Have ever had blood clots in your legs (DVT or deep venous thrombosis) or lungs (pulmonary emboli).

Have blood clotting or bleeding problems.

What do you need to tell the doctor before surgery? It is important that you tell your surgeon if you: It is critical that you have been assessed by a pain specialist and psychologist before contemplating spinal cord stimulation. Special medical treatments such as Ketamine infusions, local nerve and joint blocks, as well as other surgical options such as spinal decompression or fusion should also be considered. These include the standard opioid and non-opioid analgesic agents, membrane stabilising agents and anticonvulsants, as well as the most recent agent to be released- Pregabalin. What are the alternatives to surgery?Ī number of medications may be useful for pain.

When medications and other treatments are no longer working well or their side effects are to severe, spinal cord stimulation may be of value. Nerve injuries (from trauma or previous surgery).Complex regional pain syndromes (neuropathic pain, causalgia, reflex sympathetic dystrophy).Previous spinal surgery with ongoing leg pain.Patients with the following conditions who have failed all standard medical therapies may benefit:.A number of painful conditions can be treated using spinal cord stimulation.Who might be suitable for spinal cord stimulation? It also increases the blood flow to the heart and legs, often helping patients with angina and peripheral vascular disease. We introduce a small amount of electrical current to the back of the spinal cord, which helps to mask the pain that you are feeling. Spinal cord stimulation works by targeting the region of the spinal cord involved in the transmission and processing of pain. You have probably had many treatments for your pain, most of which will have been of little or no long-term help. What should you notify your doctor of after surgery?.What are the specific risks of this type of surgery?.How successful is spinal cord stimulation for pain?.How is spinal cord stimulation performed?.What do you need to tell the doctor before surgery?.

Who might be suitable for spinal cord stimulation?.

Dorsal column stimulator