Sciatic Nerve
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@Jolly said in Sciatic Nerve:
@mark said in Sciatic Nerve:
@89th I am like 100% better. PT helped the most. Chiro was good too but the stretches and exercises from PT were what got me straightened out.
My pelvis was misaligned to the point that if it had gone even a few millimeters more out of alignment I would not have been able to walk at all. About 2-3 weeks of PT had me right as rain. I continue to work on it so I don't go out of alignment again.
I needed to learn proper posture when sitting at my desk, playing my guitars/piano, ergonomic placement of my keyboard and mouse, etc. I never gave these things a first thought let alone a second thought. I can even type faster and more accurately now that I have put them into practice.
MRI showed narrowing of passages in some disks and other paths that nerves run through due to arthritis and of course, me getting older than dirt. It also raped my bank account of $2k which was my portion of the $7k bill they sent my insurance company. All for 20 minutes inside a noisy tube and about 10 minutes of an analysts time. So $14k per hour. There were many people in the waiting room just waiting to get raped in the same manner. IOW, the MRI did nothing at all to help my doctor and PT solve the problem. The PT people were awesome. By the time I was scheduled to get into the tube, I was already feeling 90% better.
Because my pelvis was so far out of alignment, it was pinching my sciatic nerve. Once I got it moving back into proper alignment, the pain subsided and I am now back to my "normal" self.
I am sitting at my desk in a proper manner now, and I also adjusted how I sit when playing my guitars. All in the hope that I never have to go through that again.
Yeah, posture is important. Who knew? lol
A high end MRI machine can cost $3M. That MRI tech (in your neck of the woods) is making $75K or maybe even more. And that tech is not the only one.
Life of lab equipment is usually 5 years, but xray equipment lasts longer, Figure 10 years for a good MRI.
Y'all can do the math from there.
OK. $14k * 8 * 5 * 52 = $29,120,000.00 per year.
I'll be kind and cut it in half.
Who is getting financially fucked here?
We are.
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@mark said in Sciatic Nerve:
OK. $14k * 8 * 5 * 52 = $29,120,000.00 per year.
I'll be kind and cut it in half.We're lucky that the radiologist, computers, admitting and clerical staff, housekeeper, security guard, transportation, elevator maintenance, parking maintenance, electricity, plumbing, furniture in the waiting room are all free.
Yeah, it's a ripoff.
"Now look here, you Baltic gas passer... " - Mik, 6/14/08
The saying, "Lite is just one damn thing after another," is a gross understatement. The damn things overlap.
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@George-K said in Sciatic Nerve:
@mark said in Sciatic Nerve:
OK. $14k * 8 * 5 * 52 = $29,120,000.00 per year.
I'll be kind and cut it in half.We're lucky that the radiologist, computers, admitting and clerical staff, housekeeper, security guard, transportation, elevator maintenance, parking maintenance, electricity, plumbing, furniture in the waiting room are all free.
Yeah, it's a ripoff.
Yes it is.
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Always remember, Operation Valkyrie was an act of sedition.
Warning: I post things that interest me. Read and comment at your own discretion. -
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Contractors built that building for free too. The nurses don't get paid, and all the IV fluids given in the MRI scanner fell off a truck, only to be recycled - along with all the IV equipment. If you got a CD of your scan, you can be grateful that Verbatim donated them to the hospital.
ETA: As did the programmers who gave freely of their time and skills to write the software that interprets the MRI.
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@George-K said in Sciatic Nerve:
@mark said in Sciatic Nerve:
My sister (2 years older) just had a hip replacement yesterday. In and out the same day.
Amazing, no?
Many surgeons are using the anterior approach to THR. It's less traumatic, less risk of post-op dislocation, and basically no rehab, other than just getting up and walking.
Never thought I'd see it. IIRC, I used to set up 4-6 units for a hip.
Always remember, Operation Valkyrie was an act of sedition.
Warning: I post things that interest me. Read and comment at your own discretion. -
Always remember, Operation Valkyrie was an act of sedition.
Warning: I post things that interest me. Read and comment at your own discretion. -
@Jolly said in Sciatic Nerve:
@mark said in Sciatic Nerve:
@Jolly I said I would be kind and cut in half.
Still a ripoff.
Ok, I'll bite.
What's it worth?
What I already pay in premiums.
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@mark thanks for the update! Really glad to hear you’re feeling better.
I don’t recall any of the details but I forgot when I was like 10 there was a day or two where I was basically paralyzed from back pain on the couch. I think they said that i had a slight curvature. Haven’t had pain since, weird.
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@89th said in Sciatic Nerve:
@mark thanks for the update! Really glad to hear you’re feeling better.
I don’t recall any of the details but I forgot when I was like 10 there was a day or two where I was basically paralyzed from back pain on the couch. I think they said that i had a slight curvature. Haven’t had pain since, weird.
+1
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I know we have talked about medical cost before, but I still wonder how countries like Thailand and Singapore can offer medical treatment that is 1/3 the cost of the US. The hospitals and clinics that promote to foreign visitors have western trained doctors, etc.
For example, a hip replacement in the US is about USD$40K, while in Singapore it is USD$13K.
Is it strictly labor costs? Because I would think that the machines used in Singapore are the same ones used in the US.
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I saw the PA for the neurosurgeon I was referred to on Friday. Of course, in the weeks between the appointment being made and being seen, symptoms have improved. Certain positions cause paresthesias (pins and needles) and numbness in the L2-L3 distribution (front of thigh), but the spasm and pain are pretty much gone.
My x-ray shows a partial explanation - I've got some scoliosis, which I've known about for at least 25 years.
(photo of a computer screen, not the actual image)
"Since you're better, there's no need for any further imaging, and if it gets worse, we can give you an order for PT for core strengthening, etc. But for now, keep doing what you're doing with anti-inflammatories, etc."
