On 3/17/08 I had surgery to correct a pinched nerve in my elbow. The pinched nerve was causing the pinky and ring fingers to be numb and tingle, also serve arm aching. Hopefully this surgery will correct the issue, however the pain right now is horrible. The nerve was relocated to forearm under the muscle. Here are some pictures of my arm taken 4 days after surgery.
Picture of the incision.
Bruising.
Thanks for the input guys, Dutch especially. Unfortunately, nothing is any better than it was pre-operatively and perhaps a bit worse which totally bites. I don’t know if I was being asked ‘how active MY arm was pre-op’ but if so I can answer that it was all the way around NORMAL up until I had symptoms which was four to six weeks prior to surgery when I woke up one morning with ‘the works’ (numbness, ‘tingling’ which was really not ‘tingling’ at all but Stinging, loss of function of my last two fingers . . . and shortly thereafter, the same stinging of my palm, wrist, elbow. And prior to this, along the time line, I did all things typical for a stay at home mom (who would very much like to return to her Nursing career, fat chance now minus a functional left hand/wrist/arm) who even played catch with her MLB aspiring 13 yo son (a very mean leftie I will add). Sorry to go on but it is SO frustrating and painful and NO ONE will listen to nor take me seriously. I am not returning to my Orthopedic surgeon as he has blown me off from about post-op week three.
Advanced Orthopedics in the Denver area completely sucks!
Oh and even I myself can feel my L Ulnar nerve, that it has to some degree ‘shifted back’ from the surgery (Anterior Transposition) yet when I pointed this out to my surgeon at eight weeks post-op he just said, yeah it’s shifted a little. While, when I told him of this over the phone at three weeks, describing the what I called ‘popping’ sensation whenever I flex my arm, He told me that ‘it sounds like a joint doing that.’ Doesn’t know what the H he is talking about apparently. I think that most of us know what it means to palpate a nerve in our forarm, certainly know what it feels like when this nerve is ‘stimulated’ and know when it is where it is no longer Supposed to be . . . .
Next major challenge is to switch MD’s! And for him to Suddenly tell me at week eight post-op, after prior to that imposing a ‘five pound weight lifting restriction’; to ‘Do anything’ I wanted to, including push-ups, skiing . . . ‘You have to use it’ . . . right. What sound and reassuring advice.
Hi all, I have had surgery for this problem on my left side already. It did not fix the problem, as now I have for tingling than before, but still have full use. According to the tests, my NCV has actually increased. However, the problem I develop is that my tricep is now snapping over my elbow. Unfortuanately, I need this same procedure done on my right side as well. I have went to a new surgeon that thinks instead of a submuscular, I should get the subcutaneous. I’m a bit nervous though because he said that I could be back to work in three days. Previously, with the submuscular I was off work for 6 weeks. I’m also concerned about the subcutaneous because I am a skinny guy. So this question is for all of those people that have had the subcutaneous surgery. How long were you out of work for? How did you feel 3/10 days later? Are any of you skinnny and did that have a bad effect? How bad did you let it get? My NCV is still in the 40′s and I’m considered mild at this point but my surgeons thinks I should not let this go too long. Any advice would be appreciated.
i had mine done in march am still off work.the ulnar nerve keeps rolling back over.havent been able to use my arm in 6 months. an im about 180lbs. get to go back in next month an have surgery again
I feel very lucky on a number of counts after reading all the postings here. Almost exactly one year ago, I fell off a ladder at my home in Mexico, shattered and dislocated my elbow and broke my ulna in 3 places. I got myself loaded up on painkillers and took a ferry, bus and plane back to Canada. So, first off, I’m Canadian and don’t have to worry about any of the associated medical costs. Secondly, I am approaching the end of my work career and have bazillions of sick days. I could take every day off for sick leave from now until my retirement and still have days left over. So I don’t have any financial stressors.
Last March, my radial head was replaced and 10 titanium screws and plate added to my ulna. I had a soft cast for 2 weeks and then immediately entered physiotherapy. I had zero range of motion laterally and vertically. Physio has been 2x weekly and ROM has significantly improved, but not w/o a ton of effort. Last October, I started having tingling of my pinkie and ring finger. A test in December showed lack of electrical response and after returning to Canada from a Dec/Jan vacation, earlier this week I had surgery to relocate the ulnar nerve. At the same time all the titanium hardware was removed.
