Back Surgery Question

[Hardcortex]

L5-S1 laminectomy in 1991. I held out until I couldn't walk, and searched the best neurosurgeon I could in Houston. Woke up pain free and able to walk the same day. Honestly wish all my injuries/repairs were that easy.

Do the rehab, religiously. Do extra at home when able. Keep your weight in check, you'd be surprised what 5 lbs can feel like on your back. As mentioned above, recovery will depend on lots of factors, there's no doubt having the surgery in my 20's was easier than it would be in my 50's.

Even though the doc said "see ya in a few years" because I have other damaged discs, I have not had any other trouble to date, and I'm pushing 58. I am in better shape today than I have ever been, and can do just about anything - run, physical labor type work, workout, climb etc. I do keep my feet, hips and shoulders square, and use my knees a lot more - advice I'd give anyone.

[GarrettH]

Had 4 and 5 without fusion, Dr. Cartwright in Houston was amazing. Best thing I ever did, the pain was unbearable, he shaved a significant amount vertebrae but I guess that is a thing. Recovery was relatively short. I was up and driving around day 3 believe

[Hughiam]

i have a fusion done at L4-L5. Seek a neurosurgeon as opposed to a Ortho. I have had 4 procedures done so far, Laminectomy, partial fusion, full fusion, then removal of hardware. I am very careful now and have only had a few issues since the last surgery. Recovery has alot to do with your age and overall fitness. I was 55 when I had the last one done and total recovery was less than 6 month. Good luck

[Bellavita]

I had a fusion at L5-S1 in 2012 due to herniations from a car wreck. L3-L5 also herniated, but surgeon didn't want to fuse that many being that I was younger (42 at the time.) Took me 14 months to be completely pain free. You won’t want to lift anything (including a gallon of milk) for a while and probably shouldn’t lift anything over 25lbs forever once you’re completely healed. I wore a hard brace at all times except when sleeping for a few months (2-3?) Gabapentin is an awful med, would try to avoid it if you can. Was pain free for 10yrs and now L2-L5 are worse due to normal progression, but pain is minimal-moderate if I get injected every 6-8 months. I tried injecting stem cells into the bad discs a couple of years ago and that didn’t help at all. My best advice - buy a tempurpedic mattress. It’s been a godsend! If I have a bad day, after a night’s sleep, I wake up pain free because there are zero pressure points. My surgeon is in Dallas and fantastic - Dr Bryce Benbow. He also did my C4-C7 cervical fusion and I have had zero issues and no pain since surgery. Best wishes to you for a speedy recovery!

[John Paul]

Holy Laminations so to speak. All went well, but the pain is other worldly. Surgery was Monday morning and we are in Thursday evening and with Ice packs and the ocational pain medicine and a drink or two I can finally think straight. That was a hard deal to go through, hoping to get some sort good recovery in 6- 9 months.

[ThisLadyHunts]

Holy Laminations so to speak. All went well, but the pain is other worldly. Surgery was Monday morning and we are in Thursday evening and with Ice packs and the ocational pain medicine and a drink or two I can finally think straight. That was a hard deal to go through, hoping to get some sort good recovery in 6- 9 months.

Wow, sounds rough! It sounds like your drinkin’ arm is working okay, though.

[glen]

I know it is uncomfortable but get up and walk as much and often as you can.

[PlanoDano]

I blew mine out and also developed a degenerative component. Started with laminectomy on l4-l5 then discectomy on l4-l5 l3-l4 with fusion followed by 360 l3-l4 l4-l5 l5-s1. others lasted about 10 to 11 years. 360 seems permanent. If I knew then what I know now I would have asked for the 360 to start with and saved myself a lot of pain and nerve damage. If you have the disc penetrate the nerve sheath you will get a whole new understanding of what a pain level 10 is.

[John Paul]

I blew mine out and also developed a degenerative component. Started with laminectomy on l4-l5 then discectomy on l4-l5 l3-l4 with fusion followed by 360 l3-l4 l4-l5 l5-s1. others lasted about 10 to 11 years. 360 seems permanent. If I knew then what I know now I would have asked for the 360 to start with and saved myself a lot of pain and nerve damage. If you have the disc penetrate the nerve sheath you will get a whole new understanding of what a pain level 10 is.

Had a cracked L4 so a cyst had developed and was "strangling" my nerve sheath so yes now its a different pain, but the nerve pain was the worst.

[ThisLadyHunts]

I blew mine out and also developed a degenerative component. Started with laminectomy on l4-l5 then discectomy on l4-l5 l3-l4 with fusion followed by 360 l3-l4 l4-l5 l5-s1. others lasted about 10 to 11 years. 360 seems permanent. If I knew then what I know now I would have asked for the 360 to start with and saved myself a lot of pain and nerve damage. If you have the disc penetrate the nerve sheath you will get a whole new understanding of what a pain level 10 is.

Was the nerve sheath able to repair itself after surgery? Was the nerve permanently damaged?

[pigsticker64]

Do not have fusing done.. It will NOT fix anything . it will only line up up for another surgery.. That is just my option. I had the wrong doctor at first and messed me up even more. By GODS grace I have great doctor now.. good luck to you ..

[PlanoDano]

Was the nerve sheath able to repair itself after surgery? Was the nerve permanently damaged?

seems they were able to get a small to medium signal through after about 2.5 years. Problem is that the muscles that atrophy do not all recover giving weakness in the ankle. Found other ways to compensate including a surgery that split the tendon in big toe and attached to the outside of foot for some control. With barefoot shoes I can still manage 15 mile days in the mountains so overall it came out well.

[Voodoo]

I’m curious concerning some responses. Since they could never make a back like new again, instead of worrying about things you can’t do, wouldn’t it be satisfactory to be able to walk to the toilet and accept the change of lifestyle?

[ThisLadyHunts]

seems they were able to get a small to medium signal through after about 2.5 years. Problem is that the muscles that atrophy do not all recover giving weakness in the ankle. Found other ways to compensate including a surgery that split the tendon in big toe and attached to the outside of foot for some control. With barefoot shoes I can still manage 15 mile days in the mountains so overall it came out well.

Geez…what a mess!