SCS. (spinal Cord Stimulator)

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Rene T

Rene T

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Joined
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Farmington NH
My DW has a medical condition that leaves her in excruciating pain 24/7 in her lower back and all the way down to her feet. She’s been to a spine surgeon and she’s done all kinds of tests just to make sure that it wasn’t a pinched nerve causing this problem. She has also tried PT which only made it worse so she stopped it per the doctors direction.
Originally he thought that it may have been inflammation between her pelvic bones and the sacrum. The Dr wanted to try injections first as required by Medicare before they would authorize any surgery in that area. Well she had a MRI and they found that those joints are not the problem. It’s just something within the spinal Cord causing the pain.
The next course of action is this SCS. What the surgeon does is implant a couple of leads in her spine next to the spinal cord at strategic locations. Then he implants a small device called a generator and the leads are connected to it. What happens is when one of the nerve endings in her spine senses pain, and before the nerve ending sends a signal to the brain, this generator sends a small electrical impulse to the nerve ending stopping it from talking to the brain.
This procedure has been around for several years. Has anyone here had it done or knows of anyone and what was the outcome? Are you happy with it. It’s outpatient surgery and only takes about an hour or so and the battery in the implant is good for 10 years.
One thing I left out is a trial run. Before he does the implant they have what they call a trial run. He implants leads like he would with the final install and hooks them up to a battery pack device. She wears this for possibly up to 10 days. She would have control of increasing the signal if she still has pain. Then the doc removes the pack and leads and my DW and him decide if the permanent device is for her. I guess the manufacture takes the information from the battery pack and programs the implant with the necessary information.
It sounds crazy but they thought the same think with pace makers at first now installing pace makers are nothing. The technology today is unbelievable.
 
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I think and hope that she gets scheduled to have the trial installed within 2 weeks. Currently she has no life. She can’t stand, sit for anymore than 1 hour. She can’t walk any farther than 100’. She has been sleeping at night but the difficulty is getting out of bed during the night and in the morning. Keeping our fingers crossed that this will work.
 
I am interested to hear how this works. I started having pain in my hip and thigh about a month ago. It‘s fine if I’m in bed or in my recliner. I can walk but the pain is so bad my leg buckles. It’s better if I use a cane or lean on a shopping cart. The area around my hip is sensitive to touch.
 
SeilerBird said:
Have you tried medical marijuana to ease the pain?
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I’ve asked her about that a while ago and she said no.
Oldgator73 said:
I am interested to hear how this works. I started having pain in my hip and thigh about a month ago. It‘s fine if I’m in bed or in my recliner. I can walk but the pain is so bad my leg buckles. It’s better if I use a cane or lean on a shopping cart. The area around my hip is sensitive to touch.
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Have you been to a doctor about that pain. You may have to go back and ask him/her about SCS and is is right for you. A spine surgeon is the one to talk to. It may be something else that is fixable. A year ago she had to have spine surgery for pain she had down both legs. What happened was a vertabtea and slid off the next one down and was pinching a nerve. They had to put it back into place drill it and pin them together so now they are fused together. That went perfect. The pain she has today is different. I will update this post if and when she gets it done.
 
Haven’t seen anybody about the pain. I’m tired of seeing doctors and going to PT. A couple of months ago my wife fell and fractured her shoulder. She didn’t need surgery but had PT for about 6 weeks. She recently had a knee replacement and had to stay 3 days in the hospital because her BP kept dropping. That affected her eye and she had to see a specialist about that. I do have a routine appointment with my GP next month. If I still have this pain I’ll bring it up. We are taking the grandkids to Spain in November so I want to be able to walk.
 
Oldgator73 said:
Haven’t seen anybody about the pain. I’m tired of seeing doctors and going to PT. A couple of months ago my wife fell and fractured her shoulder. She didn’t need surgery but had PT for about 6 weeks. She recently had a knee replacement and had to stay 3 days in the hospital because her BP kept dropping. That affected her eye and she had to see a specialist about that. I do have a routine appointment with my GP next month. If I still have this pain I’ll bring it up. We are taking the grandkids to Spain in November so I want to be able to walk.
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In that case if I were you, I’d try to get in and see your GP now because he may have to refer you to a spine specialists or to do a MRI. These things take time and 6 months may not be long enough. You also have to figure in recovery so you can keep up with the kids.
 
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My brother's wife has the implant you described. Same process as you described. She is not pain free but is a bit more comfortable than before. I be happy to ask detailed questions if you have any.
I know they still RV fulltime every winter, volteering for/with the SOWER Ministry at a place in southern Arizona.
 
phil-t said:
My brother's wife has the implant you described. Same process as you described. She is not pain free but is a bit more comfortable than before. I be happy to ask detailed questions if you have any.
I know they still RV fulltime every winter, volteering for/with the SOWER Ministry at a place in southern Arizona.
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I guess you could ask her if she would do it again. If I PM you and give you my wife’s tel number could she call my DW?
 
Before any surgery is begun, check into her B12 levels. That vitamin makes nerves work. I was planning on having surgery for all the nerve pain I was having but the back doctor wanted me to see a neurologist for an EMG. Neurologist found a severe B12 deficiency. Should be around 1,000 and was 162. Shots four weeks in a row then once a month after that. Made such a difference that now my worn out joints are in the forefront again! Good luck to her.
 
Tell Lucille that Donna and I think about her often. We know that she has had a BAD few years. Hopefully this will end her suffering.

Ed & Donna
 
Our son has had the implant for about 2 years. He was getting so bad that he could hardly walk. For him it has been been well worth it.

His has an iPhone that is setup to control the probes. I'm not all sure how it all works as he rarely mentions it. He did try medical marijuana for some time but wasn't cutting it.
 
jackiemac said:
How is Lucille doing Rene?
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She’s back in the hospital. Went in yesterday she was doing physical therapy T home and started laboring breathing. Very short of breath. Called 911 and they took her the ER. They ended up admitting her. Did all kinds of testing and one night shift Dr said she had pneumonia. The day shift Dr said he doesn’t believe it’s pneumonia. He was 99% sure.
She looked a lot better today. She has a pre-op appointment with the spine surgeon this Monday. I asked the day shift doc if I should cancel it and he said no. He said she may still be able to make it. That’s a good sign.
 
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