Appt. with Surgeon

So I met with my surgeon today.  We reviewed my status and he said he usually recommends doing another discectomy surgery before going overseas to try a disc replacement, but he also said that a disc replacement was an option if that is what I wanted to do.  I voiced my concerns about the large tear in my disc, and the failure of my disc to heal on its own when I had the internal disc tear, again failing to improve on its own during a year of conservative therapy after the initial herniation, and a failure to heal after surgery even though I did everything everyone recommended to me and more.  Also, I never regained the ability to sit for very long even after the surgery, and there would be at least another 4 month recovery before we could even see if the bet paid off.  He said he understood those concerns and that they were valid.  He had researched the Spinal Kinetics M6-L and said it looked like the best disc out there based on the data available.  He also mentioned the Rainer CA disc which they were looking at potentially being a trial site for.  I had reservations about the Rainer's ability to form a lasting bond with the bone.  I had read in another blog, where Dr. Boeree had the same concerns, and had also heard of the plastic walls of the disc splitting.  Also, there is almost zero track record for the Rainer disc so it would be a complete shot in the dark.  The M6 doesn't have a large number of years of experience, but it does have at least some years of usage with excellent results.

So we decided to pursue the disc replacement path.  He said he would have someone send me my medical records in an electronic format so I could send them overseas.  He also gave me a printed copy that I can scan in manually if I need to.  So the next step is to gather my records and contact Dr. Nick Boeree in England for a consultation.  From the hours of research, and numerous personal experiences with Dr. Boeree I had read closely, I have hope that he will be able to help.  I have yet to find a negative report from a patient of his.  My parents have their passport applications sent in, and I sent mine to be renewed this week and I paid the extra fee to have it expedited.  My surgeon said he would do whatever I needed to help facilitate the process, which I appreciated and is the reason I chose him to be my surgeon in the first place.  I hoped I wouldn't have had to rely on his experience with disc replacement when I had my first surgery, but I'm glad I planned for it just in case.