Has anyone had a Foraminotomy ?

I have a minimally invasive foraminotomy w/on fusion scheduled for Jan 6th. I'm having very severe pain in front right thigh, knee, back and hip. Problem is apparently foraminal stenosis at exiting L3 nerve root. Dr. says it's mainly ligamentum flavum hitting the nerve. About an hour procedure with excellent prognosis for leg pain relief. Dr. is less certain that it will help with the back pain but he said fusion may not help there either. Another doctor wouldn't do the endoscopic procedure but wanted to do a fusion. If I think about it I'll let you know how it goes or you can reach out. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Hello
I commented below but didn't see where you already had a laminectomy at that level. It seems to me that to do a foraminotomy at that level would weaken the joint dangerously. I would guess the doctor thinks this is why you need a fusion but he should have explained that. I wouldnt be too fearful of a fusion. I've had L4/S1 fused since 2018. Helped tremendously.Now dealing with L3 joint. It's typical to have the joint above a multilevel lumbar fusion fail after 5 - 6 years. But if you only have a 1 level fusion you may not even notice it. Just my opinion.

I am curious also cause I have a nerve being compressed because of the foraminal stenosis. I am hoping or wondering if I got the foramenotomy my nerve wouldn't be compressed anymore and that would take the pain away and I could walk more. Is that correct?

@annie1
If your surgeon believes that your nerve is being compressed and the source of your pain, and it is compressed due to foramina stenosis due to bone overgrowth, a foraminitomy may help give your nerve root/nerve more space and a chance to heal. Nerve healing takes time but it can’t heal if compressed.

Thanks for that. I'm having to look for a new surgeon though because the guy I had who did my first laminotomy obviously failed to correct the whole problem and also his nurse practitioner is very nasty so I don't want to have to deal with her again. I was just going to ask people on this chat how many people ask a surgeon in an interview for other patients outcomes. They can always say HIPAA won't let them give out any information but I thought I read somewhere that you could always ask to speak to another patient who had a good surgery with them or my dreaming that up? It's hard to tell with the reviews because the guy I went to had stellar reviews but apparently it didn't work out so well with me. I'm thinking of calling the Cleveland clinic. The Mayo clinic has a lot of waiting time and they rejected my case the first time without telling me why. I could try them again but it'll be probably at least a month or more before they give me an answer.

So what are the symptoms that you have of the nerve damage and how do you control the pain or the symptoms? I'm thinking maybe I should have my surgery before my nerve compression gets worse and my nerves get more damaged. Do you have any thoughts about that or recommendations? I just had an epidural injection two days ago I don't know if that's going to really help anything. They say I have to wait up to 2 weeks to see if it has any effect.

I had foramenotomy on left neck on two vertebra. I bled too freely during the surgery which made it so hard for the Micro-Neuro-Minimally Invasive Neurosurgeon to see the area. They almost had to give me a unit of blood. I highly recommend getting your clotting time checked three weeks before the surgery and be sure to get off of fish oil, flaxseed oil (and flaxseeds), garlic, turmeric, ginger and any other foods of spices or supplements that slow clotting time. I did not get off of fish oil in time bc I caught a cancellation and hurriedly flew to Allegheny Hospital and had the surgery. Bc the bleeding made details hard to see, the surgery took 4 hrs instead of the two the dr told me it would take. I came out of the surgery unable to move my left arm but after lots of physical therapy over mos, I regained use of my arm. But it ached and burned for a yr plus I had Fibromyalgia so I got on Lyrica. It helped and continues to help hugely! I’ve been on it 21 yrs. It does have some difficult side effects at first. By 2017, pain of the surgery plus Fibromyalgia increased until I had to get on Medical Cannabis too. Indica cannabis is for sleep and Sativa is for am to 2:30pm, and no later, bc it may cause difficulty going to sleep. I would not be alive today if I had not gotten on Med Cannabis for sleep. I only use Sativa during a few winter mos when my nerve pain is high. If I have to drive I wait until the Sativa Cannabis has worn off. Don’t take Opioids. Keep your arms strong. Don’t have forward head posture!