I am having a Lidocaine Infusion on Tuesday
 

Hi Everyone
I am having this infusion for 5 hrs on Tuesday, can anyone tell me what the after effects are - such as - will I be able to go to work on Wednesday? Will I be functioning normally or does it take some time to recover? Does it give you brain fog?
Thanks in advance
Arlene:confused:

Hi my lidocaine infusion was not that long as 5 hours. For me I had no side effects in terms of the meds or infusion. I just was not supposed to drive that day I think. Of course everyone is different. Maybe you can call and ask if they could give you some direction. I hope you get some relief and the infusion goes smooth

I've had 7 of them, my dosage was 300 mg at a time - they are no big deal at all. If your dose is similar to mine you should be fine. Lidocaine helped me after time, the effectiveness of the infusions was only noticeable after I had a few of them because they built upon each other. Mine were scheduled 3-4 weeks apart. Ideally, I think I would have been better off if they could have been timed about 2-3 weeks apart. Lidocaine helped with the BURNING pain quite a bit. But it wore off very quickly.

Ketamine infusions have been tremendously more successful. On a daily basis, they are cheaper than the Lidocaine. But getting them approved was a nightmare, (WC is still not on board), and, despite the approval, United Healthcare has consistently under-reimbursed for each and every infusion to date. My account with my pain clinic is an absolute nightmare of charges, reversals, partial reimbursements, etc.

Good luck, Sandy

Thanks Sandy
Healthcare insurances must be a nightmare - it is an added pressure when you are not feeling in top condition. In the UK we dont have that problem but the waiting lists are horrendous and they are looking set to get worse with the spending cuts - lots of us are looking at private healthcare but as I have already been diagnosed I cant go private.
Thanks again for putting me at ease
Arlene

Kewl!
 

Lidocaine infusions work for me, better than any thing else anyway.. that is a small dose to get your body used to it I think. I have been getting subcutanious lidocaine infusions for 2 years now and I get an above average dose at 1400 mg.. I believe I was told the average is @ 8-10 hours and @1000 mg at a time.

The day of the procedure I usualy feel pretty good, sometimes a little dopey (very seldome personaly).. usualy I feel like super woman towards the end of the day lol (be careful not to overdo it).
Day 2 I tend to be sore on the spot that had the infusion, even though it's still numish sometimes from the lido. other than that I feel pretty good and day three even better.. I would not count on work on day 2 but leave it at a mabie myself expecialy as you don't know how the sedation aspect will efect you.. myself it's a cakewalk.. but I know others who are right doped up on the same med go figgure ay.

It helps me for a couple weeks and it IS suposed to be one of the cheaper meds.. also I get them put in at a clinic and I take it out myself at home in the AM many hrs later (I can go do my shopping ect with it in it is fully contained and secure).

I realy hope this treatment helps you alot, I know it can make such a diffrence.. please remember that they start you slowly and at a low dose on these meds so please don't be disapointed at low results at first as so many people tend to do.

Good luck to you Arlene I wish you pain relief tomorow,
~ Sandra

Good luck tomorrow!
 

Hope you get some relief tomorrow with your infusion. I had this procedure done many years ago and had forgotten about it till your post. The best I can remember I had some short term relief , but would have to check my med. records to be sure. Hope it all goes well for you!

Hi Arlene,

I'm sorry to get in here so late, I just saw your posting now.

I agree with other posters here that there are no big dramatic side effects with Lidocaine. I get mine a little different than others who posted. I believe that Sandel gets the subcutaneous infusion. I tried that too but found that the IV infusion had better results for me.

I have 800mg over 2 hours as an intravenous infusion, I get 100 mg pushed as a bolus to start and the remainder of the dose is dripped through the IV bag. It makes my lips numb and you might hear a bit of a whoosh sound in your ears. Generally I feel a dizzy and just sleep through the whole infusion. It does make my blood pressure rise but returns to normal shortly after the infusion is stopped.

I too typically feel like wonder woman and have been known to hurt myself by overdoing it especially when bouncing up and down the stairs like I never had RSD. I take it easy on infusion days, sometimes I have a little headache after the infusion and need to drink lots of water. I always feel great on day 2 but we are all different.

Not only does this help my pain but I also find my that brain fog seems to clear up and I can think straight again. For me it seems to wears off like a battery wearing down. I'd like to have to it every 2 weeks but can only get it every 3.

The protocol my doctor follows is that a patient must be monitored on a heart monitor with the IV infusion. I have to go into a post op recovery area for the treatment because that is the only area where they have the equipment and trained nurses. That's one reason why many of the doctors switched most of their patients over to the subcutaneous infusion. They are able to get more patients treated for much less cost and the subcutaneous infusion seems to work just as well for most.

It sounds like your doctor is being quite conservative with your dose and that's probably a good thing to start with to see how you react.

I've been reluctant to try the ketamine because of the psychotropic side effects but I'm not ruling it out.

I'll see what my new doctors say once I get settled into my new home.

Good luck tomorrow.

MsL

Thanks for this evaryone, my experience so far has been just the same as yours MsL, I ended up having the infusion for around 6hrs and my BP went up and then dipped - I felt dizzy and sleepy for the middle part and then rallied and was pain free at the end yipee!!!!
I too had to go to a post op ward but the whole experience was brilliant, i have decided to take it easy for the next few days - I havent been sleeping because of the pain so am exhausted and just need a rest from work(although I will probably spend most of the day doing emails tomorrow)

Thanks for everything
Arlene

What great news Arlene! :grouphug: I'm so happy to hear you have found some relief and that your treatment went without a hitch.

If you spend lots of time at the computer tomorrow I'd like to recommend that you consider setting a reminder for yourself to take some mini breaks every 20 minutes or so. I use my outlook calender for that and it really helps to keep me on track. I usually do a couple of simple stretching moves so I don't get myself all knotted up by the end of the day.

Good luck moving forward.

MsL

I am glad you found relief and hope you can rest. It sounds like a good idea you took a break from work. Hope better times continue