Piriformis release surgery, anyone???

Member

just checking in with all my fellow butt warriors, I am now 6 months post op from surgery with Dr. Filler for piriformis syndrome with sciatica. Un fortunately the surgery did not improve my symptoms. I still have sciatica, my butt stills hurts and spasms . I now have a lot of soreness in my hips which I did not have before. I'm hoping it is just that my muscles got so weak from inactivity for about 4 months while trying to recover. I feel stiffer, I try to walk everyday but find I tire easily still. I appreciate all that Dr. Filler tried to do for me but unfortunately for me it has not given me pain relief. I'm certainly not saying to others that the surgery would not be successful for them, it just was not for me. If there is a change in my condition as time goes by I will certainly update.
David, so happy you reaped a benefit, you sound like such a kind caring man, I also hope you continue to improve.
Menzie, I am stunned that your D feels no pain in the pool. Have you told this to any of her doctors? Maybe your screw theory is correct. Maybe on standing it presses on something??
Good luck to Brandon, I so hope this is your answer, I hope you continue to post and let others know how it turns out for you. Knowledge is power.
Julie, where are you? How are you doing??? Its been a couple months since your surgery and not much from you.
Candy, sorry to hear you are still struggling as well, also preacherman.
Take care all of you and GOD BLESS

Member

I guess it's "update" day. Menzie, that's crazy that your D can swim that long with no pain....crazy good. I hope you guys get to the bottom of the screws. We all have a few screws loose.

Shirley: I too hope that you can get the epidural quick. Sure would be nice to pin down whether or not a lot of your pain is from the spine or not. Keep us posted. We won’t abandon you, will we warriors???

GOOD LUCK BRANDON.......get on this forum the second you can!!!

Candy: anxious to hear about your appt.

So, I saw Filler Monday and he looked at my MRI and said my herniated disc is significant enough to require surgery. Believe me, not what I wanted to hear but I do want to do whatever I can to get rid of this pain. Last thing I want is another surgery so soon from the last one but I scheduled it for late August after a trip I already have planned to Mexico. Might as well have some enjoyment this year before going under the knife again. I just hope this takes care of it once and for all. Enough already.

Take care everyone.

Leesa

Member

Brandon, I hope you are recovering well. You are not home yet, but I wish you pain free travels.

Leesa, I am glad that you might have found the cause as to what is still causing pain. Will Dr. Filler be the neuro-surgeon that you use?

Our update: This Monday, my D is going to have her hardware and her screws removed. This past Thursday we had an appt. with her regular neurosurgeon and as I have for the last two years, expressed my concerns over the screws. I also explained how I take my D swimming almost everyday for the last week and she is 100% pain free, leg, buttock, back of thigh ect. He said that it makes sense if the back was hurting and the water was relieving pressure, but he said her butt and leg should have still had pain. I told him that for us to consider the implant the screws had to go, I couldn't embrace the implant with the screws there. I would always wonder. I also told him that Dr. Filler said he would remove them but not during our March surgery. He said he would remove the screws. I did not share about my dreams about the screws Very Happy

Or that I may have a few loose as well.

Very excited but really trying to keep in mind that we have already tried so many modalities, so if nothing else when the screws are out, I can not think they are there causing an issue. Sometimes things come into alignment, and for unexplainable reasons, I am thinking that the time is coming. I am going to believe that this will help with the pain. I will update when we get back. We are going swimming again. It is the most crazy thing, she can swim, do twirls, tread water and she has no pain for as many hours as she is in the pool. Very Happy

We are using a lot of sun screen.
Menzie

Member

Hi Menzie:

yes, Dr. Filler will do the surgery. Good luck to your D with the screw removal. I really hope it makes a difference.

Keep that sunscreen stocked up!

Hope you're doing ok Brandon. Remember, take it slow when you get home.

