Re: Spinal Stimulator, was research

[Guest guest]

Hi Diane,

As I said, I've had a stimulator implant since 1995. The surgery was done

in June, after several months of testing to see if I was considered a

suitable candidate. I had to undergo a lot of X-rays and physical exams,

psychological testing (mainly to see if they felt I could cope with having

the device implanted, apparently some people can't cope with being able to

feel the device under the skin), and then a one-week trial with a test unit

to see if it would work well enough to go through with the surgery. During

the testing phase, they implanted the spinal column leads temporarily and

attached them to an external unit.

The implant surgery was done on an overnight-stay basis. There are four

leads implanted and anchored inside the spinal column. The lead wires are

snaked just under the skin to the side of the abdomen, just below the rib

cage on my right side, where the pulse generator unit is implanted. The

pulse generator is programmed by the pain clinic and I have a small remote

control to use to adjust the pulse level up or down and turn it on and off.

The clinic sets the parameters that I can adjust. The initial adjustment

procedure can be quite time-consuming and irritating as they try to get the

unit set to give the most benefit.

Since 1995, the pulse generator unit has been replaced four times, most

recently in May of last year. That number is higher than what they consider

usual because one of the units was apparently defective, in that it lasted

less than a year. The latest unit has a higher capacity battery and at the

settings I use, is expected to last two years. When it was first put in,

they had the unit set to operate for two minutes and then go off for one

minute. It is now set to operate constantly, except when I decide to turn

it off.

I had no real trouble with any of the surgeries, until the one in May. I

developed a mild infection and had trouble with the sutures following that

one. Recovery time from the original surgery was about a week, since it

involved placing the leads. Recovery following the generator replacements

is much quicker, since the unit is placed just under the skin. Pulse

generator replacements are done as outpatient surgery.

The stimulator gives me *about* a 40-50 percent pain reduction in the left

leg. It does little for my back pain. Some of that could be due to the

location of the leads. My worst pain is due to nerve damage in the left leg

so that was the area they concentrated on. I still take Oxycontin and OxyIR

along with NSAIDS, etc., but I also have arthritis, fibromyalgia,

degenerative disk disease, failed low back syndrome, etc., etc., etc.

The sensation from the unit is something like the feeling when your leg

falls asleep and starts to come back, or a mild electrical jolt. It's not

at all uncomfortable under most situations. I have to watch it when I lay

down or shift to certain positions because it changes the location of the

leads in relation to the spinal cord. The stimulation can get a lot

stronger at those times, so I have to adjust the unit before laying down.

I've also found that some store security devices can give you a jolt and go

off when you walk through them. I have an ID card that explains the unit.

In the stores I go to frequently I've learned to give the security scanners

as wide a berth as possible and the clerks all know me by now when the unit

goes off.

Overall, the unit has helped me quite a bit, even though over the five-year

period I've gone from full-time employment to part-time to very part-time

to working from home to Social Security Disability. Thanks to the

stimulator the leg pain has stayed pretty well controlled, despite my

losing the ability to flex the foot or ankle and have very little motion

left in the knee.

It's something that is going to work differently for every person, and, of

course, every one of us has different symptoms and problems. It's not a

one-stop panacea but if your doctor thinks it might be a good choice it's

worth considering.

Please let me know if you have any other questions.

Hower

Central Pennsylvania

[Guest guest]

Wow ,

Thanks for that very thorough response! What you have said is pretty much

what I have been reading- it is great for periphery pain but not at all

helpful for back pain. I think you aare so very brave to have undergone so

many surgeries with that? Have you had back surgeries? or back surgeries

that have failed? How large is the unit in your back??

My Dr. suggested this as I had indicated some interest in changing therapy

modalities by wanted to wean off of neurontin which I take for numb areas

that also hurt deep inside (very hard to describe) that I got immediately

following my first back surgery. The neurontin encourages water retention,

which is probably the last thing I need. *</;-) In '99-'00 I had several

back surgeries, the last two were due to infection caused by the hospital. I

had a 4 1/2in long and 3+in deep hole in my back left to close on it's own.

Then, they discovered that the infection had set into the bone so another

debridement and removal of some infected bone and more antibiotics.The Dr.

also suggested a morphine pump and some other ideas that are all surgical. I

can't do that. Just hearing that you got an infection madee my stomach turn.

Congrats to you an the success of your spinal cord stimulator- even if it

took several tries ;-) it must feel great to have that leg pain gone- I

still have it, due in part to residual from polio and from damage to the

nerve root. I hope the lates one you have will last far longer. YOu have a

marvelous attitude, .

Regards,

Diane

Re: Spinal Stimulator, was research

> Hi Diane,

> As I said, I've had a stimulator implant since 1995. The surgery was done

> in June, after several months of testing to see if I was considered a

> suitable candidate. I had to undergo a lot of X-rays and physical exams,

> psychological testing (mainly to see if they felt I could cope with having

> the device implanted, apparently some people can't cope with being able to

> feel the device under the skin), and then a one-week trial with a test

unit

> to see if it would work well enough to go through with the surgery. During

> the testing phase, they implanted the spinal column leads temporarily and

> attached them to an external unit.

>

> The implant surgery was done on an overnight-stay basis. There are four

> leads implanted and anchored inside the spinal column. The lead wires are

> snaked just under the skin to the side of the abdomen, just below the rib

> cage on my right side, where the pulse generator unit is implanted. The

> pulse generator is programmed by the pain clinic and I have a small remote

> control to use to adjust the pulse level up or down and turn it on and

off.

