waynes, what a terrible story. Three years of intractable and debilitating pain! Please offer my condolences to Becky, and I truly hope that ya'll get some relief SOON!
I had three months of intractable and debilitating pain, and was tethered to the couch before my double ADR. That's not near what ya'll have had to endure, but I do feel your pain.
I hope that ya'll are able to arrange a multilevel ADR instead of having to undergo fusion. I had two cervical fusions (2000 and 2002), and then two cervical ADRs (2009). While I had successful outcomes with both fusions, I was going to have to keep having them.
As ya'll are considering international options, I'll give you another one. My double ADR was in Barcelona, Spain with Dr Pablo Clavel of the Barcelona Spine Center. He implanted two Spinal Kinetics' M6's for 18565 euros (just under $23k at today's exchange rate).
I felt better upon waking up in recovery than I did when they put me to sleep. That was Nov 25, 2009. Since time I've run two half-marathons and one full marathon; and I feel great!
Whatever you and Becky do, I sincerely hope that your outcome is at least half as good as mine, because it gave me my life back.
Good luck, Jeff
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C4/5 - ACDF in 2000
C5/6 - ACDF in 2002
C3/4 & C6/7 - M6 ADR, Nov 2009, Barcelona
Conceded defeat to a manifestly disingenuous BCBS-TX in my quest for reimbursement, Jan 2011
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