Leesa

Member

HI ALL

Just an update on my latest Dr.(Surgeon) visit..
He basically said...What he operated on was fixed and the nerve/muscle are decompressed???So he has now sent me to "PainMedicine-Anesthesiology"..So I had 2 Dr.s ask lot's of questions/And answers on all my surgeries (Notes from Surgeon) and "Pain Issues" I have..Piraformus STILL Acting up AND all my other general Muscle aches...Possibly "Scar tissue" or other issues...They ordered an MRI and I will have the results HOPEFULLY Wed... Very Happy

And they will see Something WRONG with me Very Happy

..In the meantime,they gave me Celebrex And Lyrica for pain..
They also said I MIGHT be a candidate for an epidural OR facet block???Depending on the MRI...Even though I was in some pain that day, I left there feeling GOOD...At least Mentally..Maybe it was there (Bedside manner) or I feel there Might be a "light at the end of the tunnel"???
Brandon>>>Hope all went well with your surgery..Keep us posted.!!!
Menzie>>>Has your D been on any Celebrex or Lyrica??? I have taken it now for 3 days,the first day was a little quiessy,dizzy,groggy feeling,and I called them about that. They said it takes 2-3 days and then you will be fine with it ..And they were right. Very Happy

.. and it sure has kept the pain Away almost 80/90%..I feel Almost Normal Again...I was skeptical at first,but it has helped ALOT ,at least for now..Not a cure, but a Hope....
Leesa>>>I too am thinking like you that Maybe it is NOT my PS recovery..Maybe it is a New pain or it might NOT have been the PS at all..And Maybe I had the PS Surgery for nothing?? Who knows..Like we say >>>We are NOT Dr.s, but we DO know our pains..Let me know on your outcome???
And to Everyone else...Keep posting...
And Have a Great Pain Free Day Very Happy

Candy

Member

Regarding ">>I too am thinking like you that Maybe it is NOT my PS recovery..Maybe it is a New pain or it might NOT have been the PS at all..And Maybe I had the PS Surgery for nothing?? Who knows.."

Another possibility is that the PS surgery created a new pain problem. Especially, if you has the entire muscle removed, the biomechanics of the pelvis have been changed. And that imbalance can cause pain elsewhere in the low back/butt.

You might consider getting checked out by PT specializing in Myofascial Release therapy to see if she can do anything for you. To find one go to

http://www.somapt.com/mfr%5Fnet/

This is probably a different kind of PT than you have been getting. Hope this helps, Mary

Member

Hello, everyone

I had surgery on June 26th and I am currently in Sacremento visiting my mother and sister. According to doctor filler, my piriformis muscle was very large and he thinks that probably caused my pain. I stayed in the hospital overnight and left the next morning. I felt like I was treated well with one exception. They left the catheter in me after surgery and it made moving uncomfortable. Not to mention the discomfort when they took it out. I have had 3 surgeries under general anesthesia and the catheter was never left in me. They did however have a nice device that was hooked up to my IV that dispenced pain medicine at the push of a button.

There is still some soreness from the surgery but I also feel the same pain down my right leg and butt but it is a little different. I am taking the same amount of pain medicine as I was before surgery and I don't feel like the pain is letting up yet. Am I jumping the gun and expecting too much too soon? I sure hope the pain goes away and gets better. What is the normal recovery time for this surgery. Does the sciatic pain go away after a few days or after a few months...? Dr. Filler really wasn't able to give me an answer.

I will post again soon. I hope everyone is getting some relief.

Brandon

Member

Brandon:

Glad you made it through and it's great to hear from you. You are jumping the gun WAY too soon from my experience and following others. I think you should wait for others to reply though considering I now have a new issue that causes similar pain and I have no idea when the new problem came up relative to my recovering from PS surgery. I will say that my leg pain is better but it took several months to get there. If you have the time, maybe take a look at David's (swlaaggie) past posts and follow his recovery. They say it takes nerves a very long time to heal. I was told 3 to 6 months and sometimes even up to a year. Sorry if that’s news to you.

Just take it slow, don’t overdo it and keep us posted on how you are.

Leesa

Member

Brandon,

Yes, I was surprised by the catheter issue as well. Not pleasant and it was enough unpleasant that the experience is one of the few things I can remember from immediate post surgery.

