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Severe spinal stenosis: Would you do surgery?
Spine Health | Last Active: 3 days ago | Replies (210)Comment receiving replies
@jenniferhunter
Hi Jennifer
Thanks for sharing your story and expertise. I think you took a great approach by looking into surgeons. I have AKU. It is a rare genetic disease that causes early spinal degeneration in the thoracic and lumbar areas and in major joints. I have had both shoulders both hips, and both knees replaced. I have had five back surgeries with the last being a correction of scoliosis with fusion from T 11 to S1. I also have a spinal stimulator implanted in my lower thoracic spine, which has not helped me. I have stenosis at T 10 and 11, which causes severe pain the longer I am standing I cannot walk very far without my spine hurting me or sitting on my feet for very long without much pain. I do press on because I like To do things and accomplish things. I am on a combination of tramadol and hydrocodone, which give me some relief I would love to know if someone could do surgery for this spinal stenosis, which is causing my pain. WhichMayo Clinic did you go to? I am interested in getting some expert opinions on my situation. I know that thoracic spine surgery is unusual and can have complications. I have been dealing with this spine pain for so long and am willing to do another surgery if it could relieve my pain. I just want to make sure that I am with a surgeon who takes his time and it’s done this type of surgery many times it sounds like Mayo Clinic would be a good place to start. I would appreciate your opinion of this.
Thanks,
Dawn Horne
Replies to "@jenniferhunter Hi Jennifer Thanks for sharing your story and expertise. I think you took a great..."
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@dawnhorne Thanks for your question. While I do not know if a surgeon can promise to reduce pain, usually they operate to preserve or improve function. A lot of surgeons do not operate on thoracic levels because of the ribs and lungs, but a deformity surgeon likely does operate there, for example in cases like scoliosis that can affect the lungs because of deformity. I can tell you that my neurosurgeon, Jeremy Fogelson, at Rochester, MN is highly regarded at Mayo and takes many deformity cases. After my surgery with him for a cervical fusion, I sent a letter to the CEO at that time praising my experience there and I received a personal letter back from the CEO stating as much. Dr. Fogelson is a mentor and teacher in the neurosurgery program and if you look at his background, he has excelled at everything he does. I would recommend him highly.
Here is his profile. https://www.mayoclinic.org/biographies/fogelson-jeremy-l-m-d/bio-20055624
You may inquire about a consultation from this link. https://mayocl.in/1mtmR63
This page has billing and insurance information. https://www.mayoclinic.org/billing-insurance
It takes a while to get an appointment. You can request that Dr. Fogelson reviews your records and application. My surgery was for cervical stenosis inside the spinal canal. I had a fusion at C5/C6 with a donor bone disc spacer and done without hardware. That was possible because it was a single level, although bigger surgeries often require instrumentation. I think he would be an excellent surgeon for a consultation, and he is kind and compassionate. My surgery was about 2 hours and was done with neuromonitoring. If he is scheduled for a bigger back surgery, I was told he does one or 2 surgeries in a day, and if it is complex, there may be another surgeon assisting. He would have to answer that, but I do believe he takes his time. I do hope you can find an answer that brings you some relief and better ability to walk. If you decide to request an appointment at Mayo, please stay in touch,
Jennifer