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Had rf yesterday morning

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Posted 4/13/2010 10:41 AM (GMT 0)
After waiting so long I finally had the radiofrequency ablation completed in my lower lumbar area for facet syndrome.  I did have some pain relief yesterday from the numbing agent that was used but the doc said I won't see any relief from the actual rf for 2-3 wks.  It takes that long for the nerve to actually stop sending pain signals.  They did send me home with lidoderm patches to wear over the injection site for 8 days, plus I am to ice the area for 20 minutes at a time to keep the swelling down.  Now I just have to wait & see.

I do hope this works so we can start working on my cervical area.  My left shoulder, neck & arm are giving me lots of soreness along with weakness.  Turning my arm in certain positions gives sharp pain.  Not sure if it's from the spine or the shoulder.  On my next pm appt the doc is going to check out my shoulder and possibly do some trigger point injections to try to find out what is causing the problems.

I'll let you all know in a couple of weeks how the injection went!

Posted 4/13/2010 12:29 PM (GMT 0)
Good Luck.
Posted 4/13/2010 12:46 PM (GMT 0)
Good morning Jag! Is this done in the same area that you had a fusion before? I don't know much about this process, but it sounds very interesting to say the least. Also, how long does it last?
Of course, we wish you the best, and hope this works for you.


SE
Posted 4/13/2010 12:53 PM (GMT 0)
Good Morning Jag!

I hope this new day finds you in less pain today, and that the ablation is really working wonders for you (even if you won't see true results for a few weeks yet). It's always a bit nerve-wracking to me to wait after a procedure to see if it's helping or not...so have patience! Try not to overdo it, but follow dr's orders to ensure the best success. I'll be thinking of you and keeping you in my prayers.

Hope it's sunny where you are!!

Hugs,
Pam
Posted 4/13/2010 4:39 PM (GMT 0)
 

   Dear Jag,

 

     It is good to hear from you. *hugg* I am glad the RF is finally over. I hope the nerve stopps sending pain signals soon! It will be nice to have that done and out of the way. I know you have alot going on with your spine and I hopee you can begin treating all the other areas quickly. Try to rest as much as your body will let you. You are in our hearts here.

 

*hugg*

  dani

Posted 4/13/2010 6:34 PM (GMT 0)
I wish you luck with the procedure.  I hope the nerve will not be working as soon as possible.  I look forward to hearing how it works.  (((((((((((hugs))))))))))))

 

Loretta

Posted 4/13/2010 7:15 PM (GMT 0)
I had rf done a few years ago. I was miserable for a couple of days, but then I really noticed a difference. I don't remember it taking weeks to get better, though. Good luck with it!
Posted 4/13/2010 7:39 PM (GMT 0)
Jag, I really hope the rf makes a positive difference for you!! Thank you for keeping us updated!

I'm sorry to hear about your other pain; I hope your doctor can get to the bottom of it soon and find a way to give you some relief! Hang in there!

((((((((hugs)))))))))
JoAnn
Posted 4/13/2010 7:44 PM (GMT 0)

I had to call the pm doctors office today.  I woke up around 1:30am and just felt achy all over so I took bt med along with tylenol and felt somewhat better.  By 9:00am I was feeling some chills along with the overall aches so went to bed and stayed there, kept using the tylenol.  I took my temperature this morning but it was normal.  I fell asleep around noon and obviously the tylenol wore off so I checked my temp again and it was 102.2.  My injection site looks just fine with no excessive redness or soreness.  The office said to continue with tylenol every 4 hours and watch for any redness or swelling.

I've posted in the past on here about having the feeling of overall achiness, chills, lowgrade fever and just not feeling well.  I've told the physician assistant that I see about my symptoms but she normally just blows me off.  My next appointment is with the pm doctor and I am going to push this harder.  I've seen my pcp when feeling like this but they can't find any signs of infection through blood or urine tests. 

I felt fine yesterday before the procedure with no signs of fever.  This stuff always just comes on fast and goes away after a few days to a week.  I am going to ask them to complete updated blood work at my next visit.  One of our members had mentioned polymyalgia rheumatica and when I searched the web for this I have most all of the symtoms.  I'll let you know if I get better.

