Posted on 09/13/2013 8:55:51 PM PDT by trussell
From usconservative: “From your description, you need to be under a doctors care in-hospital TONIGHT. Your symptoms (to put it bluntly) ARE NOT GOOD and your history would indicate nerve root impingement. I’ll tell you flat out the longer you wait the more the likelihood the damage will be permanent.”
trussell, I have to agree with usconservative in Post #132. I think you need to call an ambulance and go tonight. Time may be important.
Be persistent. Unfortunately, you often have to be “the squeaky wheel” when you are dealing with today's healthcare system.
God be with you and watch over you.
I’m going in today...after sleeping on the couch my left leg and upper thigh are cramped and hurting enough to make me cry...my back is hurting from the divot at the base of my spine to the middle of my back, nearly to the middle of my shoulder blades. My ribs on the left side are aching horribly. I’m going to let my son get a couple more hours sleep and then I’m getting him up and calling for the ambulance again. I’m tired of this feeling. :(
then why does the CT’s I’ve had never show the compression fracture of the L 4/5, or the fact it is crumbling into my spine? MRI if done by a neurosurgeon will show it along with the annular tears, bone spurs, bulges, herniated disc, but CT’s don’t. Didn’t catch the broken rib either after my last hard belly flop fall from Meneires, bruised the entire ab wall and broke a rib. All the CT found was diverticulosis.
You may have been moving too much during the CT scan.
This is from wikipedia
“X-ray computed tomography, also computed tomography (CT scan), computed axial tomography (CAT scan) or computer assisted tomography is a medical imaging procedure that uses computer-processed X-rays to produce tomographic images or ‘slices’ of specific areas of the body. These cross-sectional images are used for diagnostic and therapeutic purposes in various medical disciplines.[1] Digital geometry processing is used to generate a three-dimensional image of the inside of an object from a large series of two-dimensional X-ray images taken around a single axis of rotation.[2]”
AGAIN: CT SCAN IS BASICALLY 3D XRAY PICTURE. IT MAINLY SHOWS BONE FEATURES AND SOME LIMITED SOFT TISSUE FEATURES.
If you are moving a lot during the procedure, the picture will be fuzzy though.
When you are going in today, have your son be with you, if at all possible. You need another person with you who can “protect” you — seriously. Ask for a spine specialist, since you have a fused spine as well as a neurologist — as some already suggested.
Tell them that now it has been days and you are worse, not better.
Tell them about the CATscan, they could obtain it from the other hospital — but I would focus on having them diagnose your problem.
Gosh, sorry for coming in so late on this, but indeed, prayers are lifting madam, for finding out the problem and moving toward a solution!!
May God keep watch, FRiend.
Tatt
My mother was diagnosed twice with pneumonia and treated for it one winter...come Spring new doctor realized she had cancer...my sister was diagnosed with food allergies, treated by a kidney specialist for 2 years and then she was diagnosed by a different doctor with kidney cancer...it is crazy...but medicine is actually more art than science at times and not all doctors are good at the art side of diagnosing...
“not all doctors are good at the art side of diagnosing...”
Yep. Not all doctors graduate med school with “A” grades. I have often found better medical information coming from the staff at the local health food store than from anyone with M.D. after his name. Sad.
I am hoping that trussell will post again soon from a hospital room, in a different hospital, getting the specialist care she needs.
Let’s pray: “Lord, we ask that You would be with trussell in the hospital. Keep her from harm and from misdiagnoses. Protect her from drugs that would be wrongly chosen. Lord, we ask You to direct the doctors to see what the problem is and to know how to fix it. We ask You to heal her pain and restore her legs to her. We ask for Your peace and presence to be on her. We trust You with her care. In Jesus’ name we ask these things, and thank You! Amen.”
Posting from a hospital bed at the other/better hospital. I was admitted today at 6:30 pm after being in the ER since about 10 am. Several tests run and now placed in a room with orders to not try to get up. I will see a neurologist tomorrow morning, as well as a surgeon and probably many other tests to go through.
