Post Op Pain - Spinal Cord Disorders Message Board

rdweiss49 · 12-13-2006, 02:29 PM

All, just looking for any experiences you've had with odd pains after surgery. I am about 2 1/2 months post op on ACDF C6-7 w/hardware and donor bone.

The issue I'm having is a kind of pain in parts of my body that is hard to categorize - but it's best described as a burning kind of pain. The pain is occurring on the underside of my arms from about my elbows to my hands. Sometimes I get shooting pains in my hands/palms as well. When I lightly touch or even brush up against my skin it is exteremely painful but if I rub hard it doesn't hurt so bad. I can't even bear to wear long sleeve shirts any more....Oxycodone works well to deaden the sensation but I can't take it during the business day. Lyrica doesn't do too much except make me gain weight at an alarming clip and topical treatments are useless.

Anyway, just wondering if anyone has experienced this, what the remedy is (if any) and how long does this last.

Any help will be most appreciated.....Thanks in advance.

Randy

Tucsonlady40 · 12-13-2006, 09:21 PM

Randy,

I had ACDF of C5-6 and honestly don't remember having anything like you describe.

Have you called and talked to your Surgeon? If not, you should.

Maybe it's not related to your surgery, but some kind of reaction to something else.

Good luck to you and let us know how your doing.
Bernie

rdweiss49 · 12-14-2006, 03:14 AM

I have talked with my surgeon and my personal physician and they both told me that for a period of time...these nerves are "waking up" and would produce various sensations and should calm over time. Of course, they do not know for how long this will last or whether it will ever subside.

I'm wondering if I'm too impatient at this stage of the game or if I truly should be concerned.

Thanks,

Randy

feelbad · 12-14-2006, 08:24 AM

did your herniation actually compress or touch your actual cord in any way?I am only asking as this sounds like what i have in almost the very same areas,central pain syndrome.this is caused when something either affects or damages whats called the spinothalamic tract within the actual spinal cord.its a non stop stingy/burney type of sensation that actually feels like a second degree burn that just never heals?multiplied by like five?does that fit the bill?when i press down hard with my thumb into the muscle,it will actually feel much better than when i lightly touch any of the affected areas.i woke up with this crap right from the start after my spinal cord surgery back in 03 and its been there ever since.mine runs from the palm in my L hand on up thru the c7-t1 dermatomes up the back of my arm on up over both shoulder blades.i do feel for you,really.this stuff just sucks.unfortunetly i don't think this is going to actually go away anytime soon.i know you probably didn't want to hear that.

the best things i have used for this is the lidocaine patches over the worst spots and prudoxin cream(i don't know why this works but it just really does help) and if you can start some sort of desensitization therepy,this just helps you to learn to live with it.you DO eventually start to not notice it as much as when it first starts?i know that sounds impossible to you right now,but your brain starts to adjust to having it in some way.its really hard to explain actually.

while this 'could" possibly be something else,just by the description you gave,it unfortunetly really does sound like central pain to me. do some research on central pain syndrome and compare the symptoms and see what you think.the other nasty neuro crap that can mimic central to a certain point is RSD but that also has alot of other symptoms that you don't have so i think its pretty safe to say that thats not the culprit.i also have this little wonder in my R knee down thru my foot.

i really do know how you feel tho.you have my sympathies,really.try doing that research and see what you think and please let me know,K? trying the anti siezure meds is the best type of pain md for this particular crap.lyrica is just the latest one to come down the pike.neurontin can also be a good one too.not everyone will respond to any given med the same way.we all respond differently,so if the lyrica doesn't work,there are other options to try.

let me know how you are doing.Marcia

Laenini · 12-15-2006, 07:01 AM

I noticed a similar sensation on an area of my back around the left shoulder blade. It was like the skin was super sensitive, almost a sunburn kind of feeling, but the skin looked perfectly normal. It was very uncomfortable. I think I got lucky though because it lasted a week or so, and now seems to be gone. I'm officially 1 month out from my C4-5 ACDF today. So I guess there could me more problems ahead, but I'm optimistic!