Originally Posted by johnericus

Hi DebbyV,
I have both rsd (CRPS II) and Arachnoiditis. I had a medtronics morphine pump implanted improperly in my body. The doctor attached the catheter from the pump to my spinal chord with only one suture which became unattached while I was using a new VERY effective treatment for rsd. It is a drug called Prialt made from a sea snails venom. While it permanently cut my pain in half from the rsd after about six months, it was leaking down my spinal chord and caused extensive scarring in the coccyx and l5 vertebrae. I bring this up only because it is "common knowledge" that Arachnoiditis is incurable. This is no longer the case. A good friend of mine found some research on a new method of treating and removing the scar tissue over time without any dangerous drugs or invasive procedures. It involves a drug called Pentoxifylline, and vitamin E, taken orally twice a day. I showed my Dr. the studies published in the English journal of medicine, and he put me on the drugs after studying it for awhile. In the last six months I have gone from not being able to sit, or drive without extreme pain, to being able to sit, and drive moderate distances with mild to moderate pain. It seems as if their is a very initial quick reaction to the drug, then it slows and treatment takes 3 to 5 years for dramatic results, but the drug is very inexpensive, used extensively for off label uses, and has only mild side effects. The one danger is you CANNOT use aspirin, or NSAIDS, or any blood thinning drugs. It works on all scar tissue not just Arachnoiditis. My life has improved so dramatically I am trying to spread the word about this treatment. If you want to contact me about the studies (I can't post links because I don't have ten posts yet) you can contact me, or leave a msg here for me. Anyone suffering from this debilitating disease should have their Dr. read the studies before giving up. In addition to pain the scarring left me unable to relieve myself w/o extreme effort in addition to many other effects. I now have no problem with these activities. Sincerely Johnericus aka John Allen.