Sunday, September 9, 2012

Past year 1 mark

I had my 1 year check up with my surgeon about a month ago.  Nothing new to report other than I still feel great.  He had x-rays taken which still show the disc moving as it should.  He said from now on, I'll probably just need to follow up with him once per year, and didn't think he would even take x-rays next time.  I still have zero pain in my back.  I have gotten myself back into close to as good of physical shape as I have been in a long time.  I use my elliptical machine several times per week, do a couple of strength workouts with my resistance bands and I've been biking a lot.  I've worked by distance up to about 60 miles in one go on my old, heavy, mountain bike which takes me around 4.5 hours.  My back is a bit tired afterwards, but no pain.  I was looking into getting a road bike as I've really been enjoying biking, but after trying out a couple, I find that the more forward riding position does make my back feel a little weird so I think I'll stick to a mountain bike or maybe some sort of flat bar road bike.  I've felt completely recovered for quite some time now, but I am mindful of my back, and the memories of what it was like to be in constant pain are never far from my mind so I am pretty cautious and think I always will be.  I may not make very many posts as things seem to have been pretty constant for the last several months.  I will be sure to make updates if something changes, but if there are no more posts, you can assume all is well.

10 comments:

  1. I read that you were 6'2" at an earlier point in your life. How tall were you, and how much did you weigh, at the time of the m6L implantation? I'm 6'5" and worried that the M6L will be too small. I understand that Spinal Kinetics only has 3 sizes: small, medium, and large. I assume you got the large one. Thanks if you can reply.

    Ray

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  2. I was (and still am) 6'2" and weigh(ed) about 165lbs. In addition to the disc sizes, they do come in a number of degrees of lordosis to help match the curvature of the spine. My disc was the large size and had 10 degrees of lordosis. Mr. Boeree had told me during my consult that he generally tried to use the largest disc that would fit and not extend past the end plates of the adjacent vertebrae, but I think there is some margin there. I have seen x-rays from successful outcomes that varied a bit in how much margin there was. So I would consult with a Dr. and get their opinion. Good luck.

    -Tim

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  3. Hi Tim, Congratulations on your excellent recovery, and also on your blog, which is one of the most useful online resources I've encountered. I'm currently researching L5-S1 ADR, and am leaning towards Dr Ritter-Lang (although I would certainly have considered Dr Boeree, had it not been for his tragic loss).

    One issue I've not been able to find much info on to date is the debate about whether patients should wear a surgical corset for 4-8 weeks post-op. Dr Bertagnoli (ProSpine), the Wellington Hospital (UK) and the SpineService (Sydney) all emphasise it, whereas it seems that Ritter-Lang (and the late Dr Boeree)don't use surgical corsets at all. I was wondering if you have any thoughts/experiences to share on this? Perhaps it came up in your own research or conversations with surgeons?

    Thanks again for the great blog!

    Paul

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  4. Hi Paul,

    Sorry to hear of your back troubles. You may also want to consider Dr. Chris Dare who was trained by Mr. Boeree and is now running the Spine Clinic in the UK, albeit under a different name at the request of Mrs. Boeree. I have heard good things about him, although I have not interacted with him myself. I have also heard good things about Dr. Pablo Clavel in Spain. All of them use the M6 (at least they were the last I knew).

    I recall Mr. Boeree briefly mentioning the corsets and his view was that they were not needed and could actually cause the core muscles to become deconditioned due to lack of use as the corsets will restrict movement. Perhaps they might be needed when performing multiple level surgeries, or in special cases where extra support/protection is needed. I never felt like I needed one, but of course that is my individual, non-medically trained opinion. I would trust the opinion of your particular doctor, as every case is unique.

    Best of luck.
    -Tim

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    1. Many thanks, Tim, for passing on Mr Boeree's view on the corset - I can see the logic, for sure. Thanks also for mentioning Drs Clavel and Dare, who I'll certainly check out.

      I've also seen good reviews of Mr Khai Sing Lam (Guy's and London Bridge Hospitals http://www.totalhealth.co.uk/clinical-experts/mr-khai-lam) and Mr David Harrison (Princess Margaret Hospital http://www.bmihealthcare.co.uk/consultant/consultantdetails?p_name=David-Harrison&p_id=42929)

      Cheers,

      Paul

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  5. Thanks for sharing your story with all of us.
    Well written. Organized content is the best way to display or post an article, thank you for making it easy to digest your post.

    Degenerative Disc Disease Treatment


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  6. I am comparing Germany to Spain? Thoughts on this? Cost difference? Easier for family and travel? Warranty as so to say for a US citizen. Is there anything to help out in Spain for my ancestors being from there but not a citizen of Spain? I have gotten several different quotes from different places in Germany but none from Spain and they range from 86,000 EUR on down. Please any help would be appreciated, I am at a complete loss here and highly confused, just tired of hurting... Cindy

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    1. Sorry to hear of your back troubles. It has been nearly 6 years since my surgery, so I'm sure things have changed quite a bit since then. When I was looking, Dr. Boeree was my first choice (although I've heard Dr. Dare who took over the for Dr. Boeree is excellent as well), Dr. Pablo Clavel in Spain was my second, and Germany was my third. I'm afraid that is about all I can offer in terms of who to choose. I wish you the best of luck and hope you find relief.

      -Tim

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