I have broken screws following spinal fusion - what should I do?
I had spinal fusion surgery back in December. I have never had relief from the pain (6 months after surgery) and learned yesterday that 2 of the screws have broken and they suspect a failed fusion. While this certainly answers my question about why I'm still in so much pain, I'm not sure what to do about it. This pain is dibilitating and I don't know how much longer I can take it but if I don't go back to work I'll lose my job.Anyone else been through this? I feel like I'm starting all over.
you should take 4 ibprofen before you go to work now i know that the bottle says only take 2 but i am a doctor and they put that so that kids over 12 like 13 and 14 dont think hey i can take 4 but you will be fine just dont take more than 8 in one day and call the doctor immeditaly and consult him!
Why would you be sitting down at a computer when you could go to a doctor or hospital? I reckon they would be able to do something for the pain. I am no medic, but common sense says you should see someone about the pain.
You have no choice but to have another surgery to correct the problem. Make sure you get the best orthopedic surgeon in your area. You want to make sure that this time the surgery takes and you don't have to repeat it.
Best wishes,
Billie77
Have you talked to other people who have gone through the same thing?
Here are some patient support groups that have sections for spinal disorders-
http://brain.hastypastry.net/forums/...
http://neurotalk.org
I understand what you are going through. I have had 7 spine surgeries and at only 30 years old, I've had to put my career on hold. You have 2 options:
1- You do nothing about it. You go back to work. The pain continues to debilitate you. Scar tissue continues to build around the failed fusion and the screws. You start missing days at work because of the pain. You go back on disability, you lose your job.
2-You have surgery. The failed fusion is corrected. The screws are replaced. It takes you 6 months to recover, you lose your job. You have no health insurance. But eventually, you recover and you will be able to look for a new job.
I am telling you these things because, unfortunately, this is the decision you are facing. You don't specify how old you are, or if you have a strong support system. If you decide to have the surgery, ask your physician to help you get Social Security Disability benefits for the duration of your rehabilitation. It can help with expenses and you will have Medicare, which pays for 80% of medical cost. I know this is a difficult step to take, especially if you are young, but I pray that you can make the right decision and that everything works out well.
I cant believe I am saying this but...get thee to a surgeon hon. Preferably, a different one than the first. (If it were me) If the screws are broken, they need to be fixed or removed.
I truly hope you feel better soon.
Forget the answers you will get here. Just go see your doctor who did the surgery. If you don't trust him anymore, see another one. Do not self medicate.
GO BACK TO YOUR NEUROLOGIST! He needs to fix your spine and possibly do whats called a "revision". This wont get better until its fixed
Difficult problem you have. Assuming that you did not have any pain relief shortly after your initially surgery, it should tell you that the fusion did not address your pain generator. It is unlikely that the hardware failed immediately after surgery.
replacing failed hardware or removing failed hardware probably would not help with your pain because what you said is that you never had any relief after surgery and you pain did not increase after surgery.
My recommendation is to go back to your spine surgeon (not neurologist) and get his recommendation. May also want to go to a pain clinic whether they can help identify the source of pain by doing spinal injections.
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you should take 4 ibprofen before you go to work now i know that the bottle says only take 2 but i am a doctor and they put that so that kids over 12 like 13 and 14 dont think hey i can take 4 but you will be fine just dont take more than 8 in one day and call the doctor immeditaly and consult him!
Why would you be sitting down at a computer when you could go to a doctor or hospital? I reckon they would be able to do something for the pain. I am no medic, but common sense says you should see someone about the pain.
You have no choice but to have another surgery to correct the problem. Make sure you get the best orthopedic surgeon in your area. You want to make sure that this time the surgery takes and you don't have to repeat it.
Best wishes,
Billie77
Have you talked to other people who have gone through the same thing?
Here are some patient support groups that have sections for spinal disorders-
http://brain.hastypastry.net/forums/...
http://neurotalk.org
I understand what you are going through. I have had 7 spine surgeries and at only 30 years old, I've had to put my career on hold. You have 2 options:
1- You do nothing about it. You go back to work. The pain continues to debilitate you. Scar tissue continues to build around the failed fusion and the screws. You start missing days at work because of the pain. You go back on disability, you lose your job.
2-You have surgery. The failed fusion is corrected. The screws are replaced. It takes you 6 months to recover, you lose your job. You have no health insurance. But eventually, you recover and you will be able to look for a new job.
I am telling you these things because, unfortunately, this is the decision you are facing. You don't specify how old you are, or if you have a strong support system. If you decide to have the surgery, ask your physician to help you get Social Security Disability benefits for the duration of your rehabilitation. It can help with expenses and you will have Medicare, which pays for 80% of medical cost. I know this is a difficult step to take, especially if you are young, but I pray that you can make the right decision and that everything works out well.
I cant believe I am saying this but...get thee to a surgeon hon. Preferably, a different one than the first. (If it were me) If the screws are broken, they need to be fixed or removed.
I truly hope you feel better soon.
Forget the answers you will get here. Just go see your doctor who did the surgery. If you don't trust him anymore, see another one. Do not self medicate.
GO BACK TO YOUR NEUROLOGIST! He needs to fix your spine and possibly do whats called a "revision". This wont get better until its fixed
Difficult problem you have. Assuming that you did not have any pain relief shortly after your initially surgery, it should tell you that the fusion did not address your pain generator. It is unlikely that the hardware failed immediately after surgery.
replacing failed hardware or removing failed hardware probably would not help with your pain because what you said is that you never had any relief after surgery and you pain did not increase after surgery.
My recommendation is to go back to your spine surgeon (not neurologist) and get his recommendation. May also want to go to a pain clinic whether they can help identify the source of pain by doing spinal injections.
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