Doctors
 

After reading all the replays saying I should consider the M6L overseas you have finally gotten me to start looking In that direction. I am having trouble remembering who said it but they said "if you take money out of the equation where would you go". I have to admit that this single comment really put things into perspective. I'm by no means rich but I would be able to make it happen without being a huge burden in my family. Although the surgery is in the $30000 range with Dr. Calvel it is a small price to pay for a better chance at success. I am just quoting a price I saw on his site for a single level ADR. Hopefully I can get some help on the doc decision and make some forward progress soon. Hope everyone is pain free today and God Bless!!

Lillyth, that's because the M6 has only been approved for outside the US....

Harrison, surely a good U.S. ADR surgeon who is attending conferences and is keeping up with things will have at least HEARD of the M6. For instance Zigler at TBI knew it and said it was one of the only discs not approved in the US that "intrigues" him.

Follow your instincts & do your research
 

I had surgery in Spain & My neurosurgeon agreed to treat me post op - that was huge! however, he admittedly has no knowlwdge of the M6 disc. I'm sure his ego was bruised because I chose to go elsewhere, but he also admitted that
1.) he had never done a two level ADR
2.) did not know anything about the M6
3.) he felt like a 2 level would be my best option & provide me with the best results
4.) insurance would not cover the procedure, the out of pocket expenses would have exceeded $150,000
Had my insurance been willing to pay, I most likely would have ended up at TBI...
That being said, I based my decision on what I believed was best for me & my body.... The cost of paying cash for surgery in Spain will set us back financially, however, the inability to work due to neck pain had already set us back! So, it was a risk I was willing to make after due diligence, research and much soul searching.... only time will tell if it was the absolute right decision. Based upon my condition almost 13 weeks after surgery I say the risk was worth it and the money well spent.
For what it is worth, based upon the fact my local neurosurgeon has no knowledge about the M6, he has told me that he feels like the disc placement is less than optimal;in his opinion they are not centered properly but he also admits that the curve in my cervical spine due to the double whiplash may play a factor in the way the discs were/are placed. He feels that the worst case scenario would be a revision years from now, so he says I may have bought myself some time and avoided the fusion which I was so opposed to, again remember he has NO experience with the M6 and that is purely speculation. I am anxious to hear what Dr. C's response will be when he receives my 3 month post op films and the dictated report from my Neuro.

Many people here on the forum and through PM provided support and encouragement as I struggled with the decision, again, I cannot thank you enough (you know who you are). Here I am three months post op, no neck pain, no cervical headaches and I feel 100% better. Yes, there is still some nerve pain radiating down my right arm, over my right shoulder & under the scapula - those nerves had been compressed for 3 plus years, all I can do is hope that it will eventually decrease and hope that it will go away completely with time. I also have some achy muscles in the center of my back that comes & goes depending on what my activity is & some muscle spasms in the trapezius & another muscle (can't remember the name) on both shoulders. My left tricep shows considerable loss of strength which both my NeuroSurgeon & PT say is due to nerve damage. Prior to surgery I had the nasty EMG nerve test and there are nerves in my left arm that are non-responsive and there were indications that there was damage in the right arm as well. So considering I waited 3 plus years for surgery and may have compounded the damage by doing so, I have to say that I am 100% happy with the outcome at this point.
Do your research, talk to others, listen to their stories and then --follow your gut instincts! We have to be our own advocates in todays medical world.

Hope this helps in some small way to lead in to a decision you are comfortable with.

So when you all go overseas do you still go back to the same doctor you basically just dumped or do you find someone else to help post op. I guess my main concern is the post op. If it all doesn't go well. This is really the only concern I have with leaving the country. Let me know of of the post op duties I will have of I do decide to head to Europe. Thanks and god bless

I think I got lucky, we discussed the possibility of Spain & the reasons why we were considering surgery overseas with my Neurosurgeon before going to Spain. We point blanked asked himif he would do follow up treatment post op. I think he understood that without insurance paying we could not afford the approx. $150,000 it would cost to have surgery here. Plus he had never done a 2 level replacement.....

2con,
I know that one doctor probably won't help. He is a very good spine doctor by the us standard and is probably great with the prodisc but he is one of those docs that know he is great and acts that way. He worked under dr Blumenthal and probably has in the 150-250 ADR surgery under his belt and he isn't even 45. I was pretty much sold until the m6l was brought to my attentions and now I'm thinking the right decision for the rest of my life is the m6. Still working hard to make the right decision. I know that surgery is the only real chance I have of a pain free life. I was wondering if anyone here knows of anyone that is having trouble with the m6. I have read that facet problems have been reported but I'm not sure that its the ADR's fault or maybe he was predisposed. I guess you may never know. Thanks for you fees back and god bless!!

Follow up
 

Ican: as far as your follow up concerns go, this is how mine went:

I was there (England) for 3 weeks post-op. I started therapy there, saw the surgeon and pain doctor regularly for follow-up for the 5 days hospitalized, and the 2.5 weeks afterward as an outpatient. The therapists told me exactly what to do when I got home for the first 12 weeks, and I took that information home to my local therapists (who knew nothing about artificial discs - but didn't need to since the therapy protocol was handed to them, and I knew about my disc). Once home, I continued to refill pain prescriptions as needed from my family physician, and started therapy following the instructions and restrictions given to me. I emailed or called my surgeon with questions (he gave me his personal cell phone number) whenever I felt confused or concerned about something. I had xrays at 6 months and 1 year that were sent overseas to be reviewed by my surgeon - the one who knows the hardware and what it should be doing! (I sent my xrays on CD in the mail, but there are more techy ways to do it). He emailed me back with his review of my studies, what the placement looked like, anything special I should know/be doing. (Really no different than sitting in your local ortho's office and reviewing your studies on a board in front of you). All of this interaction was part of the cost of the surgery and is no additional fee (except the therapy/pain meds here at home, of course).
I've never had any problems that needed treatment, but this surgery is pretty much a one-time shot at getting it right. It isn't something they can really go back in and tweak with a follow-up appointment, so if something did go terribly wrong, it would be a brand new set of full-blown surgery circumstances to deal with rather than a follow-up. Everything less than "terribly wrong" is addressed with therapy, posture, lifestyle, etc. Does that make sense?
This has all worked well for me, but there are other scenarios too.

Thanks for your responses pertaining to post op situations. I am going to be talking to ritterlangs office and clavels office today as well. I am hoping that I will have my doctor soon. I have to get a purple X-rays done to complete their packages and will know soon after I send them. Thanks for all you help and I will keep all posted. I am sure I will have more questions. Thanks and god bless!

Sent you a pm yesterday, just to give you some info on my UK surgeon Mr Chris Dare, perhaps it didn't get to you I'll try again.