BuddySharp-
After canceling my first scheduled surgery (due to all the negative blogs I read), I spent the next 5 months in ever worsening pain. I had been unable to walk more than two blocks for years, but this was getting quite debilitating. When I finally decided I had to do it or quit living, I found nothing but positive at every turn and raves about my doctor. I am so glad I did it now. I am nearly at 4 weeks and today I have felt totally normal; no pain, lots of walking, etc. I am a bit tired after a busy morning and still coughing to clear my lungs, but feel I'll be able to start back to work Monday. Hope to get clearance to drive when I see my doc on Friday.
So- after saying that, I would go for it. Get it done. I found out that my surgeon is one the doctors use for their personal back surgeries. He does the less invasive. I just have four to six tiny incisions at the point where the screws, etc. went in. He extracted bone cells from my hips via a needle and had them compressed to inject at the fusion site. Also used bone from the hospital bone bank.

I have l4 l5 degenerative disk disease and my l5 s1 herniated disc so i had microsurgical discectomy on April 26th 2011 and when I came home i was leaking the nero told me to put compress on it well after six weeks it turned in to a bulge and I had to be re opened because i was leaking fluid and i had bone fragment after that surgery i had pain on my left side and numbing down my legs and feet and he told me back surgery failed so i went for a second option ece test on my nerves which my s1 left 1.0 and dematomal conduction delay was replicated and he wanted to go back in were they wee before to take the compress off the nerve I went for one more option and they said my l4 has fliud and not enough spring so they want to do a fusion on my l4 and if the pain does not go away they want to insert an SCS box I am looking for advice i can not stand a long time so i use a wheel chair i'm in constant pain and have no feeling on my left side do you think a fusion surgery might help and them to take the compress off the nerve has anybody else gone through this very worried i will never be able to walk again they also said i'm obes so i could not have the artificial disc put in I am 5'4 200lbs

Kim-
I would get a second opinion. If this has not gone on too long, i would think getting the pressure off the nerves would relieve all the numbing. Getting your weight down will help any surgeries and subsequent recovery.

Not sure this will be of help to you; but I had L4-5 spinal fusion, as well as a laminectomy about 5 years ago. My vertebre was crushing a major nerve which the surgeon described as "one of the most red angy nerves I have ever seen".

While I still have chronic pain, use meds, and a cane for balance and have permanent nerve damage - had I waited much longer, the nerve would have been completely destroyed and I probably would not be walking today. The fusion has taken the pressure off the nerve. Thank God, I am mobile and walking.

Hey All

I actually forgot about this thread for a while, but this coming December 2011 is my 5th anniversary of my operation. It was at this point that i started to wonder if this thread was still alive so i thought i would check in and see. (I thought i had it setup to notify me when someone posts but it didn't, i had also forgotten my username and password but figured it out...lol). And now to my happy amazement it is still here and being used and now has 22 pages of replies!...crazy stuff, but i am so happy after reading people's posts on here that they have taken courage from my initial post and gone with the surgery, but not only that have been just as successful as i have been. That is all i wanted to do with this thread as i was sooooooo scared when i first started down this path as you will all know. I still shudder as i recall sitting there in pain one night reading about others horrific stories on the net when i was pre-op and looking for inspiration to have the fusion op. I'm glad others have found this thread and being encouraged enough to go through with it and thanks to all for posting also.

An update on me now post op, well as i said its 5 years this December and you will be glad to hear that i am still as good as ever!....some days i actually forget that i had previous back pain and was basically crippled some days , but it only takes a movement and the feel of the rods back there in my spine that reminds me of the past (as i said earlier this is a good thing in my opinion as it stops me lifting silly things and keeps me mindful of my back past and the second chance i have been given, hence not to do something stupid and waste what i have been given). I have no pain whatsoever, i rarely do the back exercises now as i think my back is now strong , i just live life normally and its sooooooo good!. I still get abit stiff if i sit in a chair too long, but its not pain at all, just muscle stiffness which happens in my legs and arms also if stuck in the same position for a long time without movement. Its nothing that a 2 min walk to go for a coffee from my desk doesn't fix, simple things now i almost take for granted like bending down to pick up something or putting my socks on each morning, or even sneezing!...i remember how i used to fall over every time i sneezed because of the pain...so overall i am still great five years on and can now sneeze and stay standing!, i haven't seen my surgeon for over 3 years now, but am thinking about going back for an x-ray soon just to see how things are , i even have a g/f now which is awesome! (sadly she is Australian though but i can see my way past that...lol)...i am still playing football and am very active, i am in no way held back at all by my operation and i haven't even really lost any flexibility that my surgeon said i might.

If anyone has any questions please ask and i will try and reply, i will continue to monitor and this thread abit more from now on incase others want to know more. I wish you all the best and God bless!

Mike

Awesome story to read mate, patience is the key and letting it heal, also a good exercise program is important, i was very cautious with my approach when going back into exercise as i wanted to get things right and i didn't really have anyone telling me what to do. All i can say is you have the rest of your life to enjoy your new back, so why not take it slow and make sure it all goes well. Its funny how you can feel the hardware in there isn't it ??

Awesome stuff mate!

Mike,

I am going to have a S1-L5 fusion in January 2012. I had a few questions for you if you do not mind? How big are the rods and how many screws did they use on your fusion? You say you can feel them, but my doctor has told me that there is now way I would feel because they would be so deep within the back. Can you reach back and feel yours?? Are you able to run or ride a bike with out any problems? How far are you able to bend over now after 5 years post? Thanks Mike

Hey mate

I can't feel the rods and bolts through my skin, but i can feel this "hardware" inside of me if you know what i mean, i can feel this foreign object inside me when i move around, yes i can ride a bike, run 5 miles, play football, do anything i want to. As for bending over i can still touch my toes! (only just though!)...lol...so no problems there, good luck with the operation, read my very first posts, they have all the good info in them about taking your time during recovery and also what i did to make mine a successful one.

all the best mate.

Mike

[ I am so glad to hear that your surgery was a relief to you. I too am a success story after fusion at C3-7. It is good to let other people know that the surgical root, can and does work for many people. Everything you said about recover is correct. I was in bed the first three weeks too, then did as you, walked a bit. Great news from you. Hope your holidays, after so many years in pain, are again happy and pain free. ginnie

Thanks Mike for answering all my questions! I forgot to ask if the screws and rods set off the airport alarms when you travel? Thanks again Mike.

Regards