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Medtronics Spinal Cord Stimulators: Intellis
I'm set to get the Medtronic Intellis Pro but I'm nervous because of people stating that it doesn't help, gets dislodged, they don't understand how to use it, etc. I have fibromyalgia, spinal stenosis, and spinal radiculopathy. I also have MS. I get thrown between Pain Medicine Specialist, Orthopedic Surgeons, Neurology, and Family Medicine. My back negatively impacts my legs to the point that it's unnerving and makes me want to pull my hair out. Pain meds don't last long in my system and I think I've become immune to them since I've been on them so long. It seems they just want to have me do this Spinal Cord Stimulator: Intellis Pro by Medtronics just to get me out of the way. I've already had major back surgery and I need another one but since the first one has caused me so many issues, I dare not! Can anyone tell me your take on this particular SCS? I'm interested in who has or has had the Medtronics ones.
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I'm incredibly sorry for what you are going thru. I have a SCS and a peripheral nerve stimulator by Boston Scientific. The SCS was placed in 2016 and the peripheral was placed in 2017. The trial is a must. My doc had me try the Boston one first (helped) and then insisted I try nevro (did nothing). I have to admit it was scary to think about a stimulator being placed in my spine, but I was in so much pain that I thought I would lose my mind. I had to have a psych eval to ensure that I would not commit suicide (something I would NEVER do). I think the trial had a better result than the implant, but I wonder if that's due to feeling some relief after having no relief for a while. Anyway, I'm glad I chose Boston scientific....they have been around for 47 yrs. and have an established record of satisfaction. Nevro has been around for 20 yrs. Abbotts been around for 10 yrs. and med-tronic for 40 yrs. One problem I have now is due to the laminectomy they had to do at thoracic 9-10 vertebrae, it's a very mobile spot in my spine, it hurts continuously, I have to be so careful to reduce bending over to pick stuff up, etc. But to have some reduction in neuropathy pain is essential for living. My neuropathy is not due to diabetes, and it covers the lower half of my body from the waist down. I can only sleep using ambien/zolpidem and the muscle relaxer methocarbamol, I'm on tramadol, and pregabalin. I had been on gabapentin, 2800 mg/day, but had to move on from that due to kidney issues. I hope whatever SCS you settle on will give you some relief....God bless!
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1 ReactionBefore it stopped working how well did it control your pain? Where is your pain in your body? I'm sorry you weren't able to correct the problem with the battery.
@ladonnai hi my name is Care. Just so I understand you correctly is your pain in your back and both legs? You have neuropathy? How well does the Soinal Cord Stimulator control your pain? I see you still take some medication to help with the pain. Were you ever on opioids? I've been taking Oxycodone since I had my spine operated on at L5 L6 a year ago in April of 2025. The surgery didn't help with the pain at all and I've been trying to determine the cause of the pain ever since. I've been to several doctors in different specialties but no one has been able to determine the cause of my pain. I don't want to rely on the Oxycodone indefinitely to control my chronic leg and foot pain that I've had for the past 9 years and a trial with the SCS is a possibility. Any insight you can offer will be much appreciated. How bad was your pain before you got the SCS? I mean did it affect the quality of your life like mine has? Thank you so much and best wishes for continued pain control! One more question and I apologize for all the questions. Do you still have some degree of pain in spite of the SCS and the meds?
@Always,always demand another opinon and dont give them the opportunity to use your body as a experimentbajjerfan
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1 Reaction@caregeraci15 It controlled my pain very well. along with my pain meds. Pain dropped down to about a 2.
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1 ReactionSaw a pain mgmt doc here and his next step was the Sprint PNS system. Went to another doc recommended by a friend and he tried some injections which didn't help. One more epidural to try and if that doesn't help then a ouple more things are on the horizon. Intracept vs treatment for Cluneal nerve. He didn't think that SCS therapy would be right for me, YET.
I commented yesterday that I was going to try some of the THC/CBD gummies that I purchased from Charlotte's Web. The high THC/lower CBD gummy seemed to reduce my back pain to the point where I did not notice it so much. I tried another one at bedtime(took at 8 pm). Amazingly, I slept through the night for the first time in a long time. My wife roused me awake around 8:30 am. I promptly went back to sleep and woke up at 9":20 when wifey awakened me again. Just took another gummy labeled "FOCUS" that is supposed to help hone my mind(their words)/ We shall see.
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1 Reaction@heisenberg34 a 2. That's great! Can I ask you where you have pain? Your legs? Before the SCS would you say your pain was a 9 or a 10 a lot of the time?
@caregeraci15 My pain is in my buttcks, back of legs down to toes. Prior to the SCS, I was on a cocktail of meds that helped to drop my pain to about a 4 or 5. Like I said, I got greedy. Fortunately, the SCS wirked well to drop my pain even more.
Thanks. My pain is in both legs and the top of my feet. It isn't constant because of the pain meds i take and it moves around. It's not always in the same place. It feels like the pain is in my muscles. Did you have surgery on your spine? If you did did that help with your pain? I can't remember what your text said. I wouldn't say you're greedy. Who wants to be in constant sometimes unbearable pain. A 4 or 5 sounds like something took the edge off. A 2 is really good. Do your doctors know what's causing your pain?