DDD reply to winged phanthom

From: klischma@foxinternet.com
Wed Mar 26 12:55:20 2003


Hi, I had a spinal fusion also (cervical) five years ago. Six weeks after sugery, I was referred to 20 physical therapy sessions which included a bunch of back and neck exercies, AND the physical therapist doing very gentle massage on my 2 inch onlg scar, so it "wouldn't get adhesed". And it didn;t. Yu should ask for that after surgery. Most insurances will pay for physical therapy after a spinal fusion. good luck!

At Tue, 25 Mar 2003, winged phantom wrote: >
>Hi Everybody,
>Many of you don't know me, but I do lurk around here a bit. ;) I
>discovered the board a few months ago, a few weeks before I had a total
>abdominal hysterectomy. I was like some of you, in that I had never had
>previous abdominal surgery. I had never been diagnosed with
>endometriosis, had never had PID or diverticulitis or any of that stuff.
>I had one or two small ovarian cysts over the years. But when I had a
>laparoscopy in early January, the finding was "extensive abdominal and
>pelvic adhesions", and I have pictures to prove it. In the months
>leading up to this, I had gained 12 inches around my "waist", with no
>corresponding weight gain. I grew out of my clothes, and I was very
>uncomfortable. I never felt "empty", although I could feel hungry. It
>hurts to eat much (too bad I still do!), and I have been diagnosed as
>having IBS. I think now that although I have the criteria for it
>(mostly constipation with some diarrhea), it's probably due to the
>adhesions.
>
>Let me insert here that at 8 days post-op I developed ileus, something I
>don't think I would have had if my gut was not so sluggish anyway. And
>the surgery and the pain meds all tend to slow it down even more. Let
>me tell you, that NG tube that I had for 3 days was no fun!
>
>Now, at 6 weeks post-op, I still feel the same as before! My pathology
>reports came back pretty good, but my doctor found old, scarred-in endo
>and adenomyosis. I guess I was extremely lucky in that I was
>asymptomatic until after menopause! I'm not sure if it's too early to
>suspect adhesions again; my doctor told my husband that he used
>Seprafilm, but the surgery report does not report that anything was used
>(One of these days, when I'm not busy, I will have to call his office
>and ask for clarification). At any rate, I have lost only about 2
>inches in my girth, and I'm still very uncomfortable most of the time. I
>had my reasons for going through with the surgery when I did, and I
>don't really regret it, but I'm disappointed I don't feel better than I
>do.
>
>First things first, though. In two weeks I will have a three level
>anterior cervical disc fusion (ACDF), and then I will be in a hard
>collar for 6 weeks. Hopefully by the end of summer, I will be feeling
>better.
>
>My plan has been that, if I have to, I will go to Germany to have Dr.
>Kruschinski do surgery with the SprayGel. I am unwilling to give up
>more of my life to pain than I already have. And if the surgery is
>covered by my insurance, then it will not be that bad. If it is not
>covered, then I will have made a good investment in my, and my family's,
>lives. Although I have not had adhesion pain that long, I have been in
>pain from DDD in my neck since mid-1989. But I did not really know that
>until I did another MRI last Fall; I thought all this time it was
>probably fibromyalgia. Now I know more. Live and learn, eh?
>
>So those that ask if you should have (more) surgery? MY OPINION is that
>you should NOT have any more surgery if you have had it in the past,
>unless you can be seen by an ARD specialist. Too bad there seem to be
>so precious few of those around. If you already know you have
>adhesions, then more surgery will in all likelihood make the problem
>worse, and you may only feel "good" for a brief time. For those of you
>who are not sure if you have ARD (like me), be sure you think it through
>very carefully and have plans for the future. It's best if you, too,
>could be seen only by an ARD specialist, but sometimes that is hard.
>
>QUESTIONS! Do I need to be re-diagnosed with adhesions before I plan a
>trip to Germany? Will I need another laparoscopy? Another round of
>ultrasounds or X-rays or what-not? Or should I just assume I have more
>adhesions and plan the trip if I continue to feel the same?
>
>Sorry this is so long, but that's the way it goes. I know so many of
>you are suffering terribly, and my heart goes out to all of you. I
>think of you all every day. And I thank all of you who were willing to
>go to Germany and blaze the trail for those who will follow! More power
>to all of you who have slain the adhesion monster! Tawonda! :)
>wr

--
mary lou

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