It was done as a day surgery (about 1 hour) but due to low oxygen saturation levels, I was kept overnight and discharged the following morning. The incision is about 1 foot in length (20 stitches), and there is loads of bruising. But surprisingly little pain. (All my therapists say I have high pain threshold.) I’m taking 1 mg hydromorphone as required (2-3 times/day). No cast; dressing plus sling. After a couple of days, weeping from incision has stopped.
Tingling continues in 2 fingers but has diminished from side of my hand. I will get stitches out in another weekthen recommence physio/OT.
Hopefully tingling will diminish with time but I am SO glad to have hardware removed. I had a lot of pain spells when weather changed, to the point I wanted to cut my arm off. (I was most comfortable in Mexico’s high warmpth/humidity.)
But even if the tingling doesn’t go away, I can live with it. I am so blessed to live in Canada where appropriate medical safety nets exist.
I’m mostly writing because I wanted to thank everyone for posting here- especially the people who have continued to post progress over the years… what a wealth of info- I can’t express how wonderful (and rare) this thread is. I’m very thankful for it! (sounds like an understatement, but, really, thank you)
I’ve been drawing since I was 2, I’m 31 now, and still very serious about it: I went to a renowned art college and apprenticed under an awesome old-school oil painter afterward. My husband is a professional artist, as are many of my friends. I never did much with my art, job-wise, because of how self-conscious I was but, as soon as I got over that stupidness, and started putting together a show (Not that I was drawing any more, less actually; I think doing demo/remodeling work on our new house is what sparked it) I noticed a numbness/weakness in my hand. (I was dropping dishes and that kind of stuff.) I thought it was just tendinitis in my wrist, I’m kind of prone to that, so I went to a PT as soon as I realized resting it for a week didn’t clear up the vague numb feeling. After 3 months and a nerve conduction test, the tendentious (I did have that too) was better, my wrist felt much better, but, somehow, in general, my arm was worse, and I still had tingling at my pinky/ring finger- and, from the test, we realized it was Ulnar Neuropathy at the cubital tunnel.
The conduction test actually made the pain FAR worse- I went to get it thinking the problem was my wrist- my elbow had only started to ache a little bit by then. After the test though: it was a month before the severe pain died down (the PT helped with that, it seems like it inflamed all my muscles and they needed help getting right) and it was obvious the real problem was at my elbow, not the wrist. My symptoms: my whole hand/forearm would go pins and needles (for hours and sometimes days,) I had unbearable sparks of pain shooting down my forearm all the time, tingling in my pinky and half my ring finger, etc.. you all know how it feels. I tried to be patient and extremely conservative; I didn’t want to jump into a risky surgery when we weren’t 100% on the problem. This resulted in me basically laying in bed for the past 3 months with an elbow brace on most of that time. (Did I mention that I’m freakn’ serious about my love for my arms? Not being able to draw has made me miserable- Feels like I’m not a whole person. ..and not being able to do anything else doesn’t help either.) So, I wore that custom-made-pro elbow brace for 2 months- but it probably caused the tennis and golfer’s elbow I ended up with. I stopped wearing it a few weeks ago and THAT pain got better. The whole time I went to a PT (used cold laser treatments: loved) and then started getting acupuncture (that’s really helped a lot with me. My hand isn’t cold all the time now too, and my pulse in my right arm is strong, for once.) And, to make things more frustrating, during this time, my left arm went out too; all the same symptoms. (I had been using my left arm for everything, but, when that went out, I decided to really take it easy and it’s why I was in bed so much.) At first I was hoping I was just having a problem with inflammation (from using a power sander and stuff like that, for days) but, now that it feels like the inflammation is gone, (also: my hand isn’t going pins and needles, and the shocks of pain are only there when I move my arms wrong/bend them too much) but it feels like I’ve plateaued. Plus, the PT is hurting me more now than helping, so I’ve stopped going. I can’t do any stretches, no matter how small, with out the nerve getting pissed at me. So, I’m probably going to go in for surgery. It seems like my options are out. An MRI reveled I have an extra muscle near my nerve (Anconeus epitrochlearis) but I’ve been told by surgeons that it *probably* is, AND ALSO ISN’T, the problem. Would an MRI show that the nerve is pinched, or rubbing on the bone, 100% of the time? No doctor has been able to say for sure that they know what the problem is X( they just say things like “hold off on surgery for a few more weeks” or “let operate to see what the problem is” (I don’t like the latter AT ALL)
I’m just scared that, by not doing surgery, and feeling like I’ve plateaued, (there’s still this uncomfortable/or pain feeling when I try to use my arms for anything, even typing this,) that I’m setting my self up for more nerve damage and possible muscle wasting (which I’ve lucked out on so far, none yet)… But… damn… the idea of surgery making it worse is what’s scared me away from it since the beginning. I’d wait longer, but I don’t think it will help any more, I mean… most people say if it’s going to heal on it’s own it will do it in a month… so… *argh* Damn, I just hope I don’t regret what ever I end up doing.
