Posted by Carolina on 2/02/08

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One day in January of 2007 I had an appointment with my
doctor for injections for lower back pain and pain in my
legs. I also got prescriptions for medication on these
visits. I walked to the room I was sent to and there were
all kinds of different displays advertising Advanced
Neuromodulation Systems Inc. (ANS) Spinal cord
stimulators. The doctor then proceeded to tell me how
wonderful these things were. He said I would be out of
most of my pain and would have a better quality of life if
I had the surgery to put it in. He said I would be able
to travel and visit my grandkids. I trusted this doctor
more than any doctor ever. I also liked him as a person.
I believed everything he said. Before I had the surgery
to implant the spinal cord stimulator he said that he had
to put a trial stimulator in and that it would have to be
done in his office. The trial stimulator was done in
February. The wires were connected to the stimulator
which was on the outside. I was very excited that it
worked so well. I found out later that the trial
stimulator always works and that is why patients get the
surgery to put the permanent one in thinking it will work
like the trial one did. An appointment was made by the
doctor's office for me to go to the doctors office to have
the permanent one put in. I had never met the doctor who
put in the permanent one. He was 6 hours late arriving
for the procedure. Everytime I said I wanted to leave the
nurse said "wait 15 more minutes he said he will be here"
He finally showed up and said he worked with my regular
doctor. Although I was very upset and in a lot of pain, I
thought because he worked with my doctor and I trusted my
doctor so much I would go ahead with the surger. What a
mistake that was. He was rough with me when I cried and
told him how bad he was hurting me he wouldn't even
answer. He stapled my back and nobody stopped him. I
prayed for god to let me die because the pain was so bad.
All I was to this doctor was money on the table. I
thought the spinal cord stimulator would work but even if
i turned it on and walked across the floor it would shock
me and I would have to turn it off. I could not move or
do anything with it turned on. The rep from ANS wanted me
to keep trying to use it. He said I had to keep trying to
get used to it. He even reprogrammed it but that just
made it worse. While laying down I turned it on low the
way he told me to and I injured my legs doing this. My
legs now shake all the time and tingle. I also have
trouble with my kidneys since having the surgery. I am in
the bathroom every 20 minutes. I will have to probably go
out of state to find a doctor who will even be willing to
look at it. I had the thing taken out and the pain that
it caused me is awful. My hip still hurts and thobs all
the time. I get very little sleep. I went through all of
this because of greedy doctors and a greedy corporation.
Nobody explained risks of this thing to me such as loss of
sensation, loss of limb function, stroke, cardiac arrest
or permanent damnage to other body organs even death. I
found this out after I had it removed! Can anyone please
respond who has had any similar experiences. Fed up with
doctors in SOUTH CAROLINA

Re: Spinal Cord stimulator, 2/05/09, by vicki.

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