Reading these posts. I am so sorry so many have such awful experiences with this pump.
I have had CRPS foe 6 years and I suffer through the most extreme neuropathy you can imagine. Therefore I’ve have had the pain pump from Medronics implanted since 2022. Last year I got an SCS implanted for my pain as well. So I know what ya’ll have gone through. One red thread on here that I see is that some unfortunately get this pump implanted and later managed by inexperienced surgeons and doctors. The scarring and complications I read about here are all mostly due to crappy surgeons who don’t know what they are doing. I am
lucky to have had both my implants operated into me by one of the most experienced neurosurgeons in my state, maybe even the country.
This is why I say the same thing over and over again to anyone who asks me for any type of advice on intrathecal pumps: I always say the same thing: you need to find the most experienced neurosurgeon you can muster, and you must also make sure to have access to the absolute best possible pain management doctor team to manage your pump after it’s implanted. You need an expert doctor to decide which meds that might fit your condition best, and then you have to go through the titration of the chosen med. It can take a long time to find the right medicine and the appropriate dosage. All this takes a long time to get right. It took me 1 1/2 years of trial and error before finding my «sweet spot». and which meds fit
me. And luckily so far I have not had very many complications, apart from one major one; after about 1 1/2 year of having the pump the catheter fell out of my spine and consequently sent the medication right into my flesh in my lower back instead of into my spine. It took 6 months before my doc caught this error. It was far from ideal but I got the placement of the catheter redone properly and due to the fact that my neuro surgeon is amongst the very best in my state, things have been working well since that redo. But as some here say, when not managed well this pump may very kill you. Which is why I never recommend this pump to those living far from experienced neurosurgeons and professional pain management docs. It is important to stress that when done right these pumps can be life savers. Honestly I would not be able to function the way I do today without my pump w/dilaudid and clonedine. I just needed to let people know that these pumps can be highly effective..but again,
you really need to do a lot of research and importantly, you need an experienced care team around you to make this pump work properly. I would never allow a «newbie» surgeon attach this pump to anybody’s spine. The risk of permanent irreversible damage is always a factor when deciding whether to get this pump or not..and very rarely will the pump replace your other oral meds. I still need oral opioids in addition to the SCS stim and the pain pump; but together they work as layers to help the pain. In an ideal world all the different therapies I am on work in symphony with each other, and it’s all designed to keep my extreme and constant nerve pain at bay. If
you have questions or need advice I am happy to answer.