Increased Pain with PT

[debbei]

I went to the orthopedic Dr. when I was around 6 months post op. He took Xrays to make sure nothing was broken or torn, and then told me that it was this frozen shoulder thing. Ever since my fusion, both shoulders were kind of sore, and the right one seemed to get more and more limited in my range of motion as time went on. The PT is helping tremendously. I can't believe how quickly it's helped. I have about another month to go. I go back to the shoulder Dr. on Thursday for a checkup.

[JenniferG]

Glad to hear the PT is helping so much, Debbei.

I wonder if my surgeon will suggest PT for me at my August appt. I've never had much faith in physiotherapists (from past experience) but it seems a lot of patients on this forum have benefited quite a lot from it. I guess it's a matter of fluking the right practitioner?

[asccbodypro]

PT pain!

I would agree with Linda. If you have told them about your pain increasing and they still have you on the same program I would be a little worried about their knowledge of the scoliotic spine. Your body is trying to tell you something.....slow down or back off on the exercises because something isn't working for you! Good luck. I hope you can figure out what is going on. You need to move forward not backwards!!

[briarrose]

Thanks ascc. I called my surgeon's office last week and told them my pain had increased with PT. I was told I could have pain killers if I wanted. I declined because I'm not ready (mentally) to start taking pain killers on a regular basis. I was also told to ease up on the PT and if the pain increased to call back and come in to see the doctor. Well I did ease up a good bit but I still have a lot of pain. I don't know what to do. This is all so depressing. I've spent my Sunday mainly lying on the couch because doing anything is painful. I know when I go in, the doctor will order x-rays and everything will come back normal. Are narcotics really the next step? I guess hardware removal would be a possibility too. I'm not sure what to do.

Shell

[JenniferG]

Oh dear, Shell. This is not what we want to hear. I fully understand you not wanting to go back on the meds. I can only suggest you rest up, avoid all PT for a while, and hopefully, things will settle down.

I see you are a year post-op. Have you tried anti-inflammatories? I would imagine you are fully fused by now? I know we are all different, but I used to swear by Nurofen. It not only took away the pain, but once the inflammation was gone, often the problem would be fixed.

Fusion or no fusion, we all get pain from overdoing things at times, and hopefully this pain is no different. Sometimes these things take a long while to heal.

Check with your surgeon first, but my advice would be Nurofen and good, solid rest. And try not to think about rod removal or permanent medication.

[LindaRacine]

Thanks ascc. I called my surgeon's office last week and told them my pain had increased with PT. I was told I could have pain killers if I wanted. I declined because I'm not ready (mentally) to start taking pain killers on a regular basis. I was also told to ease up on the PT and if the pain increased to call back and come in to see the doctor. Well I did ease up a good bit but I still have a lot of pain. I don't know what to do. This is all so depressing. I've spent my Sunday mainly lying on the couch because doing anything is painful. I know when I go in, the doctor will order x-rays and everything will come back normal. Are narcotics really the next step? I guess hardware removal would be a possibility too. I'm not sure what to do.

Shell

Hi Shell...

I agree that you should lay off of PT for awhile. If your pain hasn't improved significantly in a month, I think you should consider getting a second opinion. There's a reason for your pain.

Regards,
Linda

[briarrose]

Thanks Jen and Linda,

I called my surgeon's office again yesterday and said the pain was still pretty bad. I was told to stop the PT and see my surgeon soon. I'm going in on Monday morning. My hardware has started to bother me too. I get shooting pain going up and down my spine. Maybe it's still the nerves regrowing. I also have this buzzing type feeling at the base of my neck. It feels like I have a TENS unit on a low setting there permanently. I'm really scared that something has gone wrong.

I've started taking Advil on a regular basis but it doesn't seem to be doing much. Thanks ladies!

Shell

[txmarinemom]

Shell,

my pain is the same, about 1.5 inches but to the left of T2 & T3. Massage by my husband helps, but only for a few minutes. Any more than that drives me crazy and starts to hurt. I don't have any of the collar bone problems though. My shoulder issue is a frozen shoulder, and I'm back in PT for it which is really helping.

Shell and Debbe ...

Debbe, I still think you're describing the rhomboid, and I'm serious ... that Theracane thing I ordered ROCKS for that spot.

There's a really good book on frozen shoulder ...

The more you understand the mechanics of it will help with either active therapy (PT) or passive modalities (which can also be active) like massage therapy.

Y'all hang in there.

Regards,
Pam

[briarrose]

I may have to try that Theracane thing, Pam. Thanks for suggesting it.

