← Return to Choosing a spine surgeon
DiscussionComment receiving replies
Replies to "@sherrym25 I asked if he had any expertise with osteoporosis and they said no, so I..."
@annie1 I’ve had osteoporosis and went through 2 separate lumbar fusions, one in 2021 for L4-5, and one in 2023, a revision to the prior one, then extended to L5-S1.
Initially the last one was successful, but a year later I experienced pain again in my left hip area, extending down the left leg with pain numbness, and pain, burning and numbness in both feet.
This pain coincided with severe pain in my neck when I started riding my bike, which I thought was the cause. I went through PT, ablation and nerve blocks on the neck for months. It was my cervical area causing the problems. I went to a new NS after all these tests, MRI’s, SPECT scans, to a well respected doctor here in my city. He told me I needed a 3 level anterior fusion, C4-7. I went through this in July, unfortunately one of the screws loosened and 8 weeks later I had a posterior fusion after removal of the front hardware. The consensus was the hardware was defective, because I was the 5th patient this happened to in the past year and there’s been a problem with equipment ever since the pandemic. Scary thought, but everything changed then.
They did not think this was caused by my osteoporosis, and now it’s been about 12 weeks since the last surgery and it’s holding up, I am healing, although it’s slow. The pain has been much worse than the anterior fusions, because they cut through muscles in the shoulders.
But what is significant is my pain in my left hip area seems to be gone.
Choose your surgeon carefully. But you can have a successful recovery with osteoporosis.
My osteoporosis has improved over time, my last scan showed a slight improvement to osteopenia, I only took supplements and ate well.
Connect

@annie1 they have a team of doctors who work there so when I sent all of my imaging, he was the one that took my case. I would think they would have a good surgeon that has experience with osteoporosis.
Just a thought would be to send them your records and see if they have a doctor that would accept your case.
No, I do not have osteoporosis.