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Post lumbar spinal fusion with nerve pain in knee/leg

Posted by shelly1228 @shelly1228, Dec 3, 2024

Hello! I have scoliosis and in July had lumbar spinal fusion. Since the surgery my radicular pain in my right leg is gone but I now have what doctors call “healing nerve pain” in my left leg/knee. I am four months post op and this is not getting better. I have been on Lyrica now for three months. It seems the lyrica is losing effectiveness and sometimes gives me no relief at all. Looking for anyone with a similar experience that can give me some hope that this will get better or I suppose I need to start to realize I will just have to live with this. Also looking for other suggestions besides meds to help with nerve pain. Thank you!!

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paddymccormick | @paddymccormick | 2 days ago
In reply to @sbtheplumber1 "I’ve been on cymbalta, hydrocodone, duloxetine, buspirone, Gabapentin and methocarbamol at night for over a year..." + (show)
@sbtheplumber1

I’ve been on cymbalta, hydrocodone, duloxetine, buspirone, Gabapentin and methocarbamol at night for over a year and hydrocodone, gabapentin, buspirone in the morning as well. I use Salon Pas patches and Roll-ons and still have nerve zaps , stingers going to the toes, Leg numbness , sciatic and sacrum pain . I had an L4-S1 fusion 4/17/23 and 3 weeks later a friend twisted me while I was seated. Then the next week the nurse practitioner for the surgeon said it might be a set back but you can start lifting , bending, and twisting so I went home and bent over to dry my lower legs and felt a burning that never improved. I just found out a month ago at Mayo I have a screw loose screw and was told to leave it alone. Out of all that the last couple months the best relief I get is a massage about every 3 weeks, pelvic therapy helped, I force myself 3 times a week to walk-in a pool which hurts but to keep my sanity I have to get out and for $3 a visit it is worth it for a heated pool

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Did your previous provider recommend getting new imaging when you had the issue 3 weeks after your surgery?

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paddymccormick | @paddymccormick | 2 days ago
In reply to @dlydailyhope "@shelly1228 I had lumbar decompression and fusion surgery l3-l5 in August 2024 and still experiencing nerve..." + (show)
@dlydailyhope

@shelly1228
I had lumbar decompression and fusion surgery l3-l5 in August 2024 and still experiencing nerve pain in hips/hip flexors (dis not have this pre-surgery. My hope is it will improve over time.

I was just out on Lyrica yesterday starting low with 25 mg to see side effects. Lidocaine and capsaicin creams help a little. I am on an antidepressant Wellbutrin but that doesn’t help with nerve pain. I was on Cymbalta I. The past and it helped some but stopped working at some point. I have read that gabapentin works a little differently than Lyrica and may be an option for you. Also, antidepressant amitriptyline is supposed to help with nerve pain but there are side effects. When I tried it in 2017, it made me really tired and I stopped taking it. I may reconsider it now that I am not working to help manage my nerve pain.

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I mentioned this in a reply from someone else, but I discovered (completely by accident), that the Adderall I started taking in 2017 and prior to a bulk of my back issues, has been dramatically, amazingly (and any other adverb) reducing my nerve pain. A few months ago I forgot to take it in the morning, which I’ve never done before, and I noticed that by late afternoon, the nerve pain was so terrible that I thought something happened and just wasn’t aware of it. While in bed that evening, it dawned on me that I forgot to take the Adderall. Next morning I took it and by lunchtime the nerve pain was substantially less. I took it as normal for a few days, but then I deliberately didn’t take it in the morning, but took the Adderall
To work with me. By lunchtime the pain was once again getting unbearable. I then took it right after lunch. By mid afternoon, pain was back to a manageable level. I asked several neurologists about this. Only one ever got back to me and said he has study by the NIH I believe, that stated amphetimines (adderall, et. Al) have been reported to have significant benefits in lowering nerve pain. For me… zero doubt. Major help!

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sbtheplumber1 | @sbtheplumber1 | 2 days ago
In reply to @paddymccormick "Did your previous provider recommend getting new imaging when you had the issue 3 weeks after..." + (show)
@paddymccormick

Did your previous provider recommend getting new imaging when you had the issue 3 weeks after your surgery?

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@paddymccormick she ordered one a couple weeks later. I seen another Neurosurgron Tuesday that is going to redo my stimulator unless he feels like he can fix something after looking at my Ct I had at Mayo Clinic in August 0f 2024
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