I saw my surgeon this morning. He had me go for x-rays of my shoulder but everything looked normal. It's probably all muscular and nerve related. I mentioned my spine pain (especially at the base of my fusion) and he said if it did not go away in 6-8 weeks, I should have a cat scan done to check the fusion. He didn't think it was likely, but thought that fusion failure could be the problem if the pain persists. Can fusion failure occur in a small area or the entire part that was meant to be fused?

I really wish I would have asked for a steroid injection for my shoulder. I completely forgot about it until I got to my car.

I think I'm going to give acupuncture a try. At this point I'll try anything except narcotics.

I go to see the neurologist next week for my arm pain/numbness. My surgeon is anxious to hear what is going on with my arm. I'm afraid of having an EMG done though. They sound so painful!

Thanks for listening everyone! I appreciate the support.

Shell

[LindaRacine]

Can fusion failure occur in a small area or the entire part that was meant to be fused?

Hi Shell...

I think it's much more common to have one area of non-fusion vs. multiple areas of non-fusion.

Regards,
Linda

[briarrose]

Hi Shell...

I think it's much more common to have one area of non-fusion vs. multiple areas of non-fusion.

Regards,
Linda

Good to know. Thanks! Does this have to be fixed or can it just be ignored (I know it's really difficult to determine if the fusion has failed) if the pain isn't too bad?

Shell

[titaniumed]

Shell

EMGs are nothing to worry about. They tape electrodes to your body and measure electrical signals in millivolts. The removal of the tape is the worst of it.

I always keep Celebrex around the house just in case. Its an NSAID, and they are effective sometimes in certain cases. They don't slam your head, and it wouldn't hurt to get some. Your GP could give you some samples. Read about them, its worth a try.

I always have had great success with hot water for pain. I always hop in the bath tub when I'm in trouble. You could also try some Tiger balm that Pam has mentioned in the past.

I don't blame you with the meds. I actually have my own pharmacy here at the house, with one hell of a selection of goodies acquired with all my surgeries, but I'm extremely hesitant to take any of it. With my rotator cuff surgery and shoulder repair, I took 2 Celebrex pills and after my gall bladder removal, I didn't take anything. They wanted to give me 100 percs for that one. LOL That's like a 2 month nonstop party.

Its the equivalent of getting a bottle of liquid morphine for stubbing your toe...............Ye ha.

Having a non-union fixed is a good question.There are people that go years and don't even know it, till some hardware breaks after a million cycles. You are in pain, so that changes decision making timeframe. Unfortunately, do to the process, this could take some time. If that were the case, I would ask about BMP.

I don't know if you have ever tried massage. With hot water immersion before, and a good massage, they are fantastic. You will need an experienced masseuse, one who goes easy. I also had a Chinese girl who did acupressure on me who was fantastic. She could literally shut down certain muscles, which was amazing.
I didn't have luck with acupuncture. I think that was because the Dr wasn't Chinese.LOL I think that helps quite a bit, you know. I still wouldn't discount it, acupuncture is absolutely amazing science.

I hope you can manage this till the smoke blows over. Sometimes its difficult.
Ed

[briarrose]

Thanks for the reply, Ed.

I'm pretty sure this EMG involves needles though I could be wrong. The script says EMG-NCS.

I will look into Celebrex. Thanks!

The narcotics didn't really affect me mentally. They completely screwed up my GI system. That's one of the reason I don't want to go back on them. I don't want to turn into an addict either. I work with a lot of narcotics at my job and if word got out that I was taking them on a regular basis, I could run into some problems. Percocet worked so much better for my pain than Vicodin. I have a bunch here too in case I have a really bad day. Do muscle relaxants work for you?

Is a BMP a basic metabolite panel? What would that show if I had a failed fusion?

A massage sounds great but I'm afraid to get one. I had a few done pre-op and always found them very painful but I usually felt great the next day. There are certain spots on my back that make me jump when my husband massages them so I'm a little leery of going.

I actually work with about 20 Chinese. I've been wanting to ask them if they know a good acupuncturist but I'm worried about offending them like Jerry did on Seinfeld. "You think just because I'm Chinese I know where all the Chinese restaurants are!"

This pain is scaring me. It shoots up and down my spine or will sometimes radiate it certain areas. I really hope it passes.

Thanks again for the reply.

Shell

[titaniumed]

Bmp

Shell
Here is a BMP link.
https://www.infusebonegraft.com/how_infuse_works.html
Ed