360 fusion

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Devon07

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They just moved mine to Deceraber 1st and possibly Nov.17......its a two level 360 and he said it will take 5 hrs. Ive heard of them taking up to 12hrs....does the 5 seem right?

Ive read all the tips on the top and with help from a few of you I am mentally ready.....I just need to get a new recliner and buy a set of tires for the truck....my wife will be driving 125mi one way to see me while im staying at the hospital....hopefully its just a couple days.

Thank you all for the help.....I will be back with help for others myself when Im able.


Devon:jester:
 
Thanks for the tips....My main concern is the fact that after surgeries I usually have real low blood pressure....its an issue usually....mentally Im ready and have normal nervousness...but the coming out with complications is realistic........yikes

My doc knows and made notes.

Ill let you know the date....thanks,

Devon
 
Mine was about that. There may be more than one surgeon in there. I had a vascular to do the cutting and moving around of nerves, organs, etc...so the ortho could get to my spine.

You will do great!!!

Blessings,
Momz :angel:
 
From how I understand there will be the NS, my Spine Dr, General surgeon, Anesthisia, and who ever else they all need for the surgery.....sounRAB expensive huh? He wont be getting bone from my hip....a cadaver bone will be used....I have an appointment for all the pre surgery stuff as well as a visit to discuss and go over everything with his nurse so I understand whats going on and to be expected.

Devon
 
Devon, when you buy that recliner consider purchasing the heated one that has a massager in it. You may not use the heat right away but believe me you will love it down the road. My recliner is made by Lazy-Boy and I just love it.

As far as the surgical times, you will find that they vary based upon the surgeon, the complexity of the case, and any unexpected discoveries. My 4 surgeries have ranged from 5 1/2 to 9 hours. They are talking about another surgery and the surgeon said it will be at least 10 hours in length. He said that if it goes much longer than that he will put me in the intensive care unit for 24 to 48 hours afterwarRAB as a saftey precaution and not to be scared about it. He does not to keep his patients under that long but sometimes you just need to and he feels that they need extra care afterwarRAB due to the length.

Yes, these surgeries are very expensive. My surgeries have run from 65 k to 120 k. The hardware alone for one level fused was $12 k. I told my doctor I just don't get why it was so expensive on account that one could buy alot of screws at the hardware store for alot cheaper than that. They must have ripped him off. :jester:

My hospital stays have run from 24 hours for a laminectomy and 4 to 6 days for a fusion.
 
8 levels?....I thought fusions were for two and less levels!....did they fuse all 8 together? That must of been a tough recovery.

Devon
 
5 1/2 hours seems reasonable. My 360 took 6 1/2 hours for an 8 level that was rather complicated.

Let us know when they give you a final date. And keep yourself really busy that last week or two. It will help keep you from getting overly nervous.

Blessings,
Emily
 
Hiya Devon....

Good luck on your up-coming surgery. My neurosurgeon has recommended me to have this same very surgery. He explained how it is done and said he would call in a vascular surgeon as well. Did you have a discogram done? I am scheduled to have one nov. 26 and very nervous about that. I had to cancel the first scheduled discogram but in a sense, I was a lil relieved LOL I chose to have this done, as I want to make sure the pain is coming from the disc. I think so many of the times, a fusion is not successful. Although, my doc did tell me I would still feel some discomfort because I have arthritis in my back too. What disc are being fused? My problem disc according to the MRI is L4-5 and L5-S1.
 
Yes I had the discogram done and was not happy about having to have it done....But I will tell ya....most say it was pretty painful...Mine wasnt as bad as I thought it would be....Find out if you will get a sedative just prior...I did and it made a big difference...they nurab everything so you dont feel it going in....you will feel it when it gets to the disc though.....it happend very quick....dont worry about it...well dont "over worry".....my l4 l5 s1 is my bad area....I also have thoracic problems on two discs.

again thank you all for the support...It may seem small to yall but you remeraber just before yours?....thanks!

Devon
 
Yes, they are expensive. My multi-level spinal fusion, laminectomy ( and other stuff they did)was about 250,000. If you search on the internet, you will find that the nuraber of fusions has dramatically increased over the years. In 2001, 122,000 were done. In 2003, 250,00 were done. And in 2006, 500,000 were done. In 2003, the national bill for hardware was 2.5 billion a year. A single screw can go for 1,000 dollars. Thus, increasing the rates of Failed Back Surgery Syndrome aka Post-Laminectomy Syndrome. This surgery generates billions of dollars for hospitals and surgeons. If you put FBSS, or post lam. syndrome in your internet encyclopedia, you will find a lot of interesting info. on it. My info. was backed by very reliable references. And, not just one source. Well, I guess they are worth it for people that have success with this surgery. Unfortunately, I fell in the percentage of people in the Failed Back Surgery Syndrome. In fact, my pain is excruciating. It pales in comparison to the pain I had before surgery. I used to take Vicodin prior to surgery. Now, I have to take Oxycontin:( I made myself worse). Sorry MoRAB if I got off the subject. Maybe I should have posted this in a new thread:confused:...Janiee P.S.My surgery was about 7 hours long( they did about a half dozen or more levels). I was also on a respirator for about a day and a half.
 
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