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Anyone else pleased with their spinal fusion outcome?
I never had back pain. But oh my did I have nerve pain. Both sides starting around hips and going all the way down. Then it progressed and the pain wasn't so awful but walking became difficult. I had emergency spine surgery from L2-S1. Fusion. Rods. The whole deal. I recovered nicely. And I recently revision surgery done by the same neurosurgeon. Nerve pain was due to bony growth around the nerve. Now I have 12 pedicle screws, rods. a spacer. Two long screws at S2 now. Two screws had loosened at L5. I am fine again. All this was because of my back. But again. I never complained about back pain as so many people seem to do. So I'm happy with the outcome indeed. I was in much better shape prior to the revision surgery than the first one. Walked a lot. I'm thin. I don't fall. Muscle aches aren't the same as nerve pain. And I always wonder how many unnecessary back surgeries are performed for conditions that aren't helped by taking such drastic measures. Simply because it sounds good to the patient and the doctor suggests it. Mine wasn't elective. I was facing paralysis. So I'm grateful indeed.
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@dredk
I am pleased with my L3-L5 decompression/fusion. I had severe spinal stenosis, degenerative disc disease, L4 was slipping over L5 (spondylolisthesis), and neurogenic claudication. This caused pain, weakness and numbness from low back, hips/buttocks down to my feet. It became hard to stand, stand up from seated positions, walk, etc. I had the surgery in 2024 and have no regrets. I am 55 and anticipate more surgeries in the future due to congenital spinal stenosis (having my 2nd ACDF cervical spine surgery the 3rd week in May).
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2 ReactionsWow! Good for you!
I'm 70 and very fit. But my lumbar spine is a mess. My surgeon encourages all the work I do in the gym for my core muscles, and he believes that is all standing between me and lumbar fusion (probably S1 through L4).
I imagine I'll have to get it done someday. Your experience is very encouraging, so thanks for sharing!
FWIW I am also now at my normal weight. I'm 5'10" tall and weigh about 155-160 (I weighed 180-190 before the TKRs). I'm in the gym everyday, I spin 5x/week and work on core conditioning.
I think a huge enemy of good health is obesity or just being 10 or more lbs higher than normal weight. Excess weight causes so many problems, I can't list them all. For the sake of my back and other joints, I worked to drop from 190 to 160 in about one year. It takes persistence but it's doable for most, I believe.
Joe
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5 Reactions@dredk
Thank you for posting! I am trying to come to a decision about having L3-S1 laminectomy and TILF. 80% of my pain is nerve related and most of it is down my left leg into my foot because all 3 herniated discs are herniated to the left. The back pain that I do have is not the achy kind. I am terrified and hearing about your experience is encouraging.
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2 ReactionsI had my first surgery at 33, 2nd at 56. And 3rd at 70. The first was the hardest and longest to recover from. The first was done by a very good orthopedic surgeon, the second and third were done by different neurosurgeon. The recover, though much longer and more involved was much quicker and easier than the first. Have laminectomy at L4 and L5 and TLIF at L3. Fused from S1 to L3. Have been blessed with great doctors for all 3. It seems that having physical therapy prior to the second surgery and having a physical therapist friend help get our home reorganized before surgery helped a lot in the recovery process.
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4 ReactionsI am inspired by the spirit of you and many others on this site. Gracious and resilient. Thank you for sharing to encourage others and I wish you good health.
I am trying to make decisions about disc replacements to avoid getting to the crisis situations where surgery is urgent and there aren’t choices. Gathering information from people like yourself.
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5 ReactionsYou are so brave and strong! Thank you for this encouragement. It makes others less afraid!
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3 ReactionsFinding the balance of increasing fitness and not aggravating a degenerative spine issue is so difficult! I find I cannot use any universal weight machines for my legs because all flare my lower lumbar discs. I can only exercise my legs from standing or lying down with constant attention to a neutral spine. So much learning to do. I am not overweight and have always been relatively fit. My discs are severely degenerated though at age 53. Hearing the experience of others is greatly appreciated.
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1 ReactionI have all kinds of nerve pain that has worsened over the past six months. To the point where I can't walk very far due to every step is agonizing. Tried PT but that also upped my pain to the point where I would have to lie down on my bed afterwards. I am somewhat overweight(215 and 6' tall), but losing weight is difficult since any kind of prolonged activity ramps up my pain. It's a Catch-22 situation. I need to exercise in order to lose weight and help reduce my pain.. I can't exercise because it increases my pain. Aargh!
You can go to 10 different PT’s and get 10 different approaches. Every therapist has their own list of post-degree courses and specialties. Have you tried pool exercise? I hear you and hope you can find something that doesn’t cause more nerve pain.
Thanks. At this point I am gun shy when it comes to doing anything physical.