Melissa,
I am having the same problems, just wondering if you had the surgery or did you continue with PT. Sharon

Did you end up having surgery? I'm having problems with my si and was wondering what is out there for treatment. Thanks, Sharon

SI Joint surgery
 

Oh boy did I! The first time I was referred to Emory Hospital in Atlanta. (I live in Charleston, SC) I went first for a consultation. I was scheduled for the complete pre-op workup about a month later. By this time I was told that the joint ws flail. I had one leg about 2 inches longer than the other. The did like a SI joint block under fluoroscopy but without pain med and with dye. They needed to see if the pain was exactly duplicated and what the joint looked like with dye running through. You know the joint itself is very difficult to see. Afterwards, I went to a neurologist in the same building for a nerve conduction to see how much nreve damage or nerve root was involved. I also met with Vicki Mims who put the joint back in place. I got up and walked around to see how long it would stay and it didn't. While I was with her, this gorgeous young woman came in to meet me. She was about 20 years younger than me and a former soccer coach. After the surgery she could no longer do that kind of work but her recovery seemed wonderful. She was walking without assistance.
I went into surgery the following morning and , let me tell you that was the most painful experience I had ever had at that point. It was a very difficult recovery. I was under the impression I'd be out of work for 6 weeks, use the walker for around 3 months and then graduate to a cane for about 6 months. It was honestly not a good experience at all and regret it tremendously. Is the pain better. Excuse the expression but HELL NO X 10. First of all I will never have surgery by a surgeon that is 400 miles away. The physical therapists here, despite being given a specific protocol, seemed unnsure and really weren't sure what should be expected in terms of results. Eventually the pain returned with a vengeance, worse than ever before the surgery. There just happened to be an orthopedist who had a special interest in the treatment of this area and had some experience with this problem so he was kind of my last resort. After an MRI,Cat scan, it was determined that the pins were moving which meant the joint fusion had not healed. He was not at all optimistic that things were going to get better but he did offer me a surgery using larger pins and the removalof about 4 square inches of sacrum, ground it up and mixed it with bone cement. Again, this is not for the faint of heart. It was considered salvage surgery because by that time I was hardly able to walk. Well, I am now one year post op from the second surgery. Still walk with a cane but on really bad days I still use the alker. Pain is better controlled but I still use a long acting opiate as well as a short acting. To give hime credit, he told me to expect recovery to last anywhere from 6 months to a year. I am better. Just starting to get back to work. (I only work 6 hours a day). I'm terribly sick this week. I've tried to use less narcotics and have been using too much ibuprofen. I have several ulcers, so I'm week and sick. Oh yeah, my last x-ray one year after surgery showed that the fusion has healed still. This may be something wrong with me though by not being able to gro new bone. I had a cervical fusion about7 years ago and it took twice as long as it should for that to grow.

If I had it all over to do it again, the non-expert orthopedist here in Charleston would have been my first choice over the guy in Atlanta who is supposed to be such an expert and will tell you he has never had a failed fusion. Bells sould have rang then, failure to fuse is not necesary a reflection of the surgeon, it just sometimes happens and I didn't feel I was given a really informed consent and the possible complications or failures.

I'm never going to be the same again but then I couldn't live the way I was before. Way carefully how you are now and then find out the HONEST possible results afterwards. I am not happy with things but now that the pain is allowing me to do more things, I know it was probably the only way I could ever get around and 2 years later(since the first surgery) I am starting to get some of my old self back. I rode on the back of my husbands motorcycle Saturday and I never thought I woul be able to do that. It just takes TONS of patience.

new member post
 

Does anyone out there with this problem (post surgery) have difficulty with joint areas still "locking up" and with being able to "manipulate" the area into "moving". This is what I am experiencing. I have ongoing pain, with the tendency to relieve it a bit when it "crunches" as I move it around. Does this mean my fusion is unstable? I just had a CAT scan and xrays that the doctor says reveals that the fusion is "fused." Could this be a misdiagnosis? Also, what are the other possibilities? Torn scar tissue? Torn or sprained ligaments/tendons? I had lifting to do before the end of the school year, had several personal "movings" to do at home this summer, which all have resulted in chronic pain again with these SI joints. What do you guys think?

Post SI joint surgery
 

I'm a year post fusion and my last x-ray implicated that the fusion was still not complete. I sometimes get a slipping feeling associated with a click like it's goingg back into place. How long has itbeen since your surgery?Whee was itdone? The doctors all seem rather evasive about the soundness of the fusion. I wonder if I'm still growing bone ir if you just heal so much and that's it? I do seem to feel a bit more stable.My surgeon said to epect a 6 mont to a years recovery time.

lindamae
 

I have a SI dysfunction and I can't handle the pain anymore. I was at the point of thinking maybe SI fusion is what I want to do. But after reading your entries I don't know what to do. I have no life or hope. Help me I am so discouraged. lindamae

Gosh do I understand how you feel.A lot of people have had better success than I did. Its a year now since the 2nd attempt and I am still on long acting opiates and probably always will. You should make your decision after having speaking to a surgeon who SPECIALIZES in this. Most are very discouraged by the results yet I met a woman older than mself (I'm 51) who has done very well. It is a very hard recovery. I have to admit I am starting to feel somewhat better as my doctor is getting more aggressive with pain management. I work part time 6 and a half hours a day and have actually made 3 full weeks in a row. I've also had a lot of setbacks. I probably had a mild stroke while under anesthesia so I fell quite a few times, 6 weeks postop I totaled my car (shouldn't have been driving), now I'm dealing with a GI bleed due to Ibuprofen which is why I think they are pushing the pain meds. Right after the surgery I lost my beloved pet and the stress of the years of pain really has taken a toll on my marriage. I may have done better if he understood more and was more supportive. You will really need some to care for you for about a month almost full time. This is notone of those surgeries here the sooner you get up and walk the better. In fact, its quite the opposite. I am starting to get up but I will never be the same. Don't give up. Talk to a qualified surgeon, maybe two. DON'T GIVE UP!!!! Write to me anytime (my e-mail is eynon@musc.edu) I sure could have used a support person and I would be glad to be yours.

Wondering how GA was?
 

Hi there,
I'm new at this forum thing so forgive me if I'm doing with wrong. But after reading about your discussion about going to GA, I'm really curious of how things went with Vicki and Dr. Weiss. I live in Idaho and had an injury 6 years ago that damaged my SI joint. After lot of pain and research, I finally got Vicki's book and number. I'm currently planning a trip there myself. I would feel more at ease if I understood the process better. Just wondering how and what everyone is doing. Lindamae

Has anyone found any good exercises or stretches for SI / low back/gluteus maximus pain?

I have something in those areas that comes and goes and lots of under the skin stiffness or {fascia/myofascial} tightness.

I don't have any zaps or shooting pain down the leg- just more in the SI area and spreads into the butt cheek muscle.
more of a moderate discomfort then sometimes a moderate sharp pain and a low level throbbing.

chiro can fix it up, but it eventually keeps coming back after I do something to flare it up and it is bothersome for about a week or so.

I do have some hypermobility issues , I think this is part of the reason it keeps returning.

Have a look at this website Jo*Mar.
http://www.spine-health.com/wellness...nt-dysfunction

This page has an exercise regime specifically for those having problems with their SI area. If it's not what you're looking for... try searching the site from their home page. I found most things I was looking for were well covered, so tend to think it's a very comprehensive site.

While checking out this particular link, I found what I thought was probably the root of my own lower back pain and the terrible nerve pain I've been experiencing in my buttock and thigh recently, and when I mentioned it to my physio today, he totally agreed with me. I now have a much better idea of what I'm dealing with.