This has nothing to do with anything esoteric, but it is something that I want as many people to know as possible -- please, do not ever let anyone operate on your back, especially if they want to "fuse disks." I have a facebook friend who is having back problems and maybe thinks that will be the solution. Needless to say that I already emailed her begging her to make sure she thinks carefully and explaining what I know.
What I know is that my sister and several friends of mine have had this operation only to actually get worse. In my sisters case, it took what seemed to be a perfectly healthy woman, crippled her to where she could barely walk and after that surgery (actually two because the first didn't work) she started developing health problems she never had before and eventually she died at a young age. Now I can't directly connect her health problems to those surgeries, but I know she didn't have them before the surgeries. At the very least, she ended up in more pain than those that didn't have the surgery and as I already said, she could hardly walk.
In the 6 or 7 people I know that had such surgery only one claims that it made her better and she was only 18 years old. I think the body heals better when you are younger. Whether that is the case or not, 1 person out of 6 is not very great odds.
So if you have back problems and are told you need surgery or someone you know or love is, think long and hard, ask the hard questions of your doctor. You will be in pain and likely to agree to anything, but please do as I ask and do some research.
Those I have known that didn't have surgery have ended up in better shape than those that have, so although there is pain, realize that it could actually be worse. I have some friends whose pain led them to choose surgery even though I begged them not to do it, now they wish they had listened to me.
5 comments:
My mom died from spinal stenosis - boy oh boy is that a story and a half. Her pain was like labor pains she said.
I'm sure you've tried this route but just in case.
The dangers of back surgery on your disc
In this next one below, the Mayo Clinic says.....
"Set realistic expectations. Beyond the immediate potential risks of spinal fusion surgery, the areas of your spine adjacent to the fusion will bear more stress. This makes those areas more likely to experience future wear and tear. That may mean you'll need to undergo surgery again. About 20 percent of people who have spinal fusion surgery need another operation within 11 years."
Here's the link that goes along with the paragraph above because there's much more toward the bottom of the page.
Mayo Clinic on Spinal Fusion
This next one below was unbelievable. I put the keywords 'Back Surgery Dangers' in Google and you should see the numbers of links. Those numbers tell me that it's definitely a serious issue and tough decision.
This one is a Google Search for BACK SURGERY DANGERS
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I am sorry to hear about your mom. That must have been horrible for her and everyone in your family.
Thanks for providing all that proof that I am right. :-) I didn't even think to google it, I just knew from all I have seen that it is true -- disk fusing doesn't work. Not only doesn't it work, it worsens the condition.
You are absolutely right, Lesley, it's a chancy proposition. However, in some cases the suffering causes people to go for it.
For what it is worth and I am not really sure if this is relevant to lower spinal cord injuries, but about six months ago I had a growing partial paralysis through my legs, etc as the four upper cartilage sections connected to the base of my skull had badly hemorrhaged. I was given an alternative surgery to fusion which was the insertion of artificial cartilage, which, to date, has completely alleviated the paralysis. I tried many other alternative therapies to no avail. Anyone who has this or any other serious illness really needs to be their own advocate, dont be intimidated by "experts", get several opinions,and weigh carefully the choices they present. In the end the one thing I learned is that not all physicians and\or surgeons are created alike, not all of them are up to date on newer techniques, and some are lousy diagnosticians.
My son was diagnosed with flu which I refused to believe and so I took him elsewhere and found he had spinal meningitis, and his brain was being crushed with fluid.
I am glad it worked for you Bruce! Now I know 2 people who have had it work. And yes, not all surgeons are created alike and sometimes I think they tell people they need surgery because they don't know what else to do, but it is the wrong treatment.
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