SE, my rf was below my fusion in the facet joints.  Beth, how long did your relief from the rf last?

Thanks everyone for the well wishes.  Sorry I haven't been posting much here lately but sometimes I get too much on my plate and have to cut back somewhere. 

Posted 4/13/2010 8:06 PM (GMT 0)
Hi Jag,

I will certainly pray that the RF treatments help with your pain levels...

Have you ever been tested or diagnosed with Fibromyalgia? That also comes with the symptoms of low grade fever, chill, achey body, etc. And can certainly be triggered when getting other type of treatments, added stress, pain ,etc..

I think it's a good idea to push the Dr. for getting to the bottom of what is going on with that. Also..just a suggestion to start keeping a journal of when it seems to happen, what you were doing that day/day before, how long it lasts, symptoms, etc. This will all help the Dr. when you see them...

Sending you some hugs and hopefully you can get a good night's rest tonight and don't worry about posting too much...we know you love us!!!:)
Posted 4/13/2010 10:20 PM (GMT 0)
Hi,Jag,
I don't know anything about the post-procedural recovery with an rf, but that fever seems high to me. Did they tell you this was normal? I do hope you push your doctor next time, as it sounds like more is going on with you in some way.

I know Frances2008 has had at least one rf, and I think has had maybe several but I might not be remembering correctly. Maybe she'll pop over and post. I think I saw her post here recently about rf but not sure if it was to you.

Take care of yourself and if that fever doesn't come down I'd really get some medical attention.

(((((Jag)))))

PaLady
Posted 4/14/2010 12:24 AM (GMT 0)
Hi Jag,

I don't know much about RF, but I sure hope it helps you! The waiting is always the worst part with any type of pain-relieving procedure. Stay positive!

hugs,
Skeye
Posted 4/14/2010 5:03 AM (GMT 0)
Jag, PALady is right.....that temperature of 102.2 sounds high. Rather worrisome! I hope that you get a chance to discuss this with your doctor soon!

I have lupus and fibromyalgia, and can report that fever and chills are also common in lupus. The fever is usually not as high as 102.2, generally less than 101 I believe (low-grade). Mine are usually 99.5 to 101.5.

Still hoping that the rf treatment will work for your back pain!
((((((((hugs))))))))
JoAnn
Posted 4/14/2010 12:49 PM (GMT 0)
I think the fever broke last night because I woke in the night with wet sheets and am feeling better today. There is no sign of infection in the injection site so I really don't think that is related to this.

I will definately be pushing my doctor next visit to try to get to the bottom of my problems. I do agree with the fact that I have osteoarthritis & facet syndrome from x-rays & mri findings but I still think there is something else going on. My thighs, upper arms, shoulders, neck, hips and sometimes my feet ache so bad sometimes I don't want to move. I wake up at night and just rolling over in bed makes me cry out in pain because I have gotten so stiff. I sit in the chair for more than 15 minutes and getting up hurts. It even hurts to sit down on the toilet. Mornings and afternoons are the worst. Normally with osteoarthritis the stiffness doesn't last that long. It's getting to the point where the only time I am pain free is lying on my back in bed and that is no life. The last time I was running the low-grade fever with chills and just feeling crappy I went to my pcp and they ran blood work with no signs of infection or reason for me feeling that way.

I've been tested for most of the inflammatory diseases, not sure about lupus, but I sure do have all the symptoms of polymyalgia rheumatica which is cureable with long term steroid use. I don't look forward to that but if it helps, so be it. From what I've read if it is PR the steroid should help within a few days which is an easy test.

Thanks again for the replies and will let you know what I find out at my next visit. I'm just glad that I am scheduled with the doctor this time.
Posted 4/17/2010 10:16 PM (GMT 0)
That fever is frightening. I really hope you find the answer and can get some relief!

I had the RFA and have found that it worked very well for me. They could not do one facet joint (2 nerves) because the pain was too bad (according to the PM Dr), but I would be willing to go in and have it again if my insurance would agree to cover it.

It did take me several days or more to get the pain down because the procedure left pain too. It just slowly subsided and I don't have that horrible back "nerve" pain like I did before.

I really hope your results are as good as mine. (I also hope they will give me the other one because it worked so well).

I'll keep my fingers crossed for you!
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