19 Year Old Male. Scoliosis Progressing.

[mabeckoff]

Glad to hear that you are starting to feel better except for today

[JDM555]

John, There have been reports on the news of shortages of many drugs. Oxycontin though, that would be horrible if that were the case. I thought it was mostly cancer drugs and drugs for rare diseases. I hope you can get the generic since it is so much cheaper.
Sally

Yes it is, I don't recall what my first oxycontin prices were, but most generic medications are like $10. I had 20mg, 10mg, and 5mg bottles, so I'm sure it was affordable. Now, they said $175 when my father went to get it from Walgreens for the name brand. Most stores aren't willing to "order" generic, but Costco is, I love Costco lol. I'll try looking for Brioschi, but honestly I've been doing better in food/stomach/BM department. I think I will get 5 or 10mg Oxycontin prescription and 5mg Oxycodone at the doctors office tomorrow. I don't think I need 20mg Oxycontin at this point, I have been off all medications for a few days, or 1-2 percocets a day if I absolutely need something.

Glad to hear that you are starting to feel better except for today

Yes, even though last night sucked, after eating some food and taking 10mg Oxycodone and a few hours later, taking 10mg Oxycontin, I'm feeling much better. I have a heat pad behind me, and I'm doing fine. Will nap for a little now, and hopefully get some rest.

[LindaRacine]

I just looked up what I paid for oxycontin 10mg tablets. 60 pills cost me $25. Retail price was $163.99 and insurance saved me $138.99 (though not sure what they paid Walgreens).

[jrnyc]

wow...that is a low retail price....in NYC, it is higher...
i have a drug rider, thank goodness, tied to my insurance....i pay higher
co-pays since i retired (early, due to pain), but it is still a good deal to have the
drug rider....
my pharmacist in NYC tells me what the retail price is whenever i ask him...
he is really good, and i stick with him even though i moved out of Manhattan
(boo hoo) 4+ years ago...


NOTE...there were BIG legal battles over generic oxycontin a few years ago...
were they settled...???

do you have a drug rider, John....??
are you paying full cash for your precriptions....?

jess

[JDM555]

I just looked up what I paid for oxycontin 10mg tablets. 60 pills cost me $25. Retail price was $163.99 and insurance saved me $138.99 (though not sure what they paid Walgreens).

Does price differ much from the strength of the tablet? It was 20mg at 60 tablets for $175. I guess not much. Idk why Walgreens would give me retail price for name brand. I'll see what's up with Costco, hopefully they can just order it and it'll be a done deal in a few days. I want to have weaker strength Oxycontin and Oxycodone. I still have a lot of 10mg oxycodone, and like 4-5 tablets of 20mg Oxycodone, but don't feel 20mg is something I need. If I can get generic, for $10-20 for 30 tablets or even 20 tablets in 5mg and 10mg, that would be awesome.

wow...that is a low retail price....in NYC, it is higher...
i have a drug rider, thank goodness, tied to my insurance....i pay higher
co-pays since i retired (early, due to pain), but it is still a good deal to have the
drug rider....
my pharmacist in NYC tells me what the retail price is whenever i ask him...
he is really good, and i stick with him even though i moved out of Manhattan
(boo hoo) 4+ years ago...

do you have a drug rider, John....??
are you paying full cash for your precriptions....?

jess

I don't know what a drug rider is, so I'm guessing no, I don't have one. Insurance does help with prescriptions, I don't know why insurance is giving me retail, maybe retail for the name brand is more than the $175? I'm not sure, but I know my insurance does help because I see the "Insurance saved you blah blah" when I get other medications.

[jrnyc]

drug rider is the part of insurance that covers prescriptions....
i have a co pay...used to be really low before i retired..
my co pays used to be 8-10 dollars, unless a medication was super expensive....
since i retired, i kept my insurance but pay a whole lot more for premiums every month....
and.... my co pays for medicaitons are higher for almost everything...
a few medications are not covered by my insurance....

jess

[rohrer01]

And I called 2 Costco's, Handful of Rite Aids, Walgreens, and they all said they don't have generic oxycontin, I have no idea why it's disappearing from so many stores. My best bet is to get a prescription for 10mg and have Costco order generic for me, and wait a few days. I think I'm ready to take 1 or 2 10mg's instead of 1 20mg a day and some percocets. I had only 2 percocets last night, and I walked a lot outside. Walking was very refreshing, and the weather wasn't too bad last night around 5. Got fresh air and what not, I can't stand not showering though.

I had a friend that was on oxycontin for years and they didn't have a generic for it. Her insurance made her switch to the generic and it didn't work. I talked to my doctor about that, as I have also been on oxycontin (not for about 8 or 9 years now). He said there have been numerous complaints about the generic. Maybe the pharmacies aren't carrying it anymore because it flat out doesn't work. It's supposed to be time released and it wears off very rapidly, then the patient is stuck, in pain, waiting until the next dose. If you can afford it or if your insurance pays for it, I would stick with the name brand on this one at least.

