July 8, 2008 - 10:25pm
Hello to all. i was wondering do any of you think I should get a second opinion in regards to first, had a mri and results were L4 comptrddion very mild..doctor scheduled a cortisone injection in spine... Does it help??? and is it possible that the first mri didnt pick up anything else goingon? Plus I take opan 40mg 2xs a day.. Plus 5 mg every 6hrs for break through pain. what;s your take on opana and is there any other pill that would make a good combo for breakthrough pain? sometimes the oana makes me tired/ Please give opinion..thanks.......................
July 8, 2008 - 10:42pm
#2
ty
thanks for responding so quickly, definitely an option first i have to figure out how to ask for it. Opana does work, but I also noticed that if and when I switch these pills(pper doctor orders) I dont have any withdrawals. and I hate being on pain meds for long periods of time. is it easier to switch pills or does it really matter. you can still have withdrawals. But I have found the worst withdrawals is coffee. thanks again
July 9, 2008 - 12:12am
#3
Well man
No one likes to be on narcotics for a long time and thats something the DEA has to figure out. But anyway, being on OxyContin is better than Opana ER i found because I was getting itchy on them. Being disabled because of pain is bad enough. But seriously, if a medication works, then what is so wrong about the quality of life you gain because of it vs. the social stigma's blah blah blah!! Sorry I have gone on so many tangents but I didnt like Opana ER at all. And someone correct me if I am wrong, OxyContin doesnt affect the same receptor cells that Opana ER so it in fact can have different analagesic effects from one another. They say that if your brain has more receptor cells for one than the other, the one that effects the higher quantity of receptors will in fact be better for you. This is because OxyContin is codeine based vs. Opana ER which is morphine based. Someone please correct my facts if they are wrong because I would really like to know the right answer.
Good Luck man!!!
July 9, 2008 - 3:25am
#4
I was on Oxy 30 mg twice a
I was on Oxy 30 mg twice a day, and I found it to be very sedating the first several months, also the withdrawl symtoms were horrible when the treatment was no longer needed at that high of a level. It took switching to Methedone to get off the Oxy, and then a slow go to get off methodone. Make your decision to switch carefully, because it could be a very life altering change. Way all your pros and cons before making the decision to ask your Dr for a change. Good luck...
July 9, 2008 - 9:12am
#5
Quote: and is it possible
Quote:
and is it possible that the first mri didnt pick up anything else goingon?
Assuming you had the traditional tube MRI, then yes, it is quite possible that the MRI did not see everything that is going on. The MRI machine only sees the back as it is presented, which is usually the patient laying on their back. There are newer machines that are more sophisticated and actually allow for a patient to be in different positions to get image
I think Quahog posted a link to one somewhere on he
gtrplayer
July 9, 2008 - 9:40am
#6
Flyer I agree about
Flyer I agree about Oxycontin being a very good pain releiver. Now because of greed and my Medicare D I have to switch to Morphine ER and I have no idea what to expect. I do take oxycodoe for b/t but here I go again with being changed to another narcotic when I have my chronic pain stable.
July 9, 2008 - 10:29am
#7
gtrplayer/all
I think that as well, I mean the pain is horrible and only became worst after having my right hip arthoscope with itband recession, in december 07, mind you I still have pain in my hip and there is still major swelling in the right hip region. with that being said, i have an schedule cortisone shot in my L4 region of my spine scheduled on monday the 14, this due to the doc seen a mild compression on that spot from the first mri. I guess we are doing this spinal shot to rule that its defintely the l4 region where the pain is coming from. I am very afraid of having a needle in my spine. if anyone had this do they recommend this does it work..thanks again.
July 9, 2008 - 10:54am
#8
Tray Yes I was supposed to
Tray Yes I was supposed to have the med injected myself into my back but I have to get some sort of supplemental insurance becasue being a new surgury doctor his office want's all the money upfront,in other words he want's me to pay him and then Medicare to pay me back but I cannot do this money wise. Apparantly a few people had work done in his office and did not have the insurance or it was expired. My Primary doctor who is the best doctor I have ever had understands this also but I am in the same boat as you. If you can post how the shot worked for you and what is involved I would appreciate it. Thankx gcdylan
July 9, 2008 - 10:26pm
#9
gcdylan re: when i have the shot
I am going on this coming up monday.. i am not looking forward to having it done. I am going to request from my rhode island doctor that he will give a referral to have another mri maybe a much more indepth kind.. any ways I will defintely get back to you and let you know what the procedure consist of. I will also let you know during the course of the week if the shot works apparently it is suppose to elivate most of the pain. which is funny because how will I know if it actually is working since I am already on the pain medication. They have not said anything about not taking the medicine. I wil get back to you. peace with your condition..good luck
July 10, 2008 - 9:48am
#10
You are wrong about the
You are wrong about the pharmacology of oxycontin. There are a lot of sites that can go into great detail about the metabolism and mechanism of action of different narcotics, and people on this site who like pharmacology more than I do and could explain it better.
