Tags
chromium toxicity, Chronic Pain, Clinics and Practices, Cobalt, groin area, Health, Medical Specialties, Medicine, Mental Health, mental health matters, numb hands and feet, Pain management, pains in the stomach, UNited States
Stephanie,
I am a 48 year old male from the UK and had my revision surgery in July 2011. My life has been turned upside down by the medical issues related to the cobalt and chromium toxicity.
Like you I feel alone and abandoned, I have seen numerous specialists and have yet to have someone take seriousley the relationship with my health and the toxic effect of the chromium and cobalt.
I have not been able to work for 14 months and will possibly never return to my job as it is impossible for me to maintain concentration, get exhausted very quickly and can only walk short distances.
Only recently they have discovered growths in my groin area which has knocked me for six.
I suffer from: severe fatigue, chronic headaches, chronic pains in the stomach, chronic pain when passing water, blood from my back passage, severe depression, pain around the revisionary joint, numb hands and feet, light headedness and dizzy spells, disturbed sleep, extreme sweating, racing heart and breathlessnesss, hearing loss and deteriorating eyesight.
I have also been admitted to a psychiactric unit for 4 weeks and continue treatment for chronic mental health matters, I also tried to commit suicide twice and I have no doubt this is related to what has happened.
I am developing a database of MoM patients and their related health problems to show where the common threads exist, so that when you first encounter specialists you can highlight immediately which areas need to be investigated.
I have spent the past 14 months trying to convince the specialists some thing is seriousley wrong, however as this is such a new issue and no real research has been done they are in the dark as to how to help.
If anyone wishes there information to be added to the database do not hesitate to contact me.
M: 07881504233
e:
Best regards
Sandy
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You have developed a more disturbing type of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder which requires a lot of through, time, effort and reassessment. In my opinion, I think PTSD is a more humane disease than the one you have, lets call it “Ongoing-Traumatized Stress Disorder.” You are not living AFTER the trauma, but still living WITH the torture, day-in/day-out, no relief from the pain even with opiate medications, complex pill combinations and psychiatric care.
Janet G. Travell, MD who was/is the matriarch of pain therapy noted in the 1950-90′s something interesting about joint pain. She stated that any joint area stiffness, aching and tension was due to muscles NOT the joint proper. So her myofascial therapy protocols are designed to treat all types of “joint pain.” She uses a weak solution of anesthetic with saline (I use 1:9) in the injections to make them more tolerable. Each hip muscle (bout 10 major muscles) may have to be released, plus each bundle in a muscle will have to be released so we are talking about 15-20 deep muscle injection per visit. I would suggest weekly treatments for a few months or until the pain level drops to less than 2-4/10. This therapy is labor intensive and time consuming. I have seen some of the most complex case over 70 times in a 10 year period. Dramatic … yes but this therapy is the treatment.
Begin a self-care Wellness Program of Vits, Magnesium glycinate, sleep hygiene, self/pro Massage, Chiropractic adjustments, heat, Epsom soaking, stretching. Important about acupuncture or needle therapy is that it is not created equal. Traditional Chinese Acupuncture is my basic first line therapy.
IMO, TCM is a weaker cousin to Travell. You will need 1-2 visits per week then you can add in the most intense, most effective injections as per Travell.
See my other post.
Stephanie, you are not alone. There are too many folks that are living part of the HELL you have described. Much of this due to the metal on metal hip nightmare.
I live in the USA, had there been proper protocol from the manufacturers of these devices and adverse warnings made by them in a timely manner much of the unneccessary sufferring and pains etc. etc may have been prevented.
Even today there are manufacturers that publicly deny their device to be harmful instead they advertise using pro athletes who have successfully been implanted with their device as a poster child. We may not be pro-athletes but we are HUMAN BEINGS.
Don’t ever give up no matter what you maybe told and don’t ever stop trying to get healthy again.
Howard Sadwin
I applaud your compilation of experiences and data on issues with Smith & Nephew BHR (resurfacing) MOM implants..
I too have similar experience to share in the hope FDA and the medical community begin to wake up and address the issues…
My initial BHR resurfacing was done in August 2009 by one of the leading surgeons for the same in the NY/NJ metropolitan area…In April of 2012, ONLY as a result of reading and seeing class action suits evolve, I became concerned about the possibilities of cobalt/chromium toxicity in the case of MOM devices and subsequent recalls of MOM hip replacements such as the J&J product and elected to have my blood tested ….I found my levels were literally off the charts!
I had NO symptoms of this wear and device failure at that point while having alarmingly high levels of cobalt & chromium, that is the scary part..People can have this toxic blood poisoning w/o knowing for years! A ticking time bomb.
Fast forwarding to July of 2012 and following having a MARS ( MAVRIC) specialty MRI at the NYC Orthopedic, “Hospital for Special Surgery” which detected the presence of metal debris, beginnings of tissue damage and bone erosion it was validated the device was failing after less than 3 years! The solution, a DO OVER..extract the device and have a total MOP hip replacement..This is now scheduled for December.
During my last consult with the original surgeon, he confided that his confidence in the Smith & Nephew BHR ( Birmingham Hip resurfacing) was definitely shaken and questioned just how many patients out there since 2006 would show evidence of this problem if they in fact did have their blood tested for Cobalt & Chromium. As of July of this year he was NOT taking on any new patients for this hip resurfacing and it is my understanding that the #1 surgeon at the Hospital for Special Surgery ( relative to #’s of devices implanted) has also subsequently discontinued performing this surgery as well.
Unfortunately, this could be the tip of the iceberg for this problem and I encourage all BHR patients take the initiative in the interest of self advocacy to have their blood tested because there is NO present medical or post surgery protocol to monitor cobalt/chromium levels for patients having these MOM devices.
Ed Larsen
Hi Ed
Yes it is the tip of the iceberg sadly.
S&N makes it profits. Moves on. Meanwhile we pay for the rest of our lives.
Earl