OT: Carpal Tunnel surgery follow up.

Back in December I asked the question about any one having carpal tunnel surgery. The topic got heated at times. In the end I had the surgery and it went very well. That was just before Christmas. The pain went away but some of the numbness stayed. However over the last month other things have been going south. Numbness in both hands, fingers and thumbs; numbness now starting in feet. Shooting electrical shocks in hands, arms and feet. Problems walking with out staggering and a developing pain in my neck.

Went back to the doctor. He ordered an MRI on my neck. Went in for MRI yesterday and a few hours later got a call from my doctor saying there was a problem and that he wanted me to see a neurosurgeon. Soon after that I got a call from the neurosurgeon's office saying they want to wee me right away. Just got back from there. It seems I have a spinal cord compression at C4, 5, 6, And 7. At C 6-7 the cord is compressed down to about 1.5 mm. The surgeon said he was surprised to see that I was even able to walk of use my arms. The disease is progressive and I could be paralyzed (a quad) in less than a year. I expect to be going into surgery to relieve the pressure on my cord and hopefully stop the progression.

I hesitated to post this this time. I am not looking for sympathy. That will not help me at all. What I want to do is make people aware that even though carpal tunnel surgery is most likely a very good surgery to solve the problem be sure the also be aware of other numbness problems too. What appears to be a carpal tunnel problem may indeed be something more.

Bill

That is good advise. I hope you will get better soon.

Good luck! I had both surgurys, CT, and cervical fusion. My results were mixed with the CT. Not complete releif, but I went more than 10 years from diagnosis to treatment. Had the cervical fusion, 6 years or so. The dissapointment there was that the bone for grafts is from tissue banks(i.e. cadaver) but i found it tough(impossible) to get them to use my own material.

5thwheel,

I hope you get better soon.

Dimitri

Most all, in fact all nerves below your neck, pass thru your neck. Use what ever method works for you to correct the problems. For some chiropractic is the answer, for some accupuncture, for some deep muscle massage and relaxation techniques. Some will flame all or part of the above, each body is different and responds differently to different treatments. For me, oriental deep massage works best, and occasional trips to the bone cruncher works wonders. I beleive that there is a time for surgery, but surgeons like to make money and want to cut you up. Explore other options before going under the knife. I dont know anyone who was real happy after spinal surgery.
Me, I quit getting headaches after I stopped letting the chiropractor work on my neck. On the other hand, I also quit having indigestion within minutes of having my middle back snapped.
Just my .02$ YMMV
Jim
BTW
I seriously hope the best for you no matter what method you undergo

Gvasale: Fusion is out. The spinal cord is almost flattened from front (from hardened discs) and back from bone spurs. Fusion would only be done anterior. This would stop movement of the spine in that place but would not eliminate the compression from the bone spurs. The surgery will be done posterior. The vertebrae bone will be carved away from the back of the spine to allow the cord to better float.

Enginbuilder: The bone spurs are now compressing the spinal cord in four places. As I said earlier, in one place the cord is compressed to a thickness of only 1.5 MM thick. Realistically I should be in a wheel chair right now. Any manipulation of that area (chiropractic wise) would be a sure ticket to total paralyzation. Not a chance I am willing to take. Nerve blocks or any other treatment to deaden or relieve pain would not solve the problem on a long term basis. The spurs are grinding on my cord. It has already caused some non reversible damage. As it stands now any real hard jolt could send me to the hospital and leave me paralyzed. We stopped by the supermarket on the way home and while there some one turned around and bumped into me with their shoulder (not on purpose) It really sent me into a shock.
Bill

5th,
Wow, no mention of the spurs in your first post, just "compression"
Definately no manipulation with them critters in there, BE VERY CAREFUL !! As you found out in the store even the slightest bump could drop you. I wish you the best,
Jim

From what I recall,the disc degenerate from an accident or aging and the vertebra react to compensate for the compression or herniation of the disc by growing bone spurs(osteophytes)which can cause problems when they compress the spinal cord or nerves.

I had the symptoms of carpal tunnel and it turned out to be a herniated disc in my neck.

Good luck!

Bill, do you know what caused all this?

Even though I know better, I always lift heavy stuff without assistance, whether it be another person or a shop crane. I gotta start taking better care of my back.

Hope all goes well.

good luck, hopefully u have found out in time, please let us all know, keep us upto date how things go.

Bill, do you know what caused all this?

Click to expand...

I do, it was birthdays. Those damn things are responsible for it all.

