Well I was concerned (but almost slightly hopefull) that surgery was going to be in the future. I had even mentioned to friends that if a Dr said that we could try surgery x on joint a then I would jump on it just so something could be tried. I am even nervous right now about my emergency appointment with my Rheumatologist tomorrow as I don't know how that is going to go surgery wise (Did I mess up the old ones? Will a new one have to be done? Could a new one actually help? Will I even find someone who would perform one?). Wasn't expecting to be signed up for my 7th surgery in 10 years today. Today was the visit with my dentist.
The hygenist called me in, asked what I did to my knee (I use a crutch outside of the house) and got me in the chair and comfortable for my knee. I was due for x-rays so two were done. She came in and used a water pick to clean the teeth then went in for the cleaning. She was really nice, took lots of breaks so I could readjust my jaw (I had taken two Robax before I went and it definitly helped!) and we talked about the EDS and I asked her about the little bump on my upper left gum that I was wondering if it was a stitch. Then the Dentist came in. I hate dentists, lets get that out first off but I do love MY dentist. He is so good. He looked at my x-rays and said that I needed a 'tune up' and my heart just dropped. He must have seen so as he quickly came around and clarified that it was not my fault, that we were 'fighting a losing battle' and that the problems are not because of any lack of dental care, it's the medications. Mainly the ones that cause me to have a dry mouth as that is one of the main issues as to why they issues are happening. My upper right back two teeth have small minimal cavities in them (or pre-cavities) and one of my bottom front teeth has a few small chips that could easily turn into cavities. He again stated that it was not my fault and that he knew that and that we will probably be doing dental surgery every 1 - 2 years because of the EDS issues and medication issues. He stated that he knew I was doing good with my dental hygeine because if I was lacking in any way there would be a whole lot more issues going on. The places that are causing issues right now are right at the gumline which makes it even harder to clean. By the time I left the room I was not upset about it as he made sure that I knew that I was doing well and that this was to be expected.
So in the next month or two I will be going in for surgery. This will be my 7th in 10 years (knee in '00, '02, '02; teeth in '04, '08, '09) which does suck but I would rather have this proactive dentist who realizes I am doing all that I can and that he expects the issues I have and wants to get things fixed the second they come about so things dont get worse. I got my pamphlet of pre-op papers but have to wait until I get a date before I fill them out and make all the appointments (pre-op, family dr and anesthetic) that need to be done before the surgery date. Well there is not much more to say really about the teeth stuff.
My knee is still doing pretty badly but I go tomorrow to get it looked at. I never went to the ER after I dislocated it as I figured there was no reason. X-rays weren't really needed as I knew the knee was back in place, I had better pain meds than they would have given me and I already had crutches and knew the whole RICE thing. I figured that between Christmas and New Years that my Rheumy would be out of the office so I called in on Tuesday.
I talked to Mary first and introduced myself and gave the small spiel of what had happened and asked if I should come in. As soon as I mentioned that I hadn't dislocated the knee since the surgeries and that it was still pretty painful and I just didn't know if I should be weight bearing or what I should be doing. She told me that I definitly should come in and she would transfer me so I could make an appointment. I get to talk to May next and she had a cancellation just come up for next monday so put me in there. I thanked her and said I basically wanted to know if I should stay off it (like all the medical literature says) or if I should do the partial weight bearing (limping) that I had been doing. I then had to go through the story with her again and she then tells me that I definitly needed to come in and that she was flagging me so that the first cancelled appointment slot would go to me. She called today and they have and opening for tomorrow so I go in tomorrow morning to see my Rheumy and find out what is going on.
I don't know what else to say about it. It hurts and I am afraid of what is going to happen. If he says that it's fine.... well then what am I supposed to do with it and how are we going to prevent it happening again. If it's not fine and something needs to be done...... who? I have already seen the two OS's he deals with and really don't want to go with either of them. The first one is a total ass that I refuse to deal with (He did my first knee surgery which has led to all of the problems I have had) the second one has told me right out that no surgeon in my home town will even touch me after three operations and the fact that a very high up OS did my last two surgeries. I honestly don't know which outcome I am hoping for?
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