Tripn,

I'm sorry that I've only noticed your post just now. I'm hoping your surgery went well!

I know that reading some of our posts must be scaring you a bit, but please remember that most of the people who have this surgery feel tons of pain relief and then go on to live a normal pain-free life and are too busy . The minority of us who have continued pain or problems remain here looking for support and answers. There are even some who had successful surgeries but keep coming back to the forums to give support and advice to those who are still dealing with their spinal issues.

I had my C5/6/7 fusion with my own iliac crest bone back in June '06. Since then I have experienced problems with the nerves in my hip, but my PM believes it might be aggravated by the fact that I am quite thin and there is no padding to protect the nerves. I also had two hernia's repaired right next to the autograft site on my hip just 3 weeks after my ACDF surgery which just added to the scar tissue in the area and is contributing to the nerve irritation. As far as the pre-op and post-op pains, mine seem to have not changed and if anything, they've slightly progressed. I'm still going through the process of trying to finding out why, but have no answers yet. Everyone is different, so keep a positive outlook, the odds are with you!

I hope you're doing well and recover from your surgery quickly. Keep us posted on how you're doing.

Best wishes,

Kim