Monday, September 28, 2015

Surgery Upate

Someone commented (OMG I love you!) and asked if I had a date for surgery yet.  Sadly, I have to say no, but I did I see my surgeon last week, which is now a 3 month standing "date".  He's so reassuring, that Dr. P!

Just to refresh anyone new, if you're having your jaws replaced with TMJ concepts implants, they must take scans of your face to create the joints.  If you have braces, after the scans are taken your orthodontist can't touch your mouth again...so the scans can't be done until your ortho has done their job.  Then it takes 3 months to make the joints, so scheduling a date for surgery isn't as simple as picking a date.

So Dr. P was very pleasantly surprised at how my teeth are coming along.  I must say, the top teeth are looking pretty darn good! The lowers are getting there....definitely in the general 'arch' position, with final touching-up needed.  It felt nice to hear him say, rather surprisedly "You look good! Really good!!"  This guy fucks with faces for a living.  Yeah!

So throughout this whole process (and LONG before) my goal was to have another baby.  Given the timeframe that was imposed on me since the accident, we accelerated our attempts (also because 3 years is a long time to try with no success) and saw a fertility clinic.  We decided to say to hell with the face surgery and just go gung-ho with IVF.   I was in the middle of stimulation hormone injections when I saw Dr. P, with the goal of freezing embryos until next cycle (or one after face surgery....ahh that old time-worn debate....). Then Dr. P said he thought we could be getting close to planning for surgery, and that the sooner we 'fix' my joints, the sooner I can get out of pain.  He talked about chronic pain theory - whereby the longer you're in pain, your nerves can permanently change and you can end up with chronic pain even after the joints are fixed. So it's better to have surgery sooner than later.   Well damn. That sure changes things.

In any case, even without all the IVF complications, I wouldn't yet have a surgery date.  What Dr P. did offer me though, was to tighten up all the timelines to get the TJR surgery completed as quickly as possible - get started on planning for the scans and even a surgery date.  That way, when it's over with I'd be able to implant one of those frozen little science experiments embryos blastocysts only about 2 months after TJR.

So there you have it... still hurry up and wait.  If I don't come out of this a more patient person, then I'm just going to give up!!

15 comments:

  1. Tiffany, are you getting TMJ Concepts custom made implant or Biomet custom implant? Do you know by any chance what is the difference and which one may be a better one?

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    1. Hi there! Thanks for your question.
      I am getting the TMJ Concepts custom implant. The main difference between it and the Biomet implant is that the Biomet implant comes in 3 stock sizes. The TMJ Concepts implant is custom-made to your facial structure (hence the scans and 3 month wait afterward).
      I don't know which one is "better", nor why my surgeon is recommending the TMJ Concepts implants. I could only guess. I do know that he has experience with both types, so must either prefer these, or think they're best in my case. I'll try to remember to ask him when I see him in December.

      I think I'd say that whichever type your surgeon is most comfortable with would be the better option. That is to say, it's a highly complicated procedure - whichever one the "installer" has the most experience/comfort with is likely to be the one that yields the best result in the long term.

      I am guessing that you are also looking at this as a potential solution? Care to share more about your situation? I'd love to hear more.

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  2. Hi Tiffany, my joints are significantly damaged by trauma and, yes, I am looking at possible solutions for the problem. Biomet implant can be made custom as well, that is why I was wondering why your surgeon has chosen TMJ Concepts implant over Biomet custom and if he thinks TMJ Concepts has any advantages over custom Biomet.

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  3. Thanks for elaborating. I'm sorry to hear that you're in the same boat. This is not an easy road, that's for sure, and it's hard to find people who understand how difficult it is to find a solution.
    Like I said, I'm not sure of my surgeon's reasoning, but I'm researching the different types now. I will post what I find out, as I'm very interested in the differences myself.

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  4. Please, could you tell me who is your surgeon? I'm from Spain, I'm suffering from tmj and maybe I need total replacement in the future. The huge problem is that any surgeon does this kind of surgery in Spain and I don't have any health insurance. Can you imagine how I feel? You are really, really lucky for living in the states.

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    1. Hi Lidia, I'm so sorry to hear that you feel helpless about your situation.
      I actually am even lucker, and live in Canada. This means that the surgery and implants are covered by Government Health Insurance. My surgeon's name is Dr. David Psutka. I know that he teaches this procedure around the world.

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  5. I hope someday a surgeon especialized in this kind of surgeries decides to work and live in Spain! There are so many Spanish people suffering from tmj problems without hope... it's so sad... I'd like to beg these surgeons: "please, come here. We need your help, we are completely desperated".

    Can I ask you something else, please? Did you have your face swollen since the beggining of the dysfunction? My masseter muscle is slightly swollen and I'm scared because although I Know some people with tmj problems, their masseters are't swollen! My physioterapist thinks this due to the muscle contraction and I hope so... thanx! :)

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    1. Hi Lidia, I know how desperate this situation is. I truly hope that you can find some relief. Surgery isn't always the best option, so perhaps you will find a good solution.

      You can ask anything! My masseter is not necessarily swollen, but it is very sore, tight and not normal in shape. It is contracted and the source of much pain. My chiro massages it every couple of weeks for me, and it helps.
      Are you on any medication for your TMJ? An anti-inflammatory can be of great help, as well as a muscle relaxer at night to help your masseter and the rest of your facial/neck muscles as well.

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  6. Hi again! Thank you so much for answering. I take a muscle relaxer when I have a really bad day with pain. Can you make me a favour, please? You told me