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recon13
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Posts posted by recon13
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Welcome! I have gathered a wealth of information from this site.
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First off, thanks for the replies, some very good advice.
I have had Xrays and a CTscan on the Abdomen, they all show pleural fluid on the left lung, the most recent was 5-17-2013, that's 4 months after surgery. But basically the reports came back normal.
The physical Therapist I'm seeing seems to think it is nerve damage contracting muscles in that area, The Neurologist thought that it was a sidewall hernia; he sent me to a General Surgeon who just shook his head and said it wasn't a hernia and he had no idea what it was. My PCP has tried to get to the bottom of t, even had 3 other PCP's come to the room to look at it, none had any idea.
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I was 1/17th Cav, 82nd ABN DIV, MOS was 19D, Cavalry Scout.
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Welcome!
Thank you. Cavtrooper.
Love the handle I was a Cav trooper at Ft. Bragg.
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In 1998 I was awarded 100% IU P&T, my wife and five children received their chapter 35 and Champva paperwork. At that time I was rated,
30% depression
20% rt ankle
20% rt femur, hip, knee w/leg length discrepancy
20% DDD Lumbar
10% left knee
In the rating decision it stated that I was determined to be disabled not by my MH condition or physical conditions on their own, but when looked at together the record showed that I was disabled due to my service connected conditions, which were caused by a single event in service. (Parachute accident)
In 2002 the depression was raised to
50% for PTSD/depression
and also I received two different ratings for painful scars
10% Painful scar
10% painful scar
IU was continued.
Do the conditions that were initially used to grant IU count for 100% towards the 100% + 60%?
My question is how do the ratings in 2002 count for a SMC rate?
Is Radiculopathy a separate claim of DDD, can it be?
Can cervical spine bulging discs be secondary to DDD Lumbar. I don't think it should be a secondary, I actually injured my neck when I hit the ground wearing a Kevlar helmet, but at Womack Army Hospital the records only state that I complained of back pain.
I recently had a back surgery that did not go as planned and although its been 20 years since I've filed for anything to do with the back, I think I'm going to file for an increase.
I realize there are several questions here that don't really pertain to the thread, I hope it's OK.
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Yes you do.
In the private medical hospital world , this is called a " Never Event" or Sentinel Event. In the literature and on the web they refer to it as well as " wrong site Surgery ". Meaning oops we did the wrong procedure.
You can read the regulations and policies that govern org must follow for marking and assuring that right procedures are done on the right spot.It sounds like policy was not followed. Goggle JCAHO.org . wrong site surgery.
In the private world risk management and compliance staff get very involved and settlements are made as this is an injury not a complication of your procedure. I would bet they already know about this event , but this is handled in another part of the VA. The doctors are just doing their work, issues like this up the ladder to the desk jockies. I used to be one.
I do know VA is regulated by same rules as private hospitals. It is good that the physician admitted to the mistake up front , many don't. Do your research , there is a lot out there about wrong surgery. Your options are really up to you.
Take Care.
The funny part about this is the Nurse Anesthetist, checked it after the Dr marked it, some civilian checked it after the Dr marked it and when I was rolled into the OR they said its time for the time out, to make sure they knew what area and procedure they were doing.
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Thank you SP4RVN1971, thank you for your service, and, welcome home.
Welcome recon13!
Thank you. Glad to be here.
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I underwent an L5-S1 TLIF surgery on 1-19-2013 at the VA hospital in Houston.
When I woke up my wife informed me that the Dr's told her that everything went well, except for the fact they started on L4. They told her that they had cut bone out of the way and also drilled holes before they realized they were at the wrong level. They stated that when they realized it they replaced all the bone fragments to allow them to re-fuse (hopefully).
The next morning when the Dr made his rounds he told me everything went well, my son was with me in the room. I asked him about the mix up and he said that yes, they had cut bone from the wrong vertebrae and that it would certainly cause some increased pain and that one side, the left, would someday fuse to the vertebrae beneath it. I told him of my concerns and he said that they would order a CTScan and review it, which they did.
After it was done, he returned to my room and told me that they had not cut as much bone out of the way as they had thought and that I should still have a stable spine.
That day when they got me up to walk, I noticed a large lump on my left side which was very painful, the skin around it was painful from the mid back all the way to the naval, super sensitive to the touch, it still is 5 months later.
Two days after I was released I went back into the Little Rock VA hospital for blood in my lung, they have not been able to determine where it came from, 5 months later it still hurts to take a deep breath, it feels like I have several, usually 3, spasms and then I catch my breath.
I have been to 5 VA Dr's and they all say the same thing, "Wow, that bump is not normal, but I have no idea why its there."
I have two 3 1/2" scars at the L5 level and two 1" scars at the T10 level all 4 from the surgery.
I have so much left leg pain, its almost unbearable, when I went back for my 3 month check-up the neurosurgeon brushed me off over my concerns about breathing and the soreness over the skin at the T9-10 area, he said that they had not operated in that area so it was from nothing they had done.
At this point I don't know what long term affects I will endure from the mix-up.
In the Op report they do admit to being in the wrong area, but they say they only cut soft tissue and then before they started cutting bone they checked by xray to make sure they were in the right spot, contradicting what they told me.
Oxray now it shows arthritis at T9-10, which is a new development.
My ratings are
50% PTSD
20% DDD Lumbar
20% Rt Ankle
20% Rt Femur, Hip, Knee with leg length discrepancy
10% left Knee
10% painful scar
10% painful scar
80% schedule
100% IU P&T since 1998
Do I have a case?
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Hello, my name is Steve, First off I would like to thank those who make this site possible, I have been reading posts its seems for years.
My wife and I have 5 children, the baby is now 26. 4 were on active duty together (Army) 3 have been retired medically for injuries, so this site has been a wonderful place to learn.
I was retired medically in 1986 after a parachute accident while stationed at Ft. Bragg, it has been a difficult struggle getting there but I've been rated 100% IU P%T since 1998, 80% schedule.
my ratings are
50% PTSD/Depression
20% Rt. Ankle
20% Rt Femur, Hip, Knee with Leg length discrepancy
20% DDD Lumbar
10% Left Knee
10% painful scar
10% painful scar
I look forward to getting to know you all better.
Another Newbie
in Introduce Yourself
Posted
Welcome Glen.