Originally Posted by LIT LOVE

8 hours later all your relief was gone? It sounds more likely the anethesia finally wore off completely, rather than you having a positive response to the block and it wearing off that quickly!

I had my first set of blocks about 18 months or so after RSD onset at a pain clinic, and received short term (days to a few weeks.) There seemed to be no increase of efficacy from the series, and the last one seemed to have only a few days relief with only minor pain relief. I then had the RF procedure which made my RSD worse...so I was done with blocks at that point.

Probably around year 4 I had another series of stellate ganglion blocks, this time with a spine surgeon, but these were treated very differently. Instead of being knocked out, they were done while I was awake at a surgery center, so that he could pinpoint the area that gave me the greatest relief based upon my responses. It took several minutes and several trys to hit the "sweet spot". I believe he used a microscopic camera and monitor (sorry, my memory is fuzzy, but I remember a perisope thingy I think)... The results were actually better than my first round even though I was so far past onset. Again, all relief wore off after 2-3 weeks, and the staggered blocks didn't seem to extend or increase the results. Having an IV put into my "good" hand in the same place 2 weeks in a row caused mirroring and a horrific flair. Additional meds and Lidoderm patches got my hand back to "normal" within a few weeks luckily, but I've been terrified of needles ever since...

The last block I had was for my final wrist surgery about 5 1/2 years post RSD onset. It worked so well I thought the surgery had "fixed" me, but again it only lasted a few weeks. It was well worth doing since it made my recovery and pt a snap (post surgical pain is NOTHING compared to RSD pain) and it kept me from having a potential flare and/or spread.

The skills of the doc, tools used and block cocktail seemed to make a huge difference in my case. You might want to see if there are other RSD docs to try having a block (or series of blocks) with. Or maybe your doc would be willing to try it while you're awake... I'd research effective meds used for the blocks. It's been too long for me to remember, but I specifically asked for a few things, one of which he had already planned and another he had no issue with having the anesthesiologist add. You want to feel the relief while you're on the table to know it worked! The expense and difficulty of having these procedures, possibilty of causing spead, not to mention the importance of your window for remission, is too significant for hit or miss results.

I know this might be tough in TN, but you could see if your insurance would let you travel out of state if you can't find anyone else there... I'm sure your mother could babysit you, and if you could do it somewhere warm like FL, I might even be willing to come babysit you. Or if you want to try a doc in CA, I have a guest room ready for you. There is also the guy in Louiseville that does Ketamine, you could research his blocks procedure too. Condo rentals for a week or two can be quite cheap!

Had I undergone my series of blocks by a highly skilled doc early, MAYBE I would have gone into remission? Who knows. For those that are considering blocks 1 year or more after RSD onset, it can still be an important diagnostic tool, and it can give non-narcotic short term relief. And for anyone with RSD contemplating surgery, it seems like a must IMHO. Karen, at 6 months post RSD onset you really have a good chance of remission still.

Maybe you could research the percentages if rapid spread makes remission from blocks less likely before going through with the next one? Does your doc offer out patient Ketamine?

Originally Posted by fmichael

Dubious!


Now as to the small matter of closing an office, I couldn't agree more. It's like having to tie up decades of loose ends in a matter of a few months. Not for the faint of heart. (So I guess this explains where you've been for the last few months. . . .)

Mike