Re: ? About Pannus Formation...? For Those Who've Had TC Surgery

[Guest guest]

I was told by Dr B I had retroflexed odontoid with pannus formation. I

questioned my nurse and was told the pannus was a like a thickening on

the odontoid bone ?? I'm sure someone else will elaborate better.

About your TCS question... I wasn't told about not bending at the waste

tho. Learn something new every day. I really can't, or the squatting, I

get weak like you. ( I usually have my children do it/get it if I can).

I hope when someone replies, they could reply to the group, I'd like to

hear the answers as well. Thanks.

E

>

> Hello To All,

>

> Has anyone else been told they have Pannus Formation at TCI? Dr. Chan

(I think. Now that I know there's a Dr. Chen at TCI I get them mixed up)

the one who's the NS. He showed it to me on my latest MRI. He explained

about it pressing on my brain stem. That's about it. We didn't talk at

length about it because I was there for the TC surgery.

>

> Is anyone able to tell me what symptoms it would cause. Does it cause

the same symptoms a retroflexed odontoid would? What causes a Pannus

Formation? How is it different from a retroflexed odontoid?

>

> Thanks as always for the great support you all are.

>

> Next question. All you guys who are post op TC surgery. You know how

we're

> not supposed to bend at the waist? If I need to do something that

would require bending I try squatting/bending using my legs. My legs are

so weak I have a difficult time getting back up. Often I end up loosing

my balance and leaning/bending forward at the waist any way.

>

> What trouble will this cause me down the road? They tell us not to

bend at the waist for a reason. Anyone know why?

>

> Again thanks for any help you can offer.

>

> Take Care,

> Regina

> ACM1 11mm SM C6-T1

> Decompressed Oct. 15, 2001

> TC Surgery@ TCI Oct. 4,2007

>

[Guest guest]

I googled " pannus formation " and, on wittybrain.blogspot.com, found this

defintion:

Large retro-odontoid pannus formation (a thickening of the synovial membrane

around my backward-tilting C2 vertebrae, resulting from an overgrowth of

synovial cells and an accumulation of white blood cells)

Regina Burton wrote:

Hello To All,

Has anyone else been told they have Pannus Formation at TCI? Dr. Chan (I think.

Now that I know there's a Dr. Chen at TCI I get them mixed up) the one who's the

NS. He showed it to me on my latest MRI. He explained about it pressing on my

brain stem. That's about it. We didn't talk at length about it because I was

there for the TC surgery.

Is anyone able to tell me what symptoms it would cause. Does it cause the same

symptoms a retroflexed odontoid would? What causes a Pannus Formation? How is it

different from a retroflexed odontoid?

Thanks as always for the great support you all are.

Next question. All you guys who are post op TC surgery. You know how we're

not supposed to bend at the waist? If I need to do something that would require

bending I try squatting/bending using my legs. My legs are so weak I have a

difficult time getting back up. Often I end up loosing my balance and

leaning/bending forward at the waist any way.

What trouble will this cause me down the road? They tell us not to bend at the

waist for a reason. Anyone know why?

Again thanks for any help you can offer.

Take Care,

Regina

ACM1 11mm SM C6-T1

Decompressed Oct. 15, 2001

TC Surgery@ TCI Oct. 4,2007

[Guest guest]

Hi all,

I'm emailing a lot today...guess I'm avoiding

unpacking boxes at my new house today (I just moved).

:^)

Thought I'd add a little input into the pannus

formation discussion. I've got that diagnosis (from

TCI) too. Dr. B told me that I developed it because I

have instability in my c-spine (in my case from a

series of childhood falls of a horse--I was an avid

horseback rider and when learning to jump, you

sometimes fall onto your face,

Reeves-style). When my unstable c-spine moved from

instability (particulary the first vertebrae), the

parts of the vertebrae that stick up on the sides and

almost make contact with the skull move back an

forth...and the ligaments and tendons that support

those vertebrae stretch and over time begin to grow

bigger as if you are working them out like a muscle

you're working at the gym. " Pannus Formation " refers

to that built-up ligament/tendon that develops from

chronic c-spine instability. According to Dr. B, it's

a sign they use to diagnose cranial-cervical

instability.

Hope that helps. Maybe other people have a different

understanding?