As far as weaning down, you will need to get an Rx from you doctor for the lower dose ones, like 10mg. If you still need 20mg you can always take two. But you should NEVER cut an oxycontin in half as it is time released and will dump all into your system at once.

When I was on them, my doctor prescribed hydrocodone/APAP for breakthrough pain until I developed an allergy to hydrocodone. Then he switched me to oxycodone/APAP (percocet) for breakthrough (I still use this as needed). The generics are usually okay with these meds although I wouldn't recommend getting them at Walgreen's. My last experience there with the company they get their generics through made the worst equivalent of percocet I've ever had. It didn't touch my pain. For generics, Teva Pharmaceuticals has always seemed a step above the rest.

[jrnyc]

as i mentioned, there was a BIG legal battle over the generic....
guess the company didn't want competition from the copies....
anyway, i don't know what the resolution of the legal battles was...
but maybe that has to do with the disappearance....

jess

[JDM555]

I had a friend that was on oxycontin for years and they didn't have a generic for it. Her insurance made her switch to the generic and it didn't work. I talked to my doctor about that, as I have also been on oxycontin (not for about 8 or 9 years now). He said there have been numerous complaints about the generic. Maybe the pharmacies aren't carrying it anymore because it flat out doesn't work. It's supposed to be time released and it wears off very rapidly, then the patient is stuck, in pain, waiting until the next dose. If you can afford it or if your insurance pays for it, I would stick with the name brand on this one at least.

As far as weaning down, you will need to get an Rx from you doctor for the lower dose ones, like 10mg. If you still need 20mg you can always take two. But you should NEVER cut an oxycontin in half as it is time released and will dump all into your system at once.

When I was on them, my doctor prescribed hydrocodone/APAP for breakthrough pain until I developed an allergy to hydrocodone. Then he switched me to oxycodone/APAP (percocet) for breakthrough (I still use this as needed). The generics are usually okay with these meds although I wouldn't recommend getting them at Walgreen's. My last experience there with the company they get their generics through made the worst equivalent of percocet I've ever had. It didn't touch my pain. For generics, Teva Pharmaceuticals has always seemed a step above the rest.

Weird. I don't know, but looking at my old bottles from my previous surgeries, it says the MFG is Purdue-Frederick, is that a real deal brand name oxycontin or generic? We did switch insurance since my last surgeries. My percocets are definitely generic, says on the bottle, but not my oxycontin from the past 2 years, maybe those were real and my different insurance did cover it? I don't know. Oxycodone's generic work fine for me, they might wear off quick, but it's not a big deal, my pain isn't causing a lot of problems right now, I'm doing just fine. And I don't want to spend close to $200 at 1 month post-op when I'm trying to wean off the medication.

I understand I need prescription from him for the other doses, I'll ask him for them tomorrow at my 3 week post-op appointment. Finally get to remove staples and get to shower, finally.

as i mentioned, there was a BIG legal battle over the generic....
guess the company didn't want competition from the copies....
anyway, i don't know what the resolution of the legal battles was...
but maybe that has to do with the disappearance....

jess

Yes, a quick google search did show that, I don't know what happened, but most likely I do have the real brand names from my previous surgeries, and for some reason now my insurance is making me pay retail or won't cover? No idea. But like I said, I don't want to spend close to $200 for some damn 5/10mg tablets lol.

[rohrer01]

I know you've been there done that before. But one month post-op isn't that far out. I know you are trying to wean down, but my suggestion isn't to go too fast. I would be concerned that your pain may get out of control. You need to have something on hand, just in case. But you are young and healthy. It seems that you young people recover very quickly, like in a matter of a few weeks, whereas older folks can take a couple of years before feeling human again and beeing totally off the meds. Some of the older folks never get totally off the meds, but then again aging spines can be painful in and of themselves.

On the other hand, when I was on oxycontin 10mg two or three times a day, I came to the realization that I would get "pain" and shakiness when my pill was due. I felt that this was definitely chemical dependency so I took myself off without telling my doctor. It was horrible in the sense of being shaky, having false pain and severe diarrhea. I couldn't swallow my own spit without running to the bathroom. So this may be a plus for you to go off the stuff, since you are having such constipation issues. Oxycontin is the ONLY opiod that has caused constipation problems in me.

Hope this helps.

[JDM555]

It does help. I understand 1 month post-op isn't very far out, but honestly, I think I'm doing really well. I was yelled at by some members during my last surgeries when I was weaning off my meds, I guess my body heals quick, I'm not racing or trying to finish first, I really don't need the meds. As you saw yesterday, when I felt pain, I didn't hesitate to take 10mg oxycodone and 10mg oxycontin and then another 10mg oxycodone and valium before I slept. I don't care who finishes first, but if I don't need the pain meds, I'm staying away from them.