At least I know I’d be looking for a neurosurgeon now (gathered I wanted that from talking to both ortho’s and neuro’s. Ortho’s seem to want to take such brutal steps and weren’t interested in listening to me 1/2 the time- got the opposite impression from neuro’s) and it sounds like I’ll def. be requesting a cast. ;p
Hey Melora, just wondering how you have progressed? Did u end up getting surgery? Did it make things better?
Im basically in the same boat, i had surgery on my left arm, but its didnt heal properly and now iv just injured my right arm worse than ever, getting all the same symptoms as you, so iv been resting it for 3weeks so far with little change. I didnt want to have surgery on it, but if things dont get better, it looks like il hav no choice…
And is a neurosurgeon the same as a microsurgeon, or r they totally different things?
I would LOVE to know if any of you believe you have this damage as a result of a car accident and damage to your elbow.
I had the Ulnar Nerve Surgery 11/10/2009 and I am having soooo many problems. I had a VERY severe case as I massive muscle atrophy in my hand and arm.
I was in an auto accident in 09/10/2008 and my injuries are consistent with not getting treatment to do the transposition sooner.
I was also told by someone that they accident didn’t have anything to do with it. It is the ONLY trauma I have had due to the area. I know it can happen without being in an accident – but have any of you ever experienced this due to an accident? If so, please email me privately at daxfalco@gmail.com and I would be very, very, very, grateful. I had to pay all of my doctor/surgery bills out of pocket and I am trying to submit them to my auto insurance.
BTW – I was the passenger in a car – not the driver. A woman 72 years old and on her cell phone pulled out into a line of traffic and we hit her going 45mph. I had JUST lost a pregnancy and had surgery. I grabbed the dashboard to brace of impact and protect my abdomen and then upon impact my elbow slammed into my seat behind me. Soon after the numbness and tingling started. I kept blowing it off because I thought it was just bruised. By the time I went and had an EMG, etc – the damage was so extensive. My surgeon and neurologist said it was the worst case of atrophy they had ever seen in their career. I am having a hard time getting my surgeon to confirm it indeed happened in the auto accident. Has anyone had a similar experience?
I remember when my injury happened. I felt the nerve pop out from behind my elbow when lifting a stack of files to put them in a cabinet. If that is how my injury happened, a car accident sounds plausible. I had surgery to relocate the nerve in 2002 but it is now causing me problems again. I hope your situation is improving.
I had the same problem with a car accident.
I read your claim about the cause of your injury. I, too, had the exact same problem. My elbow was smashed into the door frame in an accident on June 10, 2008. I had surgery after nerve pain, palsy, and muscle atrophy in February of 2009. My doctor did not think it was severe until November 2008.
I had Personal Injury Protection coverage, but I am in the middle of a lawsuit against the other driver’s insurance company.
Hi Danielle. I had ulnar nerve surgery in April 2010 partly due to overtraining of the tricep that caused the tunnel to collapse and the nerve to impinge but ALSO due to me having fallen over off my Harley (sold now) and onto the elbow, hard! I’ve read on websites that just the impact alone can cause ulnar nerve impingement. Also, a friend of mine whom was in a car accident had to have surgery on both her hands due to developing carpal tunnel syndrome. So anyone who says its not related is clueless. Hope it helps. My surgery went fine (I thank God for that!) But I still have a no sensation on the outside of the elbow. Anyway- Good Luck! Thinus
It has been a while since I have posted. I had submuscular ulnar nerve transposition to both arms late 2008 and it made things worse. Nerve conduction studies normal, but ultrasound shows nerve squashed on both sides. Just had nerve decompression on the left side and if this works will have right arm done at later stage.
