Back Pain/fusion Accomplished

[mkew77j]

Ok I have a question. But first I will give you a little history. I have always had back pain and trouble with it and up until the last 2 yrs I have had approximately 19 profiles due to it. I have only been in the air force 6 yrs. Then approximately 5 yrs ago I had a football accident on base for squadron pt. The next day I was taken to the hospital by ambulance. At that time my pcm said she thought that there was disk degeneration which she has recently recanted.

So anyways about a yr and half ago I went to have a sleep study done and had my second to see what number the machine was suppose to be set to. I was boarded (a joke) and was rated to return to duty. I also along with sleep apnea boarded with depressive disorder. But like I said it was return to duty. Anyways about 2 weeks before the results of that came back I started having left foot pain for no apparent reason. One day I was walking around like a board and I called the pcm and said I want an appointment today so that you can see this. Well I had a new pcm (that wasn’t saying your back hurting because of depression) that saw me and knew that this wasn’t depression and that something was wrong like I had been screaming for 5 yrs. I was sent off base to see an orthopedic doctor and he took some xrays and I didn’t mention anything about the base saying it was depression. Well he sent me to get an MRI (something I requested 5 yrs ago and was told that is the last thing well do) and it came back with ruptured disk at L5 possibly pinching S-1 nerve and a bulge at L4 and 3. He referred me to see an orthopedic surgeon. He said we have 3 options at this time. One is to do nothing, the 2^nd is to perform a laparoscopy (he said we are long past that), and the 3^rd is to go in and remove L5 and do a fusion with screws to hold the implants in place. That is when I came across this AFI stating that any fusion is disqualifying. Well I had been to many physical therapy sessions before this but since they blamed it on depression no one did anything. I am lucky unlike I have seen in one post: I have been on convalescence leave for coming up on 3 months with more to come.

My CO hates me as I have not deployed once due to kids (bi-polar disorder) and there disregard for authority of any kind. Up until this last commander they have as they said accommodated me and kept me off of the deployment schedule. I seen his report when I got boarded for sleep apnea and he said that him and the pcm agrees that I should be removed from profiles prohibiting deployments.

Now I want them to pay since they didn’t listen to me. I see in these posts that it is 40% for the back. So since I know for a fact I will get 50% for sleep apnea is that 90% from the VA? I know that they will board me again for the back and I really hope they do. I personally do not want to stay in and why should I when I may now be guaranteed 90% and it may be 100 with depressive disorder. I have 14 yrs time in service but because I have broken service with 8yrs in the Navy I am getting paid for 18 yrs time in service. I want them to pay. What should I do since I told them 5 yrs ago something was wrong and as usual they didn’t listen to me.

If it is 100% that will be 3369 a month and approximately 3000 if only 90%. He also said you will never lift above 50lbs again. I know that if they return me to duty that I can still get out and collect disability as I have already asked the VA at 17yrs TIS.

Not only that but I am in single digits of classes left till BBA so I can get paid.

Any info comments on what should I do to get out would be greatly appreciated/ If need be email me at dontuwantoknow7@yahoo.com

[carlie]

Welcome to Hadit.

carlie

[dannydad]

Welcome to Hadit.

carlie

[dannydad]

welcome,you need to get in touch with a VA service officer, that person will help you to file a claim. right now your impression is that VA disabilitys are simply added together (ie.50+40=90),not true 40+50=70% .I have no idea where you stationed so First suggestion, go talk to the individuals at the retired activity office on base, they can get you pointed in the right direction.

good luck

[Quint7]

You need a new Dr.

I had a spinal fusion last Jan. at the L4-5. The discs at L4-5 and L5-S1 were gone and the first doc, an orthopedic doc wanted to fuse all 3 vertebre and open my back and stomach up to do it which would have ended my career as a firefighter. I had been having back problems since 1993 when I hurt it in the Marines and had put up with the pain thinking it was muscle pain but finally forced my civilian doc to give me an MRI (wasn't using VA care yet and the back wasn't SC yet but was on appeal). I couldn't bring myself to throw away my job and finally found a new back doc, a NEUROLOGIST! This guy is local but has a 4 month plus waiting list. He has been flown out of town to operate on NFL players, Ted Turner flew into town to have this guy do his back surgery, etc. So after careful review by my 2nd back doc. he told me that my orthopedic surgeon is a quack who is used to doing old people's hips and knees and that there is no reason for a "bi-level" fusion when the L5-S1 disc wasn't impinging on a nerve and that a person with my work history should have a destroyed L5-S1 disc. He also said implants are a waste of time. "Why go in there and do all of that work to put an implant in there that might not work or could go bad in the future he said. A single fusion, in the lumbar region is the way to go as it can all be done with a single incision in the back. I have 2 titanium screws and a titanium spacer now. The spacer was filled with bone marrow taken from my hip bone through the same back incision and grows new bone to form a single vertebrae out of the two which is as permanent as you can get. Also the lifting limit is BS. It you follow proper rehab you can go back to doing anything you want. I am 10 months postop and have been back at work fulltime firefighting since 5 1/2 months post-op. It is a tough recovery but is nothing compared to if they had opened me up front and back.

Get some second opinions or just get discharged and then get the fusion from a civilian doc.

Also, don't look at VA comp as "getting back" at anyone. We have members here who have lost limbs, etc. who have had to fight to get what the law says they ae entitled to. If you rate compensation from VA according to the VA's own rules then you rate it, it isn't a matter of getting back at anyone. Looking at it that way will just put people off of helping you as unfortunately there are vets out there who are just trying to scam money out of VA. You don't want to be put into that category on this site as help will then be hard to come by.

Hope my info helps you out.