to worsen. All you have to do is read the stories of other people on the Adhesions Quilt (click on "Adhesions Quilt" - above). You will soon realize that there are many other women, who are suffering as you do; and that additional surgeries did not help them; but caused them only additional pain and other problems.

I only know of 3 surgeons in the United States (at Scranton, PA and at Manhattan, NY) and a surgeon from Germany, who are even having any kind of success with adhesiolysis procedures!! These 4 surgeons have made a committment to specialize in difficult and time-consuming adhesiolysis procedures; and they are recognized as being the best laparoscopic surgeons in the world; BUT EVEN THEY cannot guarantee the results of adhesiolysis procedures.

When a person has surgery, adhesions form within hours and up to 7 days later - as the result of the natural attempt by the body trying to heal itself. Currently there are 3 kinds of adhesion barriers that offer protection from the formation of adhesions...Interceed...Seprafilm...Intergel; but all 3 barriers have been approved by the FDA ONLY for open abdominal (laparotomy) surgery!!

Even an adhesion barrier will not offer complete protection. People vary in how they heal. Some people have allergies to all sorts of things - including adhesion barriers. Not all surgeons are aware of adhesion barriers! Some surgeons, who are aware of adhesion barriers, refuse to use them - for reasons of their own. As the result of your petition to the U.S. Government for a special surgical code for the application of an adhesion barrier in a surgical procedure, YOUR PETITION will help to influence the approval of this code so that Medicare and Medicaid will be able to track the success of surgical procedures where adhesion barriers are used.

Currently, adhesions are not even recognized as a disease!! THIS IS ONE REASON WE NEED OUR GOVERNMENT'S HELP IN GETTING A SPECIAL SURGICAL CODE NUMBER FOR THE APPLICATION OF ADHESION BARRIERS. This will not happen "overnight"; but each positive action that begins to get adhesions recognized, is a step in the right direction!!

I suspect that Medicare and Medicaid have been asked by the government to cut their costs - because as it is today too many surgeries are being done (for the same reason: for adhesions) - on the same person -- as well as too many expensive diagnostic tests are being done - for adhesions - for the very same person.

This is why your petition letter will help to correct this costly problem for the government. If it is proven that the use of adhesion barriers will improve the outcome of surgical procedures - including the outcome of adhesiolysis procedures - there is a chance that one day adhesions may - just maybe - become a surgical problem of the past.

Pain Management is currently the best way to treat the chronic, intractable pain of adhesions!! Many adhesion sufferers are having success with Pain Management!! Pain Management is much more than the use of pain medications!! Therapy based on the Mind-Body Connection is the kind of therapy that will offer the patient his/her best chance for successful pain relief!!!

Some of us long-term adhesion sufferers have wondered why so many doctors tell their patients that adhesions do not cause pain, etc. We also have wondered why doctor/surgeons never told us that adhesions are one of the risks of surgery. Were YOU told that? We suspect that doctors/surgeons do not want us to know the truth about adhesions for several reasons. I will let you ponder that thought; and arrive at your own conclusions.

I hope that you will want to send your story and petition the U.S. Government for this new surgical code for adhesions!!!! The more letters the government receives...the more the government will realize what a serious problem adhesions are. This is how ALL adhesion sufferers can help to make a difference for what happens in the future!! Won't you help too??


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