Question for those who have had nerve decompression – I know with transposition it is a long time before outcome is known. Is this the same for decompression or should there be immediate relief? I have an extreme tightness running down little finger side of arm just done and am worried the surgery for decompression has not worked. Has anyone else had this feeling – it is like something extremelt tight is tied around the arm putting pressure in the lower arm? Any imput would be appreciated. I need this surgery to have worked and can’t stop worrying that this feeling won’t go away. If it is normal I can at leasr try to relax.
Hi Kath,
I wish I would have the answer, but I had the the transposition done June 2009 and still have that tight feeling running along my little finger and palm. I hope you get to feeling better. Success!!!
just curious how your pinkie and palm of hand feel? i have this tight, dull ache feeling in the palm of my hand and my pinkie aches as well…not so much numbness and tingling, and did your arm ever get back to normal after surgery? thanks
Josiah,
I have a tight feeling in the pinkie and palm at times, like there is a string being pulled or tightened. My arm is doing very well. Sometimes hurts, depending on how I have used it or the weather.
I hope this helps.
Gees has anyone actually had a SUCCESSFUL ulnar nerve transposition?????????
Anyone???
That is a good question. Isss there anyone with good out come? I am scheduled for surgery on June 2nd. Now I am worried. Nerve conduction test showed a serve problem. I also have pain up into inside edge of armpit. Didn’t see any posts about the upper arm. I fell on my elbow over a year ago and cracked the bone. Also tore a muscle to doc plans to stitch that up as well. That will mean scars on both sides of elbow.
Hi Sandy, I also had transposition surgery on june 2nd. The first two days post-op were very painful and have 8 inch incision with bruising. I’m working on ROM and feel stronger each day. I’m very active and avid cyclist eager to get back out there. I’m starting to get grip back in hand and nearly all tingling and numbness gone. I feel the surgery was a success, however I admit the unknown really scared me..Sandy I wish you a speedy recovery and best of luck!!! Let us know how you’re doing.
Josiah
Since my first lot of surgery (and second), little finger and palm of hand feels like there is an extreme pressure being placed upon it. When it is there, it is like a brick has fallen on top of it or a blood pressure cuff is too tight on my arm putting pressure into the little finger side of the hand.
Heya site owner, good article, I’m going to post some of the article on our blog – I’m hoping you don’t mind if I post a url in return?
thanks for great information
Hi Guys,
I had the same surgery in Feb. I originally saw an orthopedic surgeon because of sharp pain in the elbow. Unable to diagnose the reason for the pain he recommended surgery to move the nerve an remove a bone spur. Up to 2 month’s after the surgery all the pain was gone and I had 105% range of motion back. Unfortunately as the wound heals ( 10″ scar ) the original pain is coming back worse than before I had the surgery. Not sure what to do and am not sure if I am up for another surgery. I’m 47 and good health, but the pain becomes unbearable several times a day. I am considering some type of pain management and was wondering if anybody else had tried it.
Was referred to a microsurgeon from my elbow doctor the other day, who seemed waaaaaay better than my elbow doctor. Unfortunately i already had my ulnar nerve transposition back in december as my dr assured me it was a simple op with no risks.
Basically it appears my scar tissue has attached to my nerve since the surgery, which is not allowing the nerve to glide as it should, and is now causing me pain.
The microsurgeon is being extremely cautious about going in for a second operation and wants to see results of a conductivity test before he decides what hes going to do. If only the initial elbow doctor showed a fraction of the microsurgeon’s caution i may very well have never gone thru with the op in the first place.
Anyway, this Micorsurgeon has told me that there is another option rather than having the ulnar nerve transposition done, he simply grinds away the bone where the nerve is rubbing, and feels it is a better option to the transposition and with less risks involed. Has anyone had this bone removal procedure done???
they ground the bone away on my elbow an moved the nerve but i it still rubs on the bone anyway an u can realy feel it
Has anyone going through this nightmare of a surgery tried a malpractice lawsuit. I am looking at my options although i am sure i waived my rights right before i went into surgery since i didn’t read everything i was signing as i was being led into the OR>
D Allen
That is exactly what happened to me. Initially the surgery felt okay (September 2008 to both arms), then as time progressed it was worse. My recent ultrasound showed nerves more compressed than before, so had decrompression of the left arm recently. Unfortunately, same thing, felt good at first, now not. i have tried Lyrica in the past which works, but once you get use to it it doesn’t work anymore and you have to stop it for a while then restart.