> The clinic sets the parameters that I can adjust. The initial adjustment

> procedure can be quite time-consuming and irritating as they try to get

the

> unit set to give the most benefit.

>

> Since 1995, the pulse generator unit has been replaced four times, most

> recently in May of last year. That number is higher than what they

consider

> usual because one of the units was apparently defective, in that it lasted

> less than a year. The latest unit has a higher capacity battery and at the

> settings I use, is expected to last two years. When it was first put in,

> they had the unit set to operate for two minutes and then go off for one

> minute. It is now set to operate constantly, except when I decide to turn

> it off.

>

> I had no real trouble with any of the surgeries, until the one in May. I

> developed a mild infection and had trouble with the sutures following that

> one. Recovery time from the original surgery was about a week, since it

> involved placing the leads. Recovery following the generator replacements

> is much quicker, since the unit is placed just under the skin. Pulse

> generator replacements are done as outpatient surgery.

>

> The stimulator gives me *about* a 40-50 percent pain reduction in the left

> leg. It does little for my back pain. Some of that could be due to the

> location of the leads. My worst pain is due to nerve damage in the left

leg

> so that was the area they concentrated on. I still take Oxycontin and

OxyIR

> along with NSAIDS, etc., but I also have arthritis, fibromyalgia,

> degenerative disk disease, failed low back syndrome, etc., etc., etc.

>

> The sensation from the unit is something like the feeling when your leg

> falls asleep and starts to come back, or a mild electrical jolt. It's not

> at all uncomfortable under most situations. I have to watch it when I lay

> down or shift to certain positions because it changes the location of the

> leads in relation to the spinal cord. The stimulation can get a lot

> stronger at those times, so I have to adjust the unit before laying down.

> I've also found that some store security devices can give you a jolt and

go

> off when you walk through them. I have an ID card that explains the unit.

> In the stores I go to frequently I've learned to give the security

scanners

> as wide a berth as possible and the clerks all know me by now when the

unit

> goes off.

>

> Overall, the unit has helped me quite a bit, even though over the

five-year

> period I've gone from full-time employment to part-time to very part-time

> to working from home to Social Security Disability. Thanks to the

> stimulator the leg pain has stayed pretty well controlled, despite my

> losing the ability to flex the foot or ankle and have very little motion

> left in the knee.

>

> It's something that is going to work differently for every person, and, of

> course, every one of us has different symptoms and problems. It's not a

> one-stop panacea but if your doctor thinks it might be a good choice it's

> worth considering.

>

> Please let me know if you have any other questions.

>

> Hower

> Central Pennsylvania

>

>

>

> Know someone who could profit from our list? Send our direct sign-up URL:

/subscribe.cgi/chronic_pain or write us at:

chronic_pain-listowneregroups

> Manage your subscription with several special email addresses:

> chronic_pain-owneregroups - Sends email to the list owners

> chronic_pain-subscribeegroups - Subscribe to the list through email

> chronic_pain-unsubscribeegroups - Unsubscribe from the list

> chronic_pain-normalegroups - Switch your subscription to normal

> chronic_pain-digestegroups - Switch your subscription to digest

>

>

>

>

[Guest guest]

Hi Diane,

Most of my medical problems stem from a spinal fusion done in 1973. It was

my graduation present from high school :-< I was in good shape following

the recuperation, and it lasted until about 1980. I had weakness in my left

leg after the surgery because they took the bone graft from the hip and

apparently did some damage. Starting in '80, I had progressively more

trouble and on and off pain, becoming more on than off over the years. I

had to start using a cane occasionally in the early '80s and progressed to

one forearm crutch by '95 and two crutches all of the time for about three

years. I use a wheelchair if we go to the mall or a museum. We were

planning a vacation (Disney) about five years ago and I talked to my

rheumatologist about my concerns over walking and standing. He suggested

the wheelchair and with his prescription the Arthritis Foundation supplied

a brand new chair through their " Loan Closet " program. Making the move to

the chair, even on a limited basis, was hard, mentally, but it was really

the only option.

The pulse generator unit in my side is about the size of a pack of playing

cards. There is no unit in the back, just the wires going into the spinal

column. There is one connector just to the side of the spine that can be

felt, and I have to watch that I don't lean against anything and hit that

-- no danger of damage to it, just a painful reminder that it's there. It

hasn't relieved all of the leg pain, it just brings it to a manageable

level most of the time and reduces the dosage of pain meds.

I think I can understand the type of pain you mentioned -- numb but hurting

deep inside. That's a tough pain to deal with. I still have some of that in

my left leg but with the stim it gets it to the point where I can tolerate

it and can sit and usually sleep. With the trouble you've had with back

surgery I can see why you're hesitant to undergo another procedure.

The latest pulse generator that they put in has a new type of battery that

Medtronic is using and should last two years at the settings I use. When

they did the one before the Medtronic rep was telling me about a

rechargeable unit they were testing. The battery could be charged by

holding a charging unit over the implant. They were hoping to get it to the

point where it would have to be recharged every two or three days, taking

an hour or two while you were watching TV, or whatever. He told me

recently, though, that they shelved the project because the battery had to

be recharged two or three times a day and they couldn't seem to improve on

that performance.

Take care,

Hower

Central Pennsylvania