I think you are also wrong about people not liking to be on narcotics. If a significant portion of the population were not prone to addiction and if it did not ruin their lives, then we would not need to regulate narcotics as we do. Even people without addiction use narcotics recreationally with negative consequences for themselves and for the rest of us, which makes regulation of narcotics necessary.
July 10, 2008 - 10:24am
#11
Tray Appriciate it
Tray Appriciate it 
July 10, 2008 - 10:29am
#12
I wish I could do without my
I wish I could do without my narcotics but if I was to do that even if weened of properly I would not be able to get out of my chair. I know this. I also would not being able to do my walking around my favorite spot's, or even bicycling the little bit I do. The people who do not want to be off the narcotics obviously do it for the eurphoric effect IMO.
July 10, 2008 - 5:13pm
#13
Sorry, I did not mean to
Sorry, I did not mean to imply that people with legitimate chronic pain wanted to be on narcotics! I understand they just want to be pain free and be able to do all the things most of us take for granted, on narcotics or not. I ment to say that the regulation and reticence to prescribe narcotics is because of people with addiction disorders or people who use narcotics recreationally and then behave irresponsibly.
July 11, 2008 - 12:17am
#14
I understood what you meant
I understood what you meant Dr. Lois. When someone said no one wants to be on narcotics for a long period of time I dont think they realized what they were saying, or at least how they were saying it. I think what they meant to say was that most people who suffer from chronic pain do not want to HAVE TO take and live on narcotics for forever- they would rather find another solution then only pain meds.
Dr. Lois was just clarifying how she read the statement, she was just talking about an average person. saying that just any person in general would not want to take narcotics for a long period of time sounds like a parent saying their pregnant teenager would never have sex, lol.
I'm a social worker, not a medical professional. All comments and thoughts are simply my opinion and experience.
July 16, 2008 - 11:39pm
#15
gcdylan responding about L4 nerve root block results
hi, I had the procedure this past monday the 14th of july at newton-wellsley hospital. I was very nervous and the proper name was called an L4 nerve root block. It actually wasnt as bad as I though it would be. The Dr. injected lidocaine in to spine nerve, it became numb, within a few minutes he injected solution. The doctor uses an xray to pinpoint the exact spot for injection. not much relief yet, it may take a few more days. possibillity of pain becoming worst, mine did...or sometimes you need to do this type of injection in two doses two weeks apart, to get full results. who know I am still in alot of pain, it really sucks..I actually took a day out of work today, havent done that in 2 years, I never call in sick. who know all I can do is have hope and live happily But I will keep trying to find permanent pain relief. I hope all who suffer with chronic pain are doing well in mind and spirit.its all good never lose hope. peace
July 17, 2008 - 12:58am
#17
I don't mean to sound
I don't mean to sound alarmist but new evidence is showing that epidural steroid injections do not work very well and if the patient does obtain relief it is very short term.
The main reason physician perform them is MONEY. They can charge and receive quite a substantial amount for each injection they perform.
I personally have had several and unfortunately did not any lasting benefit from them. Hopefully your results will be better.
http://www.webmd.com/back-pain/news/20070305/steroid-shots-for-back-pain-dont-work http://www.nationalreviewofmedicine.com/issue/2007/04_15/4_patients_practice05_7.html
July 17, 2008 - 11:48am
#18
I think part of the problem
I think part of the problem with epidural steroids is poor patient selection. Do they have significant disc herniation and is the disc herniation the cause of the pain. Combine this with the fact that people are often desperate for relief, excellent reimbursement, and most back pain gets better in time with conservative treatment. American patients are very demanding. They want results and they want results now. They want a test or a proceedure or a pill, and they don't want to wait 4-6 months to see if thing improve on their own with time. It is all I can do to get some people to wait 7-10 days for their colds to get better.
OxyContin is very good for pain relief. But as I understand it 40mg of Opana ER is equivalent to 80mg of OxyContin. And its possibly the solution to your sleepiness.