Jeff Boyd
Doctor’s are always right (well so they think). Malpractice is very expensive and doctors can aford it because of their insurance cover. If you lose, you not only end up with a very large bill from your own solicitor, but you could also end up having to pay for the other side’s solicitor. Given there are not too many happy people having this type of surgery, it is amazing that doctors, when asking them the success rate of this surgery, always say it is very successfuly – what a load of rubbish. Then if it doesn’t work, it must be the patient’s fault.
Thank Kath….
I don’t go back to the doctor for another 2 weeks, the doctor would not prescribe anything the last time I saw him ( few weeks back ) I have never had an ultrasound, they have done a x-rays and a EMG.
I actually have a small dark bruise that is starting to develop on the back of my elbow where most of the pain starts. I really hate the “wait and see” approach. I wonder if this is how orthopedics treat their own family members.
I think part of the reason he is unwilling to do anything right now is because he has not been paid by my insurance company yet.
i had this procedure done 2 weeks ago today. My elbow is still numb and it goes down my forarm about 5 inches. Does anyone know when i might get this feeling back? I didnt have this severe numbness before the surgery and now i cant feel it at all. My feeling in my hand and the rest of my forearm have come back but this 5-6inch area is still severly numb. I start phy. therapy next week. Does anyone know if im going to get this feeling back i work at a desk and lean on my elbows alot and this just sucks….HELP!!!!
Hey Brad,
I had the same procedure back in Feb. and I still have some numbness as well. I was told by my doctor that the nerve heals at the rate of 1″ per month and the nerve is approx. 18″ long. Most of the numbness should go away, but probably not all of it.
My problem is that as the numbness is going away the pain is coming back worse than before the surgery. I go back in Monday to see what he is going to do. The worse part is that most of the people I know that have have the surgery has had to have a second one within a year. Good Luck with yours!!!
I saw my doctor yesterday and he does not know why the pain is coming back or why it is worse than before the surgery. As for the increasing pain he said I will just have to learn to live with it.
When I saw the doctor initially I had pain right above and below the elbow and only xrays were taken. He decided since he couldn’t diagnose the the cause of the pain he would have to operate to find it. I was willing to try anything and let him operate even though the EMG was negative.
I would suggest that if the doctor is not certain that the surgery will help I would wait and get a few more referrals before letting anybody operate. I obviously made a big mistake.
Anybody know of a good orthopedic doctor in the Northern Va. area
DAllen
I would suggest an ultrasound. I went back to my orthopaedic surgeon after the surgery with more pain than before and he dismissed me claiming the surgery was a success. Nerve conduction studies came back normal so of course it must have all been in my mind. Luckily another surgeon decided to perform an ultrasound which showed the nerve was more compressed than before the initial surgery. When I had the second lot of surgery recently, after the surgery the doctor told me the nerve was alot worse than appeared on testing. Never trust tests, never trust the original surgeon. They don’t like to admit their work didn’t fix the problem so will tell you all is okay.
Does anyone know of a good ulnar nerve surgeon in Sydney Australia? If so I’d really appreciate it if you could let me know cause im not happy with the last 2 i have seen, and i dont know where to go from here…
Thankyou
Michael
SYDNEY HAND SURGERY
SUITE 1, LEVEL 4, NSPH
ST LEONARDS, , 2065
Many good surgeons over there who specialise in hand surgery and ulnar nerve
The doctor I saw has pretty much given up, which is sad considering how much pain he knows I am still in. To make matters worse. He apparently filed the insurance claim incorrectly and made me pay for the surgery or take me to collections.
I have asked for all my medical records from him and plan on getting another opinion, but am still looking for a good ortho in the Northern Virginia area
D’Allen
Not much consolation, but I feel your pain. After having both arms done in 2008 (failure), and then recently having the left arm redone, I am still in a mess. I was to have right arm done in 3 months, but given how the left arm feels may not go ahead with this. Typing at work is now near impossible. Feels like someone is sticking a knife in the palm of my hands and my fingertips are extremely sensitive, like they are in a power point. I really question when doctors state this is a successful surgery.
