Everything In Its Right Place
Sunday, April 23, 2006 • Posted by jcb
So what have I been up to for two months…
- Behind door number one. A Microdiscectomy spine surgery procedure.
- The microdiscectomy spine surgery is performed through a small (1 inch to 1 1/2 inch) incision in the midline of the low back.
First, the back muscles (erector spinae) are lifted off the bony arch (lamina) of the spine. Since these back muscles run vertically, they can be moved out of the way rather than cut.
The surgeon is then able to enter the spine by removing a membrane over the nerve roots (ligamentum flavum), and uses either operating glasses (loupes) or an operating microscope to visualize the nerve root.
Often, a small portion of the inside facet joint is removed both to facilitate access to the nerve root and to relieve pressure over the nerve. The nerve root is then gently moved to the side and the disc material is removed from under the nerve root.
And also at the same time, a lumbar laminectomy:
Lumbar laminectomy is a surgical procedure that is performed to alleviate pain caused by neural impingement. The laminectomy surgery is designed to remove a small portion of the bone over the nerve root and/or disc material from under the nerve root to give the nerve root more space and a better healing environment.
****1 to 3% of the time a cerebrospinal fluid leak may be encountered if the dural sac is breached. This does not change the outcome of the surgery, and generally a patient just needs to lie down for about 24 hours to allow the leak to seal. EXCEPT IF YOU END UP BEING EXTREMELY UNLUCKY … LIKE ME. Where upon they send you, posthaste to the emergency operating suite to patch the breach!!!
So I’ve been poked, stuck, cut, stiched, cathedered, spinal-tapped, X-rayed, MRIed, taped, prodded, wheeled, pushed, RINSE - REPEAT- Thanks to Dr. Shahid, Dr. Sanderson, Dr. Batson, Nurse Niles and the rest of the staff at Norwalk Hospital, also Dr. Mauro Monteiro of Daya Terapias Integrada and Dr. Carlos Eduardo at the Clinica Sao Vicente in Rio de Janeiro. Special thanks to the MRI operator at Multi IMAGEM in Rio de Janeiro for double freaking me out by refering to my disk hernia as the “most enormous” hernia she had ever seen. That really put me on ice for a week. Tremendous thanks to the home team in Connecticut, my mother, my sister, brother-in-law and nephew, who played nurse maids and also to Carolina for making the trip up from Brasil for moral support. Sorry for all the grill guys, but it was a nice to be home for awhile either way.
Dr. Shahid and I reminisce about the good times..
Seriously, Dr. S. had an extremely sharp knife pressed up against my spinal cord on two separate occasions. You could say we got cosy. Crap, I don’t even want to imagine what his insurance runs.
Under the knife for the last time.
Grovvy close up
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Posted by: evil at April 24, 2006 12:30 PM
omfg!!!!
are you able to do all your normal activities (ie. ice climbing, kayaking, surfing, 1/2 marathons, etc….)?
Posted by: jcb at April 24, 2006 12:47 PM
Unfortunately you might notice I am carrying some… shall we say.. extra baggage due to my prolonged reduced ambulatory status. Fortunately I am hoping to make a full recovery in about six months after an extended physical therapy regimen.
Posted by: justice at April 24, 2006 07:50 PM
holy shit! we all know it was really plastic surgery to remove your tail. but seriously, wow! feel better and get something to eat you skinny bastard.
Posted by: YOMAMA at May 2, 2006 07:58 PM
It was nice having you home, but do you have to go under the knife to come back to CT?
It is nice here now……and there are no sharp objects
Posted by: Erica at May 11, 2006 05:11 AM
holy crap! Man JCB hope you are hanging in there I’ll be thinking of you! Are you starting to get your NOLS abled strength back? Congratulations on the article about your website, I’ve been checking it out. A strong recovery to you and be well!
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