Had lumbar disk replacement 3 years ago in Germany. Pain is worse. I have decided to fuse the area, something that I had avoided for many years and thus all those minimum invasive procedures before the disc replacement. Any advice from any veteran?
I am a retired Veteran and I am missing two disc, L-4 to L-5 is gone and L-5 to S-1 is gone. I was looking into Artifical Disk Replacement but Tricare doesn't cover Retires for that. I was forced to retire Medically after more that 18 years and 3 combat tours. I was fighting for the surgery. Unfortunately I have heard of horror stories with fusions. Many of my soldiers, friends and family have gone through fusions and they ALL FAILED.
I have been dealing with chronic pain for years but I had an infusion pump implanted that drips meds into my spinal sac. That has been the only decent relief yet but it isn't perfect. I thought the Artificial Disc was the way to go. What type of Artificial Disc did you get. What was the brand name. I wish you all the luck in the world.
1SG Q