5thwheel....Best O' luck!! I've been thru it all - cancer (brain tumor), broken leg, encephalitis, alcoholism...and a few others...but if you keep a good attitude and keep putting one foot ahead of the other, you'll come thru this jus' fine!

It's nice to hear another survivor's voice!

OMcG

quote:
Bill, do you know what caused all this?
I do, it was birthdays. Those damn things are responsible for it all.
---------------------------------------

Right on!!

Birthdays and years of heavy work and lots of accidents along the way. Started out at age nine driving a Farmall 12 with steel cleated wheels. Worked in the woods at 14, 15 and 16. Worked in shingle mills, saw mills and plywood mills for years and then 20 or so years repairing appliances and lifting refrigerators (including the old huge Gray Amana freezers) up stairs by my self. Throw in a few falls out of the truck and down stairs hanging on to a refrig. or slant front Westinghouse or Bendix washer and 75 birthdays.

Guys thanks for the well wishes both here and by private e-mail. Right now typing and setting at the puter is not the most comfortable thing going on for me so I probably will not respond individually. Besides, that's not what this is about. It is about taking care of your self first. A guy's job is to take care of his family, to do that you need to take care of yourself first. If you get yourself all hurt or stove up you can't do much of a job taking care of them.

Bill

You are in our prayers...Joe

Well now that the shock of seeing my MRI of my neck and the damage already done is over; knowing the future looks bleak if I don't do any thing. I decided to get my self informed. Did a Google on posterior cervical laimanectomy (the surgery I need to have).

At this time there is no cure for my condition except surgery. Now I'm not ashamed to tell you I am really scared. Because of the severity of my present condition the quality of life for me and my family looks pretty bleak if I choose not to do any thing about it. Quite frankly, after doing the research, the cure scares the crap out of me. This is the hardest toss of the dice I have ever had to make.


http://www.orthogate.org/patient-education/cervical-spine/cervical-laminectomy.html

Bill-

You've got a good surgeon, let him do his job.

You'll be a good patient- choices are tough, but you've got the resilience to bounce back, and you know the right choice.

You'll have every one of us praying for a successful surgery and a full recovery.

Billy

Bill:
If attitude has anything to do with recovery---and I think it does---you will do much better than most.

5thwheel-
Some general comments may be helpful here. 1. While not effective in every single case, decompressive laminectomy is generally pretty helpful. Essentially the back wall of the spinal canal is opened to allow expansion room for the squished (medical term) spinal cord. It's a straightforward mechanical fix. 2. In most cases the spinal stenosis developed over YEARS, as it is a slow process (there are exceptions). The human body is pretty good at accomodating to slow processes such as spinal stenosis. At some point the stenosis becomes critical, and symptoms develop. This does not necessarily mean that the process is moving more quickly, just that you can "feel" it now. 3. Once the back wall of the canal has been opened (laminectomy), it's pretty hard for the stenosis to progress or return, so the worry of future stenosis trouble (at the same level) is usually not warranted. 4. Let's look at this from a machining angle. If somebody brought in a tube with a bushing stuck on it- a press fit that's too tight, squeezing the tube so that the hole in the center was being constricted- you could carefully machine off the bushing to allow the tube to pop back to normal size (OK, it's a plastic tube) without too much trouble. You could use a mill or a dremel or the like. In fact, if the far side of the bushing was hard to get to, you could just make 2 shallow cuts on the near side, and remove a segment of the bushing collar, to let the tube flow normally. Congratulations, you have performed a laminectomy. 5. Education is a great thing, and the internet is a good tool for that, but remember that there's a lot of FICTION on the net as well. Read up, but avoid testimonial and horror blogs, etc... ("Aunt Susie went blind after her bunionectomy") and go into this with a strong will and a positive attitude. It sounds like you're doing that. Our prayers go with you. If I can be of other assistance, PM me.

Bluegrass

Bluegrass, maybe a regular CNC operation you think? Well they will be clamping me face down in a clamp (mill vice) and strapping my head stationary (hold down clamps) . Not sure what kind of milling equipment he will use. I did a background check on this Dr. he has a very good background in microscopic brain surgery and has a very good name in Brain and spinal surgery for cancer etc. and he is familiar with MRI aided surgery. Suppose it is close to CNC?

Good luck Bill.

This hits close to home, my 31 year old daughter has
disc degeneration from Lupus she will probably need this in the future.

Place your faith in the Lord and your surgeon that's the best you can do. We will all be thinking of you.

Jackmo