pain around T5 hardware

[itsjustme]

Hello all,

As I periodically check the forums I keep reading about how people have pain around their hardware at T-5. I have also been having this pain for quite sometime now with no relief and now that the colder weather has moved in it is making it quite unbearable. However, I am curious if there is anything in particular that makes this level more susceptible to pain/inflammation. Also, are there any ways to make this go away permanently? Please let me know. Living in the DC area with the cold weather hurts.

[dawney]

I am still in my recovery phase but the past couple of days that have been colder I have noticed an increased stiffness. Today seems like it is warming up so I guess I will go through it again when it cools down again.

[brat]

Hello All

Hi All!!!! I Have been having Pain in the thoracic. It's at the level where the rods curve both ways. T7 to T9 my Doctor thinks its the Screws at that level that are causing the pain. He wants me to get trigger point injections and see if the screws are causing the pain. I went off Gabapentin was on 3600 mg a day. and i feel alot more pain. I Haven't got the injections yet sick of needles getting stuck in back. When the pain gets to bad i'll have to get in done. Going off Gabapentin has really slowed me down. Thanks Dave

[sweetness514]

I had a screw/hook around T5 taken out and it took away all that pain but back then the pain was unbearable and 24/7. Now I have pain around T6 and it's on and off, so they're not recommending taking out anything. I did notice that this cold weather(0 celsius) and Winter air is making it so much worse, and that's a bummer after feeling so much better for a few months(Sept., Oct).

I am still supposed to go to a pain clinic but I don't think there's much they can do about it, pain meds give me either serious side effects or allergic reactions. Inter costal nerve blocks injections were not recommended b/c of fear of infections, as the pain is located near the hardware.

Ice packs and keeping warm and resting can help(not doing repetetive movements).