SC Stimulator Removal

My understanding of these devices is that only the "electrode" part of the device is "placed/inserted for the trial period. The rest of it is mounted externally. You keep a diary of pain situations, pain intensity, settings changes and degree of relief/mitigation. If your doctor feels that the device is giving sufficient mitigation to warrant installation, a neurosurgeon implants it. Why would one implant something unless they know that it's going to help?

OTOH the Sprint system is kept mounted externally as it is intended to be a short 2 month's duration thing.

Seems like a lot of the folks who post here about them are unhappy with their SCS device.

If you've had it long enough for your flesh to get attached to it, removal could be unpleasant I would think.

@bajjerfan
The one month trial went very well. That’s why I opted to have the permanent one put in.

Seems like my body had a foreign body reaction to it. I’m willing to go through the temporary discomfort of removal to stop my back muscles from being in a constant state of spasm.
It’s not for everyone but you don’t know until you try it.

I am in trial period for 2 months. Removal in 2.5 weeks. I have no major improvement so far. I hope the removal is easy. I will not get permanent. I am sorry for your pain. The leads might have shifted?

I don’t know if the leads shifted but I don’t want to go through any more surgery after their removal. At my age and with such a low pain threshold, recovery is getting too difficult.

The trial did help and even the permanent took care of the pain I initially had. I just don’t want to live with this new and constant pain long-term.

I’d rather find other modalities to deal with it: physical therapy, cognitive behavioral therapy, distraction, better conditioning and walking in nature.

When I’ve done all I can I hope I arrive acceptance and deal with the outcome the best way I can without truly giving up.

Wish me luck and prayers.
I’m 73 and hope for 10-15 more years of a satisfying life.

I am sorry to hear that many of you have had poor experiences with your spinal cord stimulators. Like so many of these implanted devices, there are many things that can go wrong. I had my medtronics SCS for about two and half years. It worked pretty well, dropping my pain from a 7 down to a 2. Then, in February of 2021, it just stopped working. I had the battery swapped out for the NEVRO HFX. Still no good. In 2023 I had a pain pump implanted. A year later I decided to have the whole SCS device removed. Surgery went well. I was under general for it. Recovery was not bad. I tried another SCS trial in 2024 but there was too much scar tissue to get the leads positioned properly. So, here I am, still in chronic pain. Hope you all have a good experience. God bless!

@heisenberg34
Thank you for your comments. I see that there’s about a 30% failure rate of these. I still would have tried it. Not knowing my personal outcome would have dogged me the rest of my life.

@calofmichigan I know exactly what you mean. I tried a therapy last year called Scrambler therapy. It uses electrical impulses to "scramble" pain signals so your brain doesn't perceive them as pain. It was developed by a doctor at Johns Hopkins. Only a 70% success rate and not covered by insurance. Like you said, if I didn't try it I would always wonder. "what if"? When you are in severe, chronic pain, you will try just about anything. That's why there are so many scams out there promising to relieve your pain. Just like vultures.

@heisenberg34 I also had the Medtronic SCS. It was implanted in 2009 but removed in 2013 (I was hardly using it and I needed to be monitored by MRI due to many tumors on my spine (had radiation to keep tumors at bay), in 2021 a new SCS that is MRI compatible was implanted. I am also thinking of another removal. It just doesn’t do much for my pain. Yes, stimulation can “interrupt” pain signals, but my problems are truly neurological. I have drop foot on both sides, balance problems, peroneal pain shooting down both legs. Recently diagnosed with Sjogrens disease. I barely use the stim anymore. Also, it is a foreign object in my body so before surgery is not an option, I will most likely have it removed. So it was 13 yrs ago that my first stimulator was removed and I can honestly say, I don’t remember it being a painful surgery or recovery.

Wishing everyone the best of luck. Chronic pain is invisible and extremely isolating. I’m so thankful for these group chats!

I too had the Abbott SCS removed last year, after two years implanted. I don’t see much relief, although for some reason, the trial always works for all of us.
Going through airport security was a pain, as I waited to be pat down at our airport. Then I would turn it off, turn it back on, where in the last travel before removal, I forgot it was off for three weeks.
There is still much work to be done with the SCS for many of us to keep it. They certainly have improved it since 2018 when I first heard about it.

I also want my SCS removed. I’ve had it for years and after the permanent with implanted numerous adjustments failed. I let it totally die. The problem I am having is where the battery is located puts pressure on my only working kidney and is painful. Additionally, where the wires connect to the leads on my spine has built up a huge knot of of scar tissue which is also painful when there is pressure put on it. I contacted Boston Science and as expected they never respond. I’d like info from someone who has had there’s removed as well as to what type of surgeon removed it, how long it took, and recovery time.