Nearly complete back fusion, issues with screws at SI joints

@agentorange My sister had to go and have the screws taken out that were just like yours. We both have terrible backs and she's 20 years younger. I've had 3 back surgeries and have rods and screws in the lower back. My last surgery was to have a cage put in at the top of the rods. I was scheduled to have the screws put in my right SI Joint. I went to the pre-op on a Thursday for the Monday surgery. I ended up canceling the surgery on Friday. I told them I wasn't going to do it until I can no longer walk. I've never regretted that decision. And that was 6 years ago. I'm still walking but have pain after I walk any short distance. And standing more than five minutes causes me pain. But I just try to take it easy and limit what I do and how I do it. Most of my gardening is limited. I've made numerous trips to the chiropractor to have the SI joint put back in when it slips. I just deal with it.

Thank you for your post. My surgeon is working on taking the screws out maybe. For the past 3 yrs I have been unable to stand,walk due to the compression that my torso puts on my waist like you I take it very easy but my quality of life has been taken from me so I'm in for a fight now to get my life back I've been over prescribed opioids to the point that my mind is in a fog but I'm weening off now and getting clear headed. Again thank you for your reply.

Hello @agentorange. I'd like to invite @jmweissler and @zorrospouse to this discussion as well as they have both talked about having hardware removed from a spinal surgery as well in this discussion, https://connect.mayoclinic.org/discussion/hardware-removal/. @agentorange, how is your pain while you are weening off of the pain meds?

Hi, thanks for the post. Invite anyone needing to know about hardware, my pain level is of course getting worse without taking Percocet all day but I think that my mind and other things are happier. I do believe that my Dr. Might be hiding a mistake made, just a feeling though. I'm going to be doing some research and more scans before another surgery I don't know if I can get through another 15 hr surgery that would be the third one.

Also I have been prescribed Zoloft for depression, which is kind of an oxymoronic solution due to the fact that I am depressed from being in pain every second. But it does help with the nerve pain I have in my lower extremities.

I left a message about 30 mins ago regarding the removal of si joint screws I have been in constant si joint pain for months. I kept telling the surgeon it was the screw digging into me. Finally had a diagnostic injection specifically to determine if it is indeed the screw causing the constant pain sure enough it proved I was right. Now need to schedule surgery to remove the screw. My question is-should the bone holes filled be filled in with cement?

@maggieflorida Just joined this group. I'm having the same problem as you. Did you get your screws removed? I can not find a doctor in Wisconsin who will take my screws out, the Dr. who put the two screws in claims they can't be removed. I'm in so much pain that I'm now on Hydromorphone. I hate pain pills!

I am grateful for my Percocet. I have been taking that for 25 years. Low-dose and very consistent for back pain and degenerative disc disease. I am grateful for my surgeon who did an amazing surgery and I wish I could share him with everyone. It was a long road to get to him. I want to suggest that the doctors are not all good and you need a second opinion and if you’ve done your research, you should let your intuition be your guide. I had some crazy diagnosis’s! One surgeon ended up being sued for negligence, another surgeon gave me a diagnosis of a sprained back, another surgeon was a neurosurgeon who would’ve never done surgery and I would’ve been in a wheelchair eight years ago and my fantastic surgeon was a godsend and I said “do it“ meaning the surgery before he even finished his second sentence. I knew he was the right guy at UCSD health. When I looked at that photos of the screws my mouth dropped open and I didn’t believe it. Those screws are unbelievably huge and I think you should get a second or third opinion and not with the same doctor. The screws look like they’re causing the pain. My health insurance paid for all the different opinions. Changing departments from neurosurgery to orthopedic surgery was the key in my case. I urge you all not to give up and to contact your surgeons and surgical teams and look around for doctors who have good reviews. In my case, my tailbone is causing pain and no doctor was willing to do surgery on tailbone ego the opioids. But they are low-dose and they’ve never interfered with my work nor made me high because I always took the lowest dose possible just to knock the pain out. My work was physically extreme, and my surgeon took that into consideration when he decided on just the right surgery to do with me. This always meant I was going to be returning for another surgery but now that I’m willing to give up my work in the street of street Art I’m OK with getting a little more of my back stabilized. Good luck to everyone.