Kath,
My pain feels like somebody is jabbing a needle in the back of my elbow ( right above the elbow ) I don’t have any numbness or tingling, but do get a uncomfortable pain in various areas of my hand.
I am beginning to wonder if it was ever really nerve problem and possibly misdiagnosed. I hope you find the solution to your problem. I have 2 friends that are having elbow problems and are putting any treatment aside for now
Kath,
I was actually referred to Dr Tonkin at NSPH by my original surgeon, and he was really hesitant to re-operate on my arm (ie cut away the scar tissue from the nerve) in case it causes more damage. I like his careful approach which is the total opposite of Dr Hughes who did my operation in the first place and pretty much assured me there was no downside to this operation and risks were minimal. But now my other elbow is worse than ever, and Dr Tonkin’s advice was basically just seeing as the nerve conductivity results were both good, dont do anything that aggravates it and get on with life. Well i can hardly use my arm for anything now, but scared to get an operation after the way my first operation turned out… And obviously the nerve is being aggravated by just daily activities, so isnt the point of the operation to stop this aggravation before the nerve becomes permanently damaged… Its like a catch 22, dont get surgery because it may fail, but if i dont get surgery its going to potentially keep getting injured and may get worse…
Michael
I agree with you regarding NSPH being more cautious than other places, which is a good thing in some respects. I had the same problem, a surgeon that rushed in and did both arms together. NSPH when having to redo my arms, would only start with one arm, done in April this year, and will not proceed with the other arm until we are assured the first surgery was a success. The further surgery has, at this stage, left me worse off. Not because the surgeon was no good, as I had utmost faith in her, but rather because nerves don’t like being operated on time after time. I am like you, I have been told I may just have to live with it – pretty hard when your career is a secretary and you need to type all day and you can barely type for 1 minute. Stick with NSPH, although hard to live with, they know what they are doing, and their cautious approach is better than a doctor hacking away at you. In the end, having the re do surgery is your call and if you really do want someone to do it, they will, as long as you know the risk is they could make it worse – which is what I was warned.
Michael
I would be interested to know where you had the first surgery done, without naming names, can you mention a hospital. I am gathering it was not NSPH?
It was at the Mater,by Dr hughes, but had a choice of a few hospitals where he could do the operation. I just wish he let me know there are serious risks involved, but rather he said its just a simple op and had no hesitation about going ahead with it. I said what is the worst case scenario and he said you will be how you are now (which was pain and symptom free unless i did really heavy or repetitive lifting which was basically never except for at the gym, and my only reason for the op was so i could return to the gym), so i was assured i had nothing to lose. Well now i have to quit my job, can barely lift anything, am totally stressed, and in pain. Thanks Dr, this has screwed with my quality of life…
Michael
Sounds similar to my situation. I am having difficulties remaining as a secretary as unable to type now. Was never told or risks and was told it was a simple operation, that is why both arms were done 2 weeks apart – big mistake. 1 year after the operation in April this year, it was found by another surgeon that the nerve was even more compressed then prior to the first surgery. So first lot of surgeries was simply a waste of time. Re do surgery by new surgeon unfortunately not a success, because as she warned prior to doing it, operating on a nerve a second time has the potential to make things worse. Warning to anyone else, be careful with the first surgeon you choose and make sure they make you aware of potential risks and that the surgery does not have a great success rate.
Kath,
Cant believe this hey, these doctors should have to be held accountable for clearly not telling us the full truth. I was pushing to hear for reasons to not have the surgery, but he was so positive about the whole thing i had no reason to doubt him. My life was great before this op, now i have real concerns about my future. Im only 28 and cant even enjoy the simple things in life at the moment.
So why is it that the 2nd op makes things worse? Did u have good nerve conductivity studies proir to the 2nd op or was there already damage there? And after the 2nd op how have things gotten worse, why was it not successful?
Does anyone know how far away stem cell repairs for nerve damage are? I saw a documentary years ago where they were already regrowing nerves by adding stem cells to a mesh material and wrapping it around the nerve. The mesh slowly deteriorates while the stem cells regrows the nerve…
http://www.crca.asn.au/media/a-significant-advance-in-nerve-regeneration-using-stem-cells-and-nanotechnology
My doctor put me on Lyrica yesterday. I took one pill and felt like I was “stoned” for hours. It did help with the pain, but it is not the right drug for me.
