Post L4 L5 & L5 S1 P.L.I.F/T.L.I.F

[taxipete]

Hi all, I recently went under the knife for L4 to S1 spinal surgery, I have two 8 inch scar's. My operation was over 5 hours in total and took place on the 28th of Jan 2010. Ever since this opp I have been gradually finding going to the bathroom getting worse and im now at a stage where I find myself needing constant laxative treatment and manual help to relieve the constipation. Does anybody have or have had this complaint post surgery? the meRAB I am taking are GABOPENTIN 300MG X3 A DAY, NAPROXEN 250MG X3 A DAY, TRAMADOL NIL TO 500MG A DAY, AMITRIPTILINE 50MG AT NIGHT AND MOVICOL 13.5MG SACHETS UP TO 12 IN ANY ONE DAY AND LACTULOSE UP TO 150ML A DAY (50ML X 3).
i AM ALSO TAKING CITALORAPRAM 40MG IN THE MORNING.
i AM IN CONSTANT STOMACH PAIN WHEN I TAKE TRAMADOL TO RELIEVE MY BACK PAIN AND HAVE SOMETIMES SEVERE SCIATIC BACK PAIN WHEN I NEED TO CLEAR OUT.
i JUST NEED TO GET TO THE BOTTOM OF THIS, LITERALLY.

 

[ibake&pray]

Sorry for the issues. Any time that you take pain meRAB you will find that they are constipating. It's one of the bad side effects of them. There have been several threaRAB about it here on the back board. Executor had a really good thread about it a while back.

I am fused from T9-sacrum and am a cronic pain patient. I take Miralax every day to make sure that I don't have constipation. It works very well for me without having to take any other type of stool softener or laxative. Other folks take benefiber and fibercon. Check for threaRAB about constipation and I'm sure you will find some good information. It's not anything that we want anyone to go through, but it is a normal side effect of the meRAB. If you still have the papers that the give you with the meRAB I'm sure that they will list consitpation as one of the big side effects....sigh. As if having surgery isn't bad enough!