I hate oxycontin, it makes me feel sluggish and lose my appetite, my mom made me a dinner I loved and just staying in the kitchen made my stomach feel bad from the smell. So I had to eat very light. Later that night, I guess when the oxycontin was wearing off, I ate more without that feeling. I was able to sleep OK, but it still wasn't a solid sleep. I was woken up a few times, and my left leg/hip/incision is killing me, I have no idea why. Don't like that feeling.

I'm going to have staples removed and possibly some X-Rays today, I'll try to stop by hospital and get CD of my X-Rays from Medical Records as well to share. Also pick up prescription lower strengths of oxycontin/oxycodone.

[LSKOCH5]

Glad you seem to be doing so well John, and that you are listening to your body. Pain meds can be so tough - you've got to have something in your stomach so you don't get nauseous, but then they zap your appetite.

[JDM555]

Thanks LSKOCH5. I hate how the meds kill my appetite, but it's usually just mornings, by afternoon I seem to eat OK.


I went to office today, first got some x-rays, looked good. Everything went well, went over the surgical procedures with the surgeon cause I remember a lot of things and everything was hazy, but it sounded about right. First surgery removed hardware, L1-3 had the pseudarthrosis, then last level L3 had super loose hardware, so loose that you can pull the screws out by hand. They were eating at the hole and causing the cracking sounds I would hear many times on a daily basis. When he went to do XLIF on L1-L3, I had a rib directly in the way, so he removed part of it, and also grounded it up and used it for bonegraft. Then he said there was the scare of having to extend to L4 because L3 holes were huge, but he managed to end up sticking to L3. He said he had to screw much deeper and use thicker screws, 7mm instead of the 6mm. I was surprised, but comparing old X-Rays to these, he did for sure go a LOT deeper lol. He said he used some bonegraft in the loose parts around the front of the hole. He said everything looks solid. I can do light cardio at the gym which includes stationary bike, elliptical without grabbing the arms (to prevent twisting), and treadmill to walk. He said I can swim and shower and being completely submerged under water wasn't an issue. He removed all my staples, which feels a million times better, especially sitting. He also removed all my band aids and dressings. He was very nice and helpful, and we both laughed about the 60mg oxycontin hahaha. He told me the reason was I was on fentanyl IV drip and I was pressing it every 6 minutes exactly and still complained about pain, so he's like "Damn, I must give him some strong medication if I want him to get off the IV, 60mg should do it" hahahah. Then it knocked me out the whole day.

I got 5mg/325mg percocet prescriptions and 5mg oxycontin. I'll head to costco tomorrow or something and have them order it. For now, any pain, the 10mg/325mg percocets should be enough. Turns out my hips are uneven, and he wants me to wear Dr. Schools insert or something cause my right leg is shorter, and especially during recovery, he wants my spine to be balanced to prevent any curvature. He told me to start wearing the bone stimulator, which will also go on. And I'm already taking the calcium supplement. So everything went well.

I stopped by the hospital to radiology to pick up the X-Rays on a CD so I can have a digital version of them, and he said it would take a few minutes, and in that time I went to visit the nurses in the Orthopedic wing, and they were very happy to see me. I had a great time saying hi and thanking them and it was just an awesome visit. I'm very glad I went to see them. Then I got the CD and headed home. So it was a good day. Pain isn't too bad, I haven't taken any pain meds today, don't see a need for them. But driving did cause my lower back some discomfort/soreness, lying down in bed for an hour or so definitely helped. I can finally take a shower, yay.

I got plenty of pictures, both digital and cell phone pictures of the new X-Rays I got at the office, will share in a bit.

[mabeckoff]

Glad that everything is going so well for you this time. I was so happy to get the staples out , also.They are very annoying

[JDM555]

Thanks Melissa, I'm very glad I got them out. Pain wise was good, had my first warm shower, amazing lol. Felt good, and my side incision is healing amazingly well for 3.5 weeks post-op, it already looks great. My back scar isn't bad, for some odd reason it looks shorter to me than my first scar? Idk, but in X-Rays, it actually looks like the incision went farther down.

Here are some digital versions of the X-Rays. Will start to wear bone stimulator tomorrow. Need to charge the batteries.

Compare depth of screws below:

Before:
http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c3...john123023.jpg

After:
http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c3...8/xray0052.jpg


Here are some digital X-Rays.

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c3.../xrayfinal.jpg
http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c3...xrayfinal5.jpg
http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c3...xrayfinal4.jpg
http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c3...xrayfinal3.jpg
http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c3...xrayfinal2.jpg

Here are some cell phone pics of X-Rays I had at the Office today. (Had a 3/4" lift under my right leg to balance my hips)

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c3...48/xray002.jpg
http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c3...48/xray004.jpg

Staples that I had removed. Counted 38 lol.

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c3...48/xray015.jpg