Thank you again for the prayers...I appreciate them more than you know!
trussell,
Here are some tips about hospitals. I had to protect my mother from doctors when she was in the hospital this summer. It was a miserable week of struggling against bureaucratic stupidity.
* Be nice to the nurses. Learn their names. Greet them cheerfully. Make friends with them. It will help if you have to be firm with them later.
* When they bring in medications, don’t let them give you ANYTHING without asking 1) what it is, 2) what it does, and 3) what doctor prescribed it.
The nurses may hate you for it. Many of them don’t like answering questions. But you have to double check everything. They brought Mom drugs that she should not have and that conflict with each other. It was a constant battle to stop the doctors from making stupid mistakes. And sure enough, when she was sent home with a dozen prescriptions I looked them up on the internet and — tah dah — several had warnings “Do not take with X” which were the other drugs they had prescribed. Several warnings said “Wait an hour before eating” and they were giving them to her just before eating. It was madness.
In short: Question everything. Be bold and insist on getting careful care.
* Ask a doctor to order that you are allowed to sleep at night with minimal disturbances.
The sleep deprivation practiced at the hospital we were in was unreal. Mom was woken up six times in six hours! Blood tests, IV checks, vitals, etc etc etc. Insanity! Demand that you need sleep in order to get better, and insist that they schedule all their nightly checks to happen all at once over one or two periods. Do not let them wake you up every hour.
I’m sure other Freepers will have more or better advice. I have never been in the hospital myself, I stayed with Mom when she was there. It was unreal. I never knew being in the hospital was so horrific.
trussell, don’t hesitate to ask on here if they start to do something unwise. There are many Freepers who know a bunch of this stuff and know what to do.
Prayers sent for you.
up up up prayers for you
I had the MRI with contrast in 2 areas, the lumbar and thorasic. I believe they said both came back normal, yet they are preparing me for possibly needing surgery. I had to get my blood thinner by a shot to my belly instead of the pill that I normally take.
I am going to try to talk the doc into taking me off the diabetic diet. I hate turkey, yet I’ve had turkey tetrizini for dinner and now they brought me a turkey sandwich. I’d like to throw that at them...they already know I don’t like turkey, so for them to bring that to me...it’s frustrating! And...my sausage in the morning is going to be turkey sausage. :/
Glad that you are in the hospital now and under competent medical care. If you were harmed in any way by being sent home from the first ER, I would most definitely seek some recourse against that hospital.
bump
Sounds like I might be in the hospital for a couple weeks...they are talking about putting me in the inhouse therapy unit until I can walk again. They think I just bruised everything to the point that the swelling is keeping me from walking or using the legs. Their idea is that sometimes takes 2 to 5 weeks to fix.
Prayers up to you!
I'm not a doctor or medical expert, I can only relate to you my experience having had a number of major lower back surgeries over the last 20+ years now, and tests that I've been through along with the results of those tests as I understand them.
First it's good news that your MRI of your lumbar and thorasic came back normal. The MRI w/Contrast would show the structure of your spine, alignment, and any abnormalities (such as herniated or slipped disc's pressing on a nerve or causing debris in the spinal canal thus affecting sensory perception in your legs.)
I'm somewhat confused/concerned that you're being prepped for surgery without the doctors having a clear indication of where the problem is that's causing loss of sensation in your legs. (Again, I'm no expert and I'm sure they know more than I do.) I suppose it's possible that they'll want to do exploratory surgery to attempt to determine the location of the nerve impingement (assuming it's a nerve root impingement.)
In that case, your doctor should explain to you clearly what they believe they're looking for and how they'll know they've located the problem.
In my case, back in 2008 I had exploratory surgery for a nerve root impingement that did not show on an MRI w/Contrast. Before I went in for surgery, the Neurosurgeon, his team and I talked through the surgery, and the electronic device that would be wired up to my lower back,legs and toes to help them find the source of the impingement. I'm fortunate that my surgery to alleviate that impingement was successful and I recovered full use of my left leg.
If your doctor is talking to you about surgery, make sure you understand what it is he/she is looking for, how they'll know when they find the problem, and what your recovery time is expected to be.
Please do post a follow-up.
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