D Allen
Don’t give up on the Lyrica yet. When I first started on it 75mg I felt the same way. I was told to persist and eventually was on one in the morning and one in the evening. I was gradually worked up to 150mg tablet twice a day and am now handling it. You do get use to it over time and the good thing is you get a good night’s sleep. Only problem is that eventually your body gets use to it and what once worked, no longer works. When I got on the 150mg dose initially I felt like I was in heaven and knocked myself out at work. It felt so good to have the use of my arms back, but unfortunately I over did it. Lyrica is a great medication, if you give you body time to adjust and remember – don’t over do it just because you are now feeling well. All the Lyrica is doing is stopping the nerve signals from going crazy.
Michael
At first it seemed the second surgery to the left arm had worked. But once I got using it again had sharp shooting pains in my fingertips so find typing for long times extremely hard. The elbow and the forearm feel better, but unfortunately , can’t shake the sensitivity in my finger tips, despite going back on Lyrica. With the first surgery, done by a different surgeon, I ended up with worse problems in my arms than prior to the surgery. The first lot of surgeries did make me worse as the ultrasound showed my nerves were now squashed and kinked. The nerve conduction studies weren’t too bad, but the ultrasound proved these tests wrong. I have utmost faith in the surgeon who redid the surgery (at a different hospital), but unfortunately the deficits are things I have been told I will have to live with and consider a new career. Easy for the doctors to say, but who is going to employ someone who can’t use there hands. I understand where you are coming from, before doing the surgery they should take into account the consequences if the surgery doesn’t work and what this will mean to your future employment. Of course, doctors don’t take these things into consideration, and if the surgery doesn’t work, you are told to just live with it – easier said than done.
Kath that’s such bad news, I wonder how it would have turned out if you went to the 2nd doctor in the first place. Can I ask who was the doctor that did your second surgery?
I have an appointment in 2 weeks or so with a Dr Quain i think it is, from St Vincents Hospital, do you or anyone else have any knowledge on him? Obviously Im just trying to find the best Dr around this time…
Feel free to email me if you dont like getting into these kind of details over the forum, mic23q@hotmail.com
I tried the Lyrica again ( 75 mg ) and has the same “stoned” result. This just isn’t the drug for me. Although it does relieve the pain, the side effects are not worth the trade off. I know some people have had great results with it, but I could see where I could get addicted to it even though it is considered a non-narcodic.
For those who asked if anyone has had a successful ulnar nerve transposition surgery – well ask my surgeon- he says he has done 650 of them and he has never had a problem! ever!
well, I guess I am his first problem.
he does say that the nerve will take 1 to 2 years to heal – so for all of us who are in a panic, it may be best to breath deeply for a long time, find coping strategies and wait it out.
After 2 years, then we’ll know.
I had the submuscular transposition on my right nerve 3 weeks ago (I am an artist and architect and it is devastating to lose the use of my hands) and I went from a very minor weakness issue to after surgery of numbness of 3 ring and pinky and palm, inability to spread the pointer finger – also controlled by the ulnar, complete numbness in the forearm where the nerve used to be – I wonder what will evergize that muscle now that the nerve has been moved….
and of course the associated pain, etc from being cut open.
and I did a lot of research and interview 3 surgeons. I would recommend ANYONE considering this surgery to do their homework.
I do not believe it is the only way. I used acupunture and a specialist chiropractic treatment called ART (automatic release technique) which initially brought back 80% of the atrophied muscle and eliminated all pain. The surgeons scoffed at this and insisted I would lose the use of my right hand if I did not have surgery. (artists fear this!)
so they convinced me – it is so much worse now, I am convinced I really made a mistak.
Advice – speak to many specialists, do your homework and don’t believe the surgeons. They really dr0p interest in patients after the procedure.
Surgeons will always tell you all their surgeries are a success. My specialist wrote to my GP and told him my surgery was a complete success and all was fine. It was anything but fine, with a redo surgery having to be done to both arms this year. They see what they want to see, and if you continue to have problems, they will say it is nothing to do with their surgery, but rather issues with pain.
Also, I have been told to stay away from accupuncture from my neurologist.
And for D Allen and those who are suffering with pain,
have you tried acupunture for the pain? For me, this is what took away the initial pain. I am very sensitive to chemical drugs and am the poster child of side effect reactions. Acupunture was a life-saver for me, but my system is very sensitive.