All is very well here. I'm finding the harder I work in the yard, even despite the discomfort, the stronger and the better I feel a couple of days afterwards. Very odd but it has to be a matter of just getting stronger again. Still walking, still swimming, still stretching, still strengthening. Still have minor down days of course but nothing like in the past. I'm coming up on 7 months in a week and just "celebrated" one year since the original onset of PS. I think one advantage I might have is that I acted very rapidly to the PS and that may have given me a head start in terms of surgery recovery. What a tough road it has been nonetheless. Gruesome is a better term.

Been out of town of business over the last few work days but just checking in. Always thinking of everyone and ALWAYS hoping life is improving for everyone. Keep fighting.

Your friend,

David

Member

P.S. Brandon,

Dr. Filler did not answer because recovery of nerves is not like mending a bone or a cut. These boogers are highly variable. I can tell you I took a very large step change at 4 months and again at 6 months. I expect that I will be 99.5% better at the one year mark but I recognize there are no guarantees. Stay busy and it makes the time go by much faster and stay very confident. Almost like willing yourself to get better. It truly takes that or at least it has for me. You must stay confident and expect to get better.

David

Newbie

Hi
Is there anyone with piriformis syndrome on this chat line who has had any of the following symptions:

I live in the UK and I started my problems back in 2000 with a bad attach of sciatica over the years this has gone from mainly pain in buttock and leg to intense pins and needles in legs,buttock and feet Pain in hip area up to the scro illiac and a shapr pain in groin. Following lots of different treatments, pills, xrays and consultations they then came up with piriformis syndrome. Currently awaiting appointment for a steriod injection. I understand that if this injection does not help they will consider surgery.

Has anyone had surgery in the UK? Very few doctors here seem to know anything about with Periformis syndrome.

I am a keen golfer, bowler and gardener and recently retired and was looking forward to a pain free life.

Member

Oldtimer,

Sounds like the symptoms of many on here, me included. The fact that the med community in the UK are not very aware of PS is not unusual irregardless of where one calls home.

One of your citizens came to see Dr. Filler last year and you can see his posts near the front of this forum. Over my year on here, I've learned that there are several US physicians that have quite a bit of experience dealing with, and treating for, PS. You can read through the posts to develop a list of physicians.

Welcome to this board. Lots of great people who suffer from this syndrome and many of us have had injections and even surgery. Feel free to ask questions, vent, etc..

One of your best initial actions should be to read through all of the posts on this board. That will probably answer many of your questions and give you some direction and perspective.

David

Member

Brandon: How's it going? Are you taking it easy??!!!

Menzie: How did the screw removal go? Is your D feeling any better since that?

Leesa

Member

Hi Everyone,

Oldtimer- Feel free to ask questions. A lot of people with piriformis syndrome have the same symptoms as you. Let us know how your injection goes.

David- I will take your advice and be patient, active and as optimistic as possible. You said that you took a very large step of change at 4 months and 6 months. Does that mean you noticed a significant change in your pain at those times or that you started to improve at those times? Thanks for your support. I hope your pain keeps on going away.

Lessa- Lately I have felt very anxious and I just want to go run or do something physically taxing to exhaust myself but I have been able assuage those urges. The biggest difference in pain that I have so far is when I am laying down. I am taking about half the pain medication I took before surgery, however, if I stand up a lot or sit down for a while, my pain increases substantially. Hopefully the pain I get when standing and sitting will abate too. I hope you have an enjoyable summer before you go under the knife again.

Candy- I hope the MRI results confirm your symptoms or at least someone can offer some good advice.

Menzie- Let us know how your D's screw removal surgery went. I hope all is well and that she can get back to a pain free life where she can swim outside of the pool all day long.

Take care,

Brandon

Member

Hi All. Have been away at a cottage on Wolfe Island in the Thousands. Had a massage today and she went too deep in the bbutt(see, I'm even stuttering) just kidding-- really I am so tired I am not thinking clearly. Had a post all thought out but just can't do it tonight so I will jsut say I will get back on tomorrow when my butt isn't so sore.

Welcome Oldtimer, more to say to you later.

So glad to hear from you Brandon and more later. Hang in and don't give up hope.

Promise to get back on tomorrow.

Take care everyone and be kind to your butts, legs and all the things that hurt.

Goodnight.

Shirley

Piriformis release surgery, anyone???

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