Ginger

--- Hansen wrote:

> I googled " pannus formation " and, on

> wittybrain.blogspot.com, found this defintion:

>

> Large retro-odontoid pannus formation (a thickening

> of the synovial membrane around my backward-tilting

> C2 vertebrae, resulting from an overgrowth of

> synovial cells and an accumulation of white blood

> cells)

>

> Regina Burton wrote:

> Hello To All,

>

> Has anyone else been told they have Pannus Formation

> at TCI? Dr. Chan (I think. Now that I know there's a

> Dr. Chen at TCI I get them mixed up) the one who's

> the NS. He showed it to me on my latest MRI. He

> explained about it pressing on my brain stem. That's

> about it. We didn't talk at length about it because

> I was there for the TC surgery.

>

> Is anyone able to tell me what symptoms it would

> cause. Does it cause the same symptoms a retroflexed

> odontoid would? What causes a Pannus Formation? How

> is it different from a retroflexed odontoid?

>

> Thanks as always for the great support you all are.

>

> Next question. All you guys who are post op TC

> surgery. You know how we're

> not supposed to bend at the waist? If I need to do

> something that would require bending I try

> squatting/bending using my legs. My legs are so weak

> I have a difficult time getting back up. Often I end

> up loosing my balance and leaning/bending forward at

> the waist any way.

>

> What trouble will this cause me down the road? They

> tell us not to bend at the waist for a reason.

> Anyone know why?

>

> Again thanks for any help you can offer.

>

> Take Care,

> Regina

> ACM1 11mm SM C6-T1

> Decompressed Oct. 15, 2001

> TC Surgery@ TCI Oct. 4,2007

[Guest guest]

This is the correct definition of pannus formation, as stated below,

the thickening on the odontoid bone. Go to this link:

http://tinyurl.com/3xvqaj

and scroll down to Page 16, which shows a drawing of this area and

an arrow points to the pannus.

The difference between pannus and retroflexed odontoid is just that

this formation is around the point of the odontoid thereby creating

more mass to press into the anterior of the brainstem.

Pannus can form on a normal odontoid and therefore cause this

abnormal pressure...or it can form on a RO and cause even more

pressure. The results are the same. From this article, you can see

that PF is often seen in those with rheumatoid arthritis, a very

debilitating disease.

This article is long and not totally about PF, but it really should

help you to understand more about this.

Virginia

> >

> > Hello To All,

> >

> > Has anyone else been told they have Pannus Formation at TCI? Dr.

Chan

> (I think. Now that I know there's a Dr. Chen at TCI I get them

mixed up)

> the one who's the NS. He showed it to me on my latest MRI. He

explained

> about it pressing on my brain stem. That's about it. We didn't talk

at

> length about it because I was there for the TC surgery.

> >

> > Is anyone able to tell me what symptoms it would cause. Does it

cause

> the same symptoms a retroflexed odontoid would? What causes a Pannus

> Formation? How is it different from a retroflexed odontoid?

> >

> > Thanks as always for the great support you all are.

> >

> > Next question. All you guys who are post op TC surgery. You know

how

> we're

> > not supposed to bend at the waist? If I need to do something that

> would require bending I try squatting/bending using my legs. My

legs are

> so weak I have a difficult time getting back up. Often I end up

loosing

> my balance and leaning/bending forward at the waist any way.

> >

> > What trouble will this cause me down the road? They tell us not to

> bend at the waist for a reason. Anyone know why?

> >

> > Again thanks for any help you can offer.

> >

> > Take Care,

> > Regina

> > ACM1 11mm SM C6-T1

> > Decompressed Oct. 15, 2001

> > TC Surgery@ TCI Oct. 4,2007

> >

>

[Guest guest]

Hi All

When I watched the Ehlers Danlos video on TCI site, Dr Milhorat talked about the

formation of a pannus being related to Ehlers Danlos. That they find it in high

numbers of patients with the trifecta.

For anyone with EDS, it long, but a very worthwhile video. Dr Milhorat is my

new hero. All through that video I could swear he was talking about me and my

family. I know one thing for sure, my neck does not feel like the neck of a 40

year old. More like a 70 year old and the nausea and vomiting is worse every

day. I think my fusion, as much as I am dreading it, is not too far in the

future.

Just my two cents!

Lots of love,

Namaste,

in Pittsburgh

Chiari <5mm, TC, CCI, EDS

Decompressed July, 2002

TC surgery August, 2007

VP shunt placed, failed and removed 2001

http://leslieann226.googlepages.com/home