What to expect after C4-7 acdf surgery

Merida,
I am sorry all you had and have to go through. As I said I had L5/S1 discectomy and lamnectomy and it failed. It relieved my excruciating pain but they waited so long to finally do the surgery that I have three damaged nerves in my left leg and loss of reflexes. I have the scar tissue tethered to the nerve root and my toes are numb. And if I sit for long or walk too long I still get bad leg pain. My neurosurgeon wanted to tackle my neck first to see how much of my leg pain (was having pain in both legs back and front) was from pressure in neck on spinal cord and how much from lumbar area. I already know the lumbar area is pretty messed up and go twice a year for epidurals which provide some relief.but mechanically there is a lot more pressure on your lower back than cervial spine so much more difficult recovery. But I do know someone who has recovered from the same surgery and he is doing great. It will just take time. (Can you tell I am bored from being cooped up?)

This forum is great, because until you have had agonizing chronic pain you have no idea. It ruins everything. And I find it very helpful to hear other peoples stories and advice.

I have no idea how I am going to wear this neck collar for 3 months or more....and never sure if I should put ice or heat on my shoulders when they spasm....

Have a great day - Taller but bored.... 😯

My neighbor said the same thing last night! Thanks! My daughter made me couscous last night with extra olive oil and that went down pretty well and tasted great 😄 thanks!

Hi Jim & welcome to the forum. This thread is almost 5 years old & a lot has changed in those years. Not every dr will put a patient in a brace, it depends on the surgeon. Since you have some time before your surgery, I would ask my dr about whether he will put you in a brace & how long if he does.

You may want to consider starting your own thread here since this one is so old. Take care.

Thanks all for the replies.
Jim

Hi Texas4Life, what kind of a dr did you see, orthopedic or neurosurgeon? Returning to work 2-3 weeks post op is too soon. While your incision will be healed on the outside, things on the inside do not heal that fast at all. What type of work do you do? The ones that returned to work too soon did not fair well, this is major surgery. As for the nerves, surgery will take the pressure off of the nerves which is causing you issues, however, nerves heal on their own. No dr can tell a patient when those nerves will heal or if they will heal 100%, depends on the length of time & damage to the nerves.

People with fusions can expect to have some loss of mobility, that's a given because of the hardware. I wish I could tell you, yes, you will be back just like you were before surgery that's not possible. Any dr that tells a patient this needs to look for a new dr. There is nothing wrong with being optimistic about a surgery, with that being said, the patient needs to be realistic & educate their self about the surgery. No surgery is 100%. A surgeon can only do so much, the rest falls on the patient post op. When someone tries to push through their recovery, they end up taking 1 step forward & 3 back, that's not a good plan, it prolongs the recovery. Drs also tell patients to avoid riding/driving in vehicles as much as possible the first 6 weeks.

You need to discuss going to physical therapy after you've healed some from surgery. PT plays a vital role in the recovery process.

A few tips to prepare for before surgery:

Get a recliner to sleep in, most people find it too difficult getting in & out of bed, unless you have an adjustable bed already. If you have one great, if not try to borrow one from family or a friend.

Buy some bendable straws, buy a reacher/grabber, they are great for picking things up off of the floor, you will not feel like bending down for a bit, if you drink bottled water, be sure to have plenty on hand. Hopefully if you have some trouble swallowing it will be short lived, be sure to discuss this with any dr you see since you have an osteotomy. Have food that you can pop in the microwave to heat. Wear button up shirts, you will not feel like pulling a tshirt on or off for awhile, reaching overhead is not going to be comfortable for a bit, same with trying to get things out of a cabinet overhead. Invest in some cold packs, cold packs will help with the swelling & pain. Avoid heat packs, they will make the inflammation worse. Take your medication on a schedule when you get home, set an alarm. Staying on top of the pain is much easier than letting it get out of hand thinking you can ride it out. Above all listen to your body, it will tell you when you are doing too much.

I'm not sure if you saw the part or not concerning Taller Now, after multiple surgeries, she ended up having to have an implanted pain pump implanted to help with her chronic pain. It's been over 2 years since we have heard from her.

Let us know how your appt goes with the 2nd opinion dr.. Take care.

Susie

Texas4Life, in all of my years here at HW, I've never read of anyone feeling a screw in the back of their throat. The collar thing can be a toss up, it depends on the surgeon.

about the stand up desk, have you checked on marketplace for a used one? Another thought is, check with a used office furniture store. Where I live we have some used office furniture stores. It would be great if you could find one that way. Working on a computer sitting is going to a tough one for some time. I think you will find you will need breaks.

Given your past major surgeries you know when to listen to your body if you are pushing too much. My sister experienced what you described having her tonsils out as an adult. I've not heard anyone speak about this type of pain after an ACD. You sound like you are in good physical shape & that's always a plus. Keep in mind if all goes well 3 months post op & your dr gives the green light to work out, remember to ease back into your routine. I would discuss with the dr about weight lifting when the time comes, this can be a grey area. The goal is for the fusion to heal & become solid which takes many months. The surgeon will do xrays to monitor this & also make sure it is in place.

Jim has not been back so I don't know how his surgery went. Sometimes people will come here & ask questions & then move on. I wish more would come back after surgery & update how they are doing.

Texas4Life, great news on the downgrade on your surgery. This is a prime example why a person should always get a second opinion for surgery.

Contrary to your dr's belief, we do have many, many threads on here of successful stories for both cervical & lumbar surgeries. You happened upon a thread that is almost 8 years old. When this forum was really active the surgery members posted their progress, offered tips that helped them with their recovery process. You can look at the views on these posts & see people often come to Healing Well to read only, not everyone is into posting in forums, you have to become a member to post.

I will ask you to start your own independent thread in the forum. It would be nice to have a current thread about cervical fusions for people to read.

Keep us updated when you get your surgery scheduled. Hopefully when you wake up from surgery you will find some of the nerve pain has decreased, this is a great sign.

Yes, on clicking New Topic.

Headaches are a symptom, not everyone has neck pain, nerve pain, some have described what felt like electric shocks in an arm, numbness & tingling in an arm or fingers, balance issues & shoulder pain. I'm sure I missed other symptoms too.

You may wake up from surgery & feel improvement with your symptoms, some people have said they could tell a difference right away, others didn't. When dealing with nerves they heal on their own timeline after surgery. If a nerve is pinched relieving the pressure off of the nerve can produce some relief right after surgery.

Did you ask your dr about what type of collar he uses or if he uses them at all?