Thanks Karen, I have been looking in to acupuncture. I am going to wait until I get another opinion. I rarely have side affects to medicine, but this one really messed me up.
Hi
just had revised subq surgery, great, no real pain until I had physio 1 week after op. Now fifth dinger curled over and pain down that side of palm and down arm like razor blades. Has anyone had this and has advice? Has the physio damaged the nerve?
Would appreciate reassurance that all will settle down.
Regards
I have similar type of pain down palm of hand like someone is sticking a knife through my hand and extreme pressure down side. Don’t think physio is to blame, because I was not having physio and my problems commenced 2 weeks after surgery. Sorry can’t be of any help, but sometimes it is good to know others are having the same sort of symptoms and that it is not in your mind.
Thanks for your post Kath,
Sorry you’re suffering too, how long ago was your surgery?
Regards
Kai-lin
Kai-Lin
I had submuscular ulnar nerve transposition to both arms two weeks apart in September 2008. In April 2010 had to have left arm decompression done by a different surgery because things were a lot worse. Right arm will be redone late this year or next year some time, but this is dependent upon the outcome of the left arm which at this point is not looking too good. Hope you get your problems sorted.
cheers
Hi! I had carpal tunnel & ulnar transposition surgery on 7/6/10. 13 days after surgery staples were removed, but I was instructed by the surgeon to not stretch my arm out. He re-wrapped my arm and hand & put me back in a splint/sling, for another 2 weeks.
My problem now is I’m experiencing pain in my elbow that feels like electrical/needle stick shocks. As I’m still in the “wrapped-up” recovery stage, is this normal? Has anyone else experienced this?
I’m sorry… my STITCHES were removed. Gawd…. with the way I’m feeling, I can’t imagine ANYONE getting staples for this procedure…
Please give me a sign of hope. I fell in my shower and dislocated my shoulder and hurt my elbow. The pain is just crazy I need the operation for the ulnar transpostion in my elbow but after reading the comments fear has taken over. I live in the Wilkes Barre- Scranton area in Pa and please if you can give me some insight please do….
I must ad that my ulnar nerve transposition was successful. Take into consideration I made sure it was done by the head of sports science institute for elbows in South Africa. Experience has taught me that unless you’re really going to the expert of the experts (usually guys who handle all the countries International teams – in my case our countries Rugby team) you’re looking for trouble. Make 100percenet sure your Doc is the best of the best and make 100 sure you can’t do without the surgery. I waited 2 years, living with the tingling and numbness before eventually going for the op. I would say no less than 7 weeks before one can start judging the full effectiveness of the procedure and even then, it gets better with time. I had mine in April 2010 and except for the numb spot on the back of my elbow, I’m doing better than before the op. I was actually visiting the site to ask advice on how long after surgeyr one can start lifting weights again? Anyone know? Good Luck to all of you and Keep the Faith! That’s what makes the difference in the end!
I know people in Australia who have gone to the “experts” best in their field and still had problems.
i had an ulnar transposition march 5 2009. Im living a post surgery nightmare. I would like to know how i can join this group and maybe get some suggestions…I had the surgery done at the VA Hospital at Huntington West Virgina.
thanks
dennis walker
i had the ulnar transposition surgery march 5 2009. it has been a post op nightmare, i would like to know how to join this group and maybe get some suggestions. thanx
hi every one
I’m taking 900 mg of Lyrica every day and I still have pain. I will have to have surgery both arms. They will cut my left arm first, then two weeks later they will cut my right arm. I am very worried.
OMG!! 900mg of Lyrica
I took one 75mg and felt like had been partying with Cheeck & Chong for 16 hours. I didn’t remember any pain, but I didn’t remember anything else either
Good luck with the surgery. My Doctor told me that the Ulnar nerve heals at 1″ per month and is about 18″‘s long. Just make sure you do not skimp on the therapy. Although I still have pain my range of motion is back to 100%
I had the ulnar nerve surgery done the end of May this year. I was already taking 225 mg of Lyrica for back problems. Doc told me nerve was MUCH worse than he thought. Maybe because I was taking the Lyrica and didn’t feel it as much. I also had a muscle repair done on the outside of the elbow at the same time. The nerve problem seems to be fine but I still have pain in the elbow joint. I have great movement so don’t think it is scar tissue. Any ideas?