"Year" Update

I went to see Dr. McAfee in Baltimore this past Thursday for my one year follow-up. It was actually a 15 month follow-up, but that was because he was traveling the world and I was dealing with a tough work schedule.

The visit was quick, but I walked out with x-rays and my records in hand. The L5/S1 area fused perfectly, no worries there. He feels that my recent pain is probably due to a partially bulging disc at L4/L5. I was thinking the same thing; yes, I'm a pro at diagnosing myself and I know what a bulging disc feels like. This one is out towards the right as I'm having pain in my right leg only, so at least I have that going for me. No surgery needed at this time. A cortisone injection and physical therapy was recommended. I plan on doing the first one and acupuncture; I'm skipping the PT as I've never had luck with it in the past and always end up worse off.

The other positive thing was that I got his blessing on something I've been holding off discussing over the last couple of weeks. In early February I posted a letter that I wrote to Rush University regarding the metal reaction testing they had developed. Well, to my complete surprise, late on a Friday night I received a response from the head physician who has written a lot of articles on the topic of metal/implant reactions. It was so kind that it completely made my year. He gave me his Facebook group page they had just started and asked if they could use part of my letter as a testimonial for their web site. The big news - he requested my permission to use my story as a case study, since it is the first known example of an artificial disc causing an autoimmune reaction. In the past the other case studies have been on hip & knee implants, but not spine implants. After talking with Dr. McAfee and getting his blessing (I wasn't about to tick off the person who helped save my life), I agreed to the case study.

Contrary to what some may think, I doubt this is going to put me on a course to fame. I will be nothing more than a "Jane Doe" or "Patient #1", I'm sure. But this is a very important case study that will likely be highlighted to spine surgeons all over the world. And you know what, that makes me happier than I could ever describe. Even Dr. McAfee, the person who knew it made sense to remove the disc, doesn't understand the difference between someone not being able to wear jewelry and the reaction a body can have to an implant. This is so important, especially in a world where people are getting older and more implants are being created every day to treat the ailments of the baby boomers & beyond. Studies are showing that you can be just like me and have no allergies to metals on the outside of your body, but then you add an implant and your chances of having a metal reaction DOUBLE. Because most physicians have no clue about this cause/effect relationship, people are being misdiagnosed with things like fibromyalgia. I know of two people out there who were in that position and finally got the metal testing & it came back positive. But because they are not in the U.S. (one is in Canada & the other in Europe), they can't have the disc removed because their government paid health care won't cover it. It's expensive, not to mention a life threatening surgery that very few people could/should do. I read of stories of others with the artificial disc suffering with similar ailments, and this is not a trend that is going to stop any time soon. So to me, getting a case study out there from a reputable physician who is known world-wide for his research on the topic can only be a good thing.

So that is what is going on with me. 15 months later I'm still dealing with pain issues, but it could still be so much worse. I don't think this will be my last post, but the posts will continue to be sporadic just as they have been. I'll post updates on how the injection/acupuncture works out, and hopefully my final entry will be a copy of the case study along with a picture of a happy, healthy, 80% pain-free me.