Surgery Today

Mom checks in to the hospital at 10am Friday. Please remember her in prayer this morning. Lift up Daddy, too, as he will be sitting alone in the waiting room. They both find their strength in the Lord and continue to feel the prayers you are sending on their behalf.

Thank you.

Pray for Mom's Anxiety

Mom is very nervous and anxious today as she anticipates her surgery tomorrow. Please lift her up in prayer today. Pray that God will give her peace and calm her nerves.

Thank you so much.

Kyphoplasty this Friday

This is an email from my dad:

Saw Dr. Michael Schaufele of Emory University this morning.  The MRI showed two compression fractures (L1 and  L4) and two beginning compression fractures (T12 and L2).  The procedure called Kyphoplasty will be performed at 9:30 this Friday for the L1 and L4.  If she is doing OK then they will perform procedure Vertebroplasty on the other two.  If she is not doing well enough then at a later date she will have to go back for the other two.  I hope all can be done at the same time.  She will be able to come home Friday afternoon.  The Kyphoplasty uses baloons to put in the cement.  That expands the vertebrae more.  The Vertebroplasty does not use balloons.

Kyphoplasty is what was done while she was in Kentucky last November. You can read more about both procedures here.

Another Compression Fracture

Mom's MRI last Thursday showed another compression fracture...this time it is the 4th lumbar vertebrae. She also has some swelling. She is meeting with an orthopedic surgeon this morning to discuss what the next step will be.

MRI and FORTEO

Mom has continued to be in pain...both in her back and on her left side. We wondered if the pain in her left side might be due to over-compensating but there might be another problem. My brother's father-in-law (an orthopedist in Florida) asked to take a look at Mom's most recent cat scan and his opinion (in my dad's words) was as follows: He thinks Mom may have a herniated disk.  He also suggested she have an MRI of the lumbar and pelvic. Also, he said that she has a cyst on her left side.

So, Dad called about getting the MRI and it has been scheduled for April 29 at 10:45(Lumbar) and 11:30(Pelvic). Please pray that they are able to identify exactly what is causing Mom so much pain.

Also, you may remember that I told you about a drug called Forteo that Mom's orthopedist wanted her on.  The insurance company denied it because her bone density was 0.5 better than it needs to be to qualify for that type of drug.  Dad sent this email today: I faxed the rejection letter from the insurance company to Dr. Bowen, the endocrinologist and he appealed the rejection.  He probably used the latest problem that Mom has for the appeal.  Got a letter today from the insurance company stating that they had reversed the rejection and now approved the new medicine. Dad has already picked up the medicine and will begin giving her the injections tomorrow.

I will post again when I know the results of next week's MRI.

Another Possible Fracture

In Dad's words:

The rheumatologist, who has been trying to get an answer about Joyce's pain, called last night.  He said that the CT scan showed a possible fracture of the sacrum, which is a bone next to the pelvis. This is not definitive, but the scan showed a place on the right side, which is the side about which Joyce has complained.  Unfortunately, there is no surgery that can be done for this type of fracture.  It will get better but will take a while.  Just have to treat with pain medicine.  This is good and bad news.  We now know that it was not just muscle spasms but also that there is not anything medically that can be done at this time.  Hopefully, it will begin to heal quickly.

From Ashley: Lyla and I drove down yesterday in time to celebrate Dad's birthday. We are enjoying our visit. Lyla (who gets just about anything she asks for) is especially enjoying herself.

Cat Scan Today

It's been a rough couple of weeks for Mom and Dad. After being sent home from the ER (re: the last post), the pain killers and muscle relaxers didn't seem to do the trick. In fact, they just seemed to knock Mom out. Dad was unable to get her in to see her orthopedic doctor so she went back to the ER last Saturday, March 27th. Once again, they sent her home with more pain meds saying it must be muscular. Thankfully, Daddy didn't accept this and kept pushing her doctors to see her or at least truly find the root of her pain. Her vasculitis doctor spoke with her orthopedic doctor and they agreed that Mom most likely has a fracture that just wasn't detected by the x-ray. Her bone density problems make it difficult for x-rays to pick up fractures.

Mom is having a catscan today at 11am. Please pray that they find what is causing her so much pain.