MRI Results....

[Guest guest]

Hi, Everyone!

I saw my PCP this morning for the results of my MRI. Non-medically

he said, " Your knees are a huge mess! " . Then he went on to explain what the

MRI detected. There are numerous areas of inflammation, which we already

figured out because of the pain, but he was surprised to note that there are

several areas of strain. He has consulted with an orthopedic surgeon by

telephone and there are two things that *might* help... Continue the

medications and raise the dose of Celebrex by 200 mg every other day....

Lose weight! In addition to the inflammation, there is " wear " on the heads

of the bones, which is the primary reason for my complaints of pain -- so

says the MRI and the doctor's interpretation of what it all means.

There is a lot of damage in the joints. The right knee is actually

worse than the left, but it is the left that has been painful. The report

indicates that there is " active inflammation " in the entire joint, not

limited to one area. The cartilage is fully involved. There is massive

amount of scar tissue on both knees, not all of it a consequence of previous

surgery.

We are going to try Synvisc injections on the knees to see if that

will give me some relief while I am working on the weight loss problem. The

insurance company needs to pre-authorize the injections. The injections

will start when we get the approval, but I really want to put this off until

January -- after my road trip with my husband over the month of December.

The doctor indicated that he will work with me on that since I want to go so

badly.

Overall, the doctor is pleased with what we learned, but still says

that I will be seeing a rheumatologist in January. I may not need to see

the ortho surgeon for awhile if these Synvisc injections work....

In the meantime, I am admitting to being possibly the world's worst

self-disciplined person. It hadn't occurred to me to think in terms of what

I am doing that is " self-defeating " , but my eating habits are the area where

I feed my pain. That is really foolish because adding weight is not going

to help these knees and if I want to be able to get around and avoid TKR,

then I need to do what is going to help me. Hhmmmpppfff! I really did not

want to admit that I am an emotional eater! But that bit of truth is what

is going to help me with this.

The other tests that were done last week showed that my Cholesterol

is normal and the Triglycerides are okay, too. All of the other values are

okay, although my Alkaline Phosphatase is a bit high. the doctor will

re-test that in a month.

I have " mild " Hypoglycemia and have had that since I was in my 20s.

So, I need to follow a diet that is on the low side with carbs and higher on

protein. Is there one that has worked for any of you? This would not

bother me if I could cook for the normal family, but there is only me here

for all but four days a month, so I could use some hints on how to work from

the " cooking for one " aspect. Medically speaking, there could be a problem

because I also have an irritable bowel due to the surgical removal of so

much of that tissue some time back. I think that this is going to turn into

a " balancing act " and a matter of some experimentation.

Okay now..... I am off to look up some diets and tips on the web....

Imagine that! I am going surfing with bad knees! Just a bit of humor

there....

Dianne

[Guest guest]

Dear ,

I tried Orencia - and I THINK it would have worked - but I developed

hives... Thought they were more bug bites - (Texas, you know). Once we realized

that they popped up after each infusion, then I had to quit.

The infusion itself is a piece of cake - took about an hour, I think -

no adverse reaction - except, of course the hives. Usually went out to

breakfast afterwards, so didn't make me nauseous.

Good luck with the infusions~

Pat,

Austin, TX

************************************** See what's new at http://www.aol.com

[Guest guest]

Dear ,

I tried Orencia - and I THINK it would have worked - but I developed

hives... Thought they were more bug bites - (Texas, you know). Once we realized

that they popped up after each infusion, then I had to quit.

The infusion itself is a piece of cake - took about an hour, I think -

no adverse reaction - except, of course the hives. Usually went out to

breakfast afterwards, so didn't make me nauseous.

Good luck with the infusions~

Pat,

Austin, TX

************************************** See what's new at http://www.aol.com

[Guest guest]

Dear ,

I tried Orencia - and I THINK it would have worked - but I developed

hives... Thought they were more bug bites - (Texas, you know). Once we realized

that they popped up after each infusion, then I had to quit.

The infusion itself is a piece of cake - took about an hour, I think -

no adverse reaction - except, of course the hives. Usually went out to

breakfast afterwards, so didn't make me nauseous.

Good luck with the infusions~

Pat,

Austin, TX

************************************** See what's new at http://www.aol.com

[Guest guest]

Hi , I thought you were going for Remicade...but apparently

you've already tried that....Could it be Retuxin?

I finally just got the opinion from the Cleveland Clinic Doctor...and

he wants me to try Orencia. It's an infusion that I'll do every 2

weeks for a couple of months, then every month after that. Does anyone

have experience with that one? Good or bad? How long does it take at

each infusion? How much does it cost? And most importantly has it

worked for you?

Hope you're having a pain free day!

San >