Calling all medical types

[wordsmythe]

I had an MRI the other day because I've been getting some odd shoulder and arm pain on the left side. PT and muscle relaxers weren't doing it so the Dr. wanted to take a look inside.

Turns out #4&5 have some mild swelling and slight displacement and 6&7 have moderate swelling and displacement.

I've been refered to another Dr for an epidural to try to relieve swelling but I've got no real information as to what they are going to do to me and I won't be able to meet with him until shortly before the proceedure.

All they told me was not to eat a big lunch and to bring someone to drive me home.

I'm supposed to have an important meeting the day after this and I'm not sure if I shoudl cancel.

Anyone have a clue what they are going to do and if I should plan to NOT go to work the next day?

[K C Muffin]

Yeah. I've had it done, post surgically (so there was scar tissue there to try and avoid) in my lower back. They insert a catheter directly into the affected area. What is injected is not a pain reliever, but will minimize the swelling; which in turn, minimizes the pain. Hubby will be having this done shortly for his shoulder.

It's painless except the needle stick. When mine was done a few years ago, I had to be taken to and from, too. But the numbness wears off in a few hours. I always was driven back to work. Didn't affect anything I had to do, really. From my perspective, it shouldn't interfere at all with your meeting the next day unless you have a bad (unplanned) reaction - either to the injection itself or to the numbing agent they'll use on your skin.

I don't believe they knock you clear out for those. At least they didn't used to. Good luck!

[wordsmythe]

cool thanks

I'm hoping the Dr. who does it has a sense of humor because you can bet I'm going to tell him I can't feel my legs at some point.

[TexKan]

Your info is sketchy but I find this place is pretty cool. I'm guessing it's "cervical" that you are talking about and "mild swelling, slipped, mod displacement" I'm GUESSING is your disks. Disks are funny things and can cause pain in many places.

They might be doing diagnostic epidural or pain management epidural.

Whatever ya do make sure YOU understand what they are doing and what they expect by doing it.

Chronic pain can make ya crazy - good luck to ya and hope the website can give you some idea of what they are doing - but by no means let them do anything unless you know ALL your options and the expected outcomes.

Epidurals tho are really a piece of cake for those that do them all the time. Good Luck Wordie!!

MommieDearest can help ya out too - I don't know who else is a medmoron on here besides us. I'm sure there are some with much more knowledge than me - I just thought I would throw this out to ya.


Nerve blocks for pain management - TENS - WebMD

[Sherry_Giskie]

I'm hoping to get one of those in the next week as well! I had one with my first birth, and I can almost guarantee it's much easier for you to relax while they place the needle than it will be for me. I'll be curling over a huge belly that's in the process of contracting. If I can handle it, ANYONE can!

It wears off pretty quickly as soon as they stop the flow of medication. I remember I had it turned off for an hour, then I was able to get up and walk to the bathroom.

Good luck!!

[Highwayman]

I recommend trying a chiropractor before letting doctors screw around with your spine.

[K C Muffin]

Oh, yeah - about the lack of info....I wouldn't worry too much except to do what you can on the internet and on TexKan's link. It's a pretty simple procedure that they can explain to you in a few minutes. When the doc explained mine to me, she showed me a pic of my back on her laptop and showed exactly what she was going to do and why. Again, I was never out and they want you relaxed, so I would bet they'll be willing to answer any questions you have to make you more comfortable.

For me, we did that as a way to try to get the nerves & muscles surrounding the affected discs to relax and allow the disc to recover its normal shape and size. It worked. But it took more than one shot. Texie said there are options and there are. Since it's cervical, this would be my choice for a first try, but I'm speaking from the perspective of a successful patient.

[Kodiak]

Originally Posted by wordsmythe

I had an MRI the other day because I've been getting some odd shoulder and arm pain on the left side. PT and muscle relaxers weren't doing it so the Dr. wanted to take a look inside.

Turns out #4&5 have some mild swelling and slight displacement and 6&7 have moderate swelling and displacement.

I've been refered to another Dr for an epidural to try to relieve swelling but I've got no real information as to what they are going to do to me and I won't be able to meet with him until shortly before the proceedure.

All they told me was not to eat a big lunch and to bring someone to drive me home.

I'm supposed to have an important meeting the day after this and I'm not sure if I shoudl cancel.

Anyone have a clue what they are going to do and if I should plan to NOT go to work the next day?

Went through this the last 6 weeks. Had epidural injections once every 2 weeks. They will only do three. A little pin stick for the local and from there you won't feel the injection. They say not to drive for 24 hours, but didn't feel any different from the time I went in and the time I left.

I seen my doc today and am going to have 3 more injections a little different from the last 3. They will do these under, the way I got it, a cat scan machine.

As far as your meeting goes, if it was me, I wouldn't cancel, it was no big deal.

Now I am packing to go to Wichita to see my cardiovascular doctor to see how my ticker is after my latest heart attack. As often as I am in the Cath Lab, They need to leave the shunt in for a quick clean out, lol.

[K C Muffin]

Originally Posted by Highwayman

I recommend trying a chiropractor before letting doctors screw around with your spine.

For me, the chiropractor's treatments were not effective. But they work on some.

[wordsmythe]

Originally Posted by K C Muffin

For me, the chiropractor's treatments were not effective. But they work on some.

oooh for me Chiropactor = witch doctor.