Has anyone had a back fusion through the stomach?

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shawley

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Hi,
I had my fusions done from the back ,but I to have heard you have a better fusion sucess going through the front, but I don't know if I would want a scar on my tummy , bad enough my back looks like a extended butt crack I wouldn't want scar's on both sides..UNLESS I had hard times fusing (I do)

Good Luck I'm sure everything will work out just great :wave:
 
:wave: Hi My name is Jaylynn5,I had L4and L5 fusion in 2002,I had accident in Aug of 06 and I now need surgery to repair fusion and I have a blown disc below fusion,My doctor wants to go through the stomach,so he doesnt have to cut back muscles again.Has anyone ever had this done?and info Please .Jaylynn5
 
From what I understand you still get scar tissue in the tummy area and it may cause more pain. They have to cut right ? Your gonna get scarring.
I here you only have one shot,,,BUT it's a good chance you'll fuse so hopfully you don't have any problems.

I'm sure someone who had it done twice can give you better info.
Sorry if I scared you..It's just what I heard..:)
 
:wave: jaylynn5!! Welcome to the board. You have found a great place to post and I am sure someone will soon post that has had surgey this way. Both of my fusions have been posterior fusions with hardware. Supposedly the fusion thru the stomach allows for a better fusion.

Good luck and I pray your surgery goes well. Please keep us posted. :)
 
Welcome Jaylynn,

I had three level fusion done with both ALIF/PLIF incision. The front incision is about 5" long. I had inside stiches and peri striips on the outside for this one. It caused me very little grief for healing. The back was closed with staples. My doc said due to the length of it, he had to use staples. He felt the stiches would pull out...

Ask away if you have any questions and we will try to give them a go...

I am two years post surgery..

Welcome, once again...
Jill
 
Hey Roy,
Just an aside: one of my kiRAB is diabetic and is also a guitar player. He was distressed at having to stick his fingers. Before we even left the hospital after he was diagnosed a year or so ago, the nurses had him sticking his arm instead. You need a different tip on the lancet holder (whatever that thing is called), but he always uses his arm now. The only time his finger ever gets stuck is when he sees his endocrinologist, because that's what the nurse is used to doing. The arm stick is much less painful.

Emily ;)
 
Thanks everyone for there replys,I am to have surgery on the 18th of next month,Dr.told me to get off all pain meRAB,which is proving to be hard,what do you do for the pain?:dizzy: Going through the stomach is scaring me,just dont know what to expect.thanks all
 
Hi Jaylynn!

Welcome to the BoarRAB! I'm scheduled to have the ALIF, March 27th. My dr. said the success for fusion is better through the stomach and also the dr. has a better view of placing the cage. For the ALIF, you also have to have another surgeon do the open and close. I will have a cardiovascular surgeon.
He said it is very common. I too, was hesitant about it, but now feel good about it. I had one other back surgery and have a lot of scar tissue, so I'm glad he isn't going through the back to disturb the muscles there again. I will post how it goes after my surgery. My best to you!

Harmony
 
Jaylynn
Welcome you will find alot of support here. I had my surgery thru the back.
I have heard of Dr's asking patients to discontinue pain meRAB for a short time before surgery. This is because if your system is used to the pain meRAB it is harder to control your pain after the surgery.

Good luck and I will keep you in my thoughts and prayers.
 
I had a 360 fusion (both anterior and posterior). My experience was different from Jill's. My back incision was no big deal at all, but the front was horrible. I also had a great deal of swelling in the front, just a little in the back. I normally have a relatively flat tummy, but I was so swollen that I looked like I was 6 months pregnant after the surgury. So everyone's different. In general, it seems from reading the board that the front is harder to recover from, but there is a higher fusion success rate.

My surgeons didn't cut any muscles going in from the front. They gently stretched and repositioned all the "innarRAB" and then replaced them. A general surgeon did that part, then the two spine specialists took over.

If I had it to do over again, I would still go for the 360. I started fusing in only 6 weeks, and at 3 months the x-rays showed that I was fused!

Blessings,
Emily :wave:
 
Hi, I'm Dawn and my NS wants to fuse my spine both through the front and back. I hear going through the front is alot easier on the patient. I will probably be wait for another 6 months before I get mine done( work comp issues). I'm sure you will find what you need here on the board, the people here are wonderful.
 
That is a new one.....get off the pain meRAB........how are you supposed to do that when you are in pain. Hmmmmmmmm......:confused:
 
Hey thanks for your reply,I do have some ?'s I am scared,but need to know what to expect,can you fill me in?how long off work?dr, told me 1-2 days in hospital,amount of pain?my last one was bad,I was on the table over 6 hrs,had me out for 5 days in hospital,dont even remeraber much of it.thanks jaylynn5
 
Jaylynn,

I have not yet had mine, but its scheduled for May 1 and its going to be through the stomach to get better access to the front of spine and insert the cage easier. It seems there are a lot of "experienced people" on here that have had it this way with success, so look around on some of the older postings and yuo should find some answers there.

Ill keep you posted when I have the procedure on this website, unless yours is first then you get to tell us about it first!!

Good luck and I feel your pain.

Aaron
 
I have read someones whole story and pictures through out. The front incisiion looked like a c-section scar really low. It is suppose to bemuch easier to recover from.
 
Thats what I here to. Plus almost gauranteed fusion . But being that it's in the belly , scar tissue can cause alot of pain in that area. Scar tissue isn't painful it's the scar tissue putting pressure on things that cause the pain:dizzy: .
 
I forgot to mention , once you have this ALF you won't likely ever have another one do to scar tissue , it is more painful to have scar up front than in the back..Atleast that's the way my surgeon explained it to me cause i ask why he didn't go in from the front..It's a one shot deal but a very sucess rate of fusion..I would do it in a heart beat if it were me..

Have a great day :)
 

Hello again ,
My surgeon told me he had moved all the back muscle out of the way when he cut..I really don't think they cut the muscle.. I can't remeraber that I had muscle spasm's ?? Just remeraber the benefit you get from the front is a Better chance at fusion..

You will do great ,and will recover fast..we will see you on here after your fusion telling everyone all about it..

Rest and don't worry :)
 
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