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I have a Pain pump with Morphine, I'm still in so much Pain
Chronic Pain | Last Active: May 22 10:45am | Replies (57)Comment receiving replies
@sox6281 It is very important that you have an ideal placement of the
catheter in order for these pumps to work. As another poster here said, these pumps will not work without a proper placement of the said catheter. If the pump doesn’t deliver the medication to the right place inside your spine you will not feel anything. Moreover you say you stopped using boluses? My doc explained to me that the boluses are kinda the whole point of these pumps: boluses are supposed to flush your nerve with medication in order
to reduce the pain, ideally before it spikes. If you have chronic constant pain like I have then it makes sense to get your doc to preprogram your pump to send 6 boluses at specific times in a 24 hour period. I picked the times when I normally feel the most pain, but you can always change the times at your next appointment if it doesn’t work as planned. And when it comes to medication in the pump I would strongly suggest you ask
your doctor about a second medication to be mixed with the opioid you use. This will make it more effective. Also just know that morphine is not the most effective medicine in these pumps. It is a pretty weak opioid for intrathecal use and it also has many side effects, like incessant itching. I would suggest you maybe inquire about hydromorphone instead and also ask for a second medication such as Clonedine or Bupivacaine. But please get the placement of your catheter
checked, this might be the reason why you feel nothing as
the meds aren’t being discharged on the right nerve. Sadly many of us “pumpers” need a revision surgery down the line in order to make it work properly. And it helps to have an experienced pain management doc to maintain and fill your pump too. Also, I think it is rare for a pump to work so well that you no longer need orals. I know that I still need orals even with an optimal placement of the catheter. I just know there’s no way the pump alone could deal with all my crps pain and symptoms. To me the pump is one more tool in my toolbox against my chronic pain, and it comes in addition to my orals. I even have a spinal cord stimulator for the pain too.
There are so many aspects to consider when talking about intrathecal pumps, but the most important aspect is to ensure the medication is added to where it is needed. These pumps will simply not work at all if it the catheter tip is placed wrong
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@alexandercrps Thank you for including so much helpful information in your post. I’m desperately trying to get a pain pump implanted and I have so many questions. I have an appointment soon with my pain medicine doctor and I really want to be prepared with all of my questions for him. Are there things you would recommend I be sure to ask during this appointment? I feel like my pain has become so severe without medication. I’m terrified of going through a lengthy trial to get adequate pain relief. Seriously… I would rather not exist than go through the pain I experience without pain medication. I recently had a morning that scared my husband so badly because I was convulsing and hyperventilating and couldn’t speak to him. (It was my pain medicine refill day and the pharmacy was backed up so it was taking them longer to refill my medication.) I know I have to try something different if I want to have some semblance of a decent life. Sorry to ramble… any help you can provide would be greatly appreciated.
@alexandercrps
Hi, when I told my doctor that it wasn't working & I meant it wasn't giving me relief & he thought that the pain pump wasn't working so I had to endure 7 weeks while he checked the implant and a CT scan and everything was working fine, I asked them to please change the medication but they didn't, so I Then was maxed out at 14.6mgs and they said they would have to go back down until I was at 0.1mgs so I started going down 30% a week and now I'm at 0.404 mgs, I have about 6 more treatments to to get to 0.1 mgs, and then said they would remove the morphine and flush out the line with Saline, and I've been thinking all along when they gave me a morphine refill why couldn't they have removed it then and flushed the lines out and gave me the new drug hydromorphone, I believe they could of it just didn't want to, meanwhile I've been suffering feel like I'm crippled but I'm close and I can't wait until I get the new hydromorphone because I'm sure it will work. I'll certainly whether one now how it goes thank you Michael
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@alexandercrps In almost three years I have not had any pain relief from my pain pump. It uses hydromorphone after a trial with morphine provided no relief. hydro dropped my pain down to about a 3. I have had the pump checked three times via fluoroscopy. All is well they tell me. As an aside, I had one day of great pain relief about 4 months ago. The next day all the pain was back. I am currently sitting at 3.5 mg/24 hours with six boluses. If I use all six boluses, I seem to experience just a little decrease in pain. Do you know your current pump settings? If your pump is a Medtronic, you can go to the settings on your remote to check them. I wonder if getting the catheter placement by CT is a better option. Thanks for your post. Have a blessed day.