@scampano3 Excellent questions! I got my pump at age 74. I had tried just about everything else. I tried morphine in my first trial...nothing. Then about two weeks later I did the trial with hydromorphone(both by injection). Within five minutes my pain dropped from about a 7.5 down to a 2. It was great. Naturally, I went ahead with the permanent implant almost three years ago. The amount of drug is quite small, and it is within the intrathecal space, so it doesn't pass the blood/brain barrier. You can do pretty much anything. Just have to be careful of the pump which is just under the skin in your abdomen. So, sumo wrestling is out of the question, lol. I am not aware of the drug in my system. I have had several MRIs. The facility just has to have the right scanner.
Now, let me share a few things. I have had exactly one day of pain relief since the implant. I have been told that my initial dosage was very low. So, it has taken a really long time to reach a near-therapeutic level. I am currently at 2.3 mg per 24 hours. I have talked with other pumpers here on the blog who also took a very long time to reach a therapeutic level(pain relief). Others have said that they had to have a pump output of close to 5 mg/24 hours. I had one day about two months ago after having the pump dosage increased. Nothing since. Seems crazy, right? The pain pump has a success rate of about 94%. Doesn't mean you will get 100% relief, but I would gladly settle for 50% relief at this point. I developed neuropathy on top of my usual lower back pain about a year ago. It has rendered me incapable of doing much of anything... walking, bike riding, forget about it! I hope I have answered your questions. Feel free to reach out any time, amigo. Happy New Year!