I am scheduled for surgery on Friday 1/26/07, to fix a spur at c5-6. After listening to the Doctor's it sounded like it would be a fairly simple procedure that would eliminate the pain that runs from my neck down my right arm to the tips of my thumb and pointer finger. After reading some of these posts I am beginning to wonder how long recovery really takes and if the pain will really be gone.
My pain came on in 3 days time and has been aching now for almost 6 weeks. I would really like to hear some feedback on how you are feeling now after the twelve week period in which you are required to wear your brace and collar. The bone they are using to fuse in will come from my hip which they say is the better way to go than to use a cadabber bone. Feedback?
Not looking forward to trying to sleep comfortably with the collar or even using the restroom. How did you manage that? I am 6'6 and 300#'s and I detect a little difficulty. I will get some practice in once my collars are fitted on Tuesday before surgery. Any feedback is welcome.

Thanks,
Tripn

Tripn,

I'm sorry that I've only noticed your post just now. I'm hoping your surgery went well!

I know that reading some of our posts must be scaring you a bit, but please remember that most of the people who have this surgery feel tons of pain relief and then go on to live a normal pain-free life and are too busy . The minority of us who have continued pain or problems remain here looking for support and answers. There are even some who had successful surgeries but keep coming back to the forums to give support and advice to those who are still dealing with their spinal issues.

I had my C5/6/7 fusion with my own iliac crest bone back in June '06. Since then I have experienced problems with the nerves in my hip, but my PM believes it might be aggravated by the fact that I am quite thin and there is no padding to protect the nerves. I also had two hernia's repaired right next to the autograft site on my hip just 3 weeks after my ACDF surgery which just added to the scar tissue in the area and is contributing to the nerve irritation. As far as the pre-op and post-op pains, mine seem to have not changed and if anything, they've slightly progressed. I'm still going through the process of trying to finding out why, but have no answers yet. Everyone is different, so keep a positive outlook, the odds are with you!

I hope you're doing well and recover from your surgery quickly. Keep us posted on how you're doing.

Best wishes,

Kim

Hello all,

This is my first post but I have been reading along for the last 9 months.
I had ACDF on C4-5-6 in Jan. of this year. Apparantly it wasn't a cure-all because I am still having problems with pain in my right arm and thumb, just below C6 on both sides and a large area in the middle of my back between my shoulder blades. It started out with just a small numb area in the middle of my back but since surgery the area is about the size of a postcard and is numb, the pain starts out as a severe itch there and on the outside of my right arm at the elbow and forearm then progresses to burning then severe pain! Sometimes I can just turn my neck a certain way and those areas will just throb with pain!
I am now in the process of getting injections AGAIN to help with the arthritis in the facet joints which they say may be causing the pain? I'm not so sure about that! The plate they put in is at an angle to my spine but they say it doesn't matter if it's crooked, I'm not sure about that either? You would think that if it was crooked it would exert pressure in the direction it is off and press on the nerves but of course they say no. On top of the neck problem they hit a nerve in my lower back when they did the mylogram prior to surgery because of an extremely narrow epidural space then when the opening in my spine didn't close they had to do a blood patch which further irritated the nerve so now I have pain in my left leg that feels like a really bad ache you get after you have hit your funny bone! AHHHHHHHHHH! But it sure isn't funny!! They did and MRI and found narrowing canal along with bulging discs and one ruptured disc on L4, at this point I have lost feeling in my big toes on both my feet. Kind of strange it is on both sides???? So now I am waiting to see what they will do there??
But the good thing is I have finally overcome my depression due to all this and I am taking it one day at a time, keeping the faith that eventually I will be able to join the world of the working class again!

As for GERD and constipation, I use to have ulcerative coilitis, GERD and IBS but I was able to "cure" these problems throwing away my nexium and adding 2tblsp of "Bragg Organic Apple Cider Vinegar" in a full glass of water twice a day. I also stopped eating pork but that was just my preference. It took about 1 day for the GERD to stop and a couple of weeks for the rest.

I "cured" my constipation from taking the pain meds by drinking 4 ounces of Aloe Vera juice mixed in the juice of choice "i use orange juice" but any thing you like will work. It doesn't have much taste so you can add as much or as little juice as you need. I haven't been constipated since I started this and I lost 20lbs.

My mom has diverticulitis and after she started doing the same she hasn't had any more attacks so what do you have to loose?

I wish all of you well and pray that you all find relief from your pain.

Cindy

Hey,
I didnt even know there was a place like this on the web. I just had my C5-C6 fused on Mondat the 27th. So far my right side pain in all gone but I have pain on my left now. I hope this is just a carryover effect from them rooting around in there. I really wont know my range of motion for a couple more days after I take off the bandage on my neck. The most painful part of the procedure is swallowing. I am so hungry but applesauce and Cream of Wheat can only take me so far.
Let me describe why I decided on it for future viewers. I am in the Marines and I can not run due to the vertical punishment of the very nature of running. Well, after about 15 months of sucking it up and one deployment to Iraq, I needed to get this taken care of. My symptoms were extreme pain down my right shoulder through my elbow and sometimes my hand. After I injured it the first time it took about 10 months to plateau at its pre-op level which meant I could play golf (not swing so hard) but couldnt exercise.
I will give an honest update to anyone who cares to hear them. Wish me luck and God bless all of you.

"Okay, now Norco is a "baby" Vicodin" quote, hmmm, what do you mean Norco is a "Baby Vicodin", maybe you mean a newer Vicodin which it is, but the 7.5mg dose is the codine in the pill, while a 5/500 in Vicodin is 5 mg of codine...when you said baby I though you meant it was a smaller dose pill? What did you mean, "Oh sorry for jumping in here but it kinda threw me", I'm new here.

You asked; The bone they are using to fuse in will come from my hip which they say is the better way to go than to use a cadabber bone. Feedback?

Yes, from what I have been told it is better, I had the C5-6 fusion in 1990, and I regret they didn't use my bone, but instead used bone from a bone bank....I've been told that the pain I suffer with is due in some to that fact and that using your own bone is a way better deal, so at least your headed in the right direction...I can tell you I've had problems since 1990, mostly pain and stiff neck, for the longest time it felt like a rock had been transplanted into my neck, I'm on disablility now and have been since that surgery, not to discourage you, most people do good when they use their own bone...just do what they say and don't be lifting anything heavy ok...Good Luck or hope you did good whichever applies. futurexboy

Had C5 C6 2 yeras ago. Disc was ruptured. took 2 my doc 2 months to order MRI and then opeation in 2 days after it was done.
Immediately lost all pain in arm. STill have numbness and stinging on 2 fingers on left hand. Sometimes it is very difficult to deal with. But, all the neck down the arm horrifc pain was gone immediately after I wole up from surgery.

had c 5 c6 fusion done 2 years ago. When I woke up from operation, all arm and neck pain were gone and have not returned. Left hand finger numbness and stinging and burning sensation remain even now.

I had fusion at c5 /c6 back in Feb 2008 and to this day i am still having stinging pains in my upper arms (fills like being pinched) that change from right to left arm. What is the typical recovery for nerve issues? Docs are saying 12-18 months. Not sure I believe them.

Had acdf c5 c6 done on November 1, 2008 because MRI showed that discs had completely flattened against spinal cord. Felt better for about 2 weeks until symptoms came back worse than before surgery. Both arms and hands are now totally numb and have lost approx. 80% of motor skills in left hand making it difficult to pick up anything. NS said it could be because nerve path is now opened up and could take months to heal or it could be permanent spinal cord damage due to length of impingement. New MRI done yesterday to find out what is going on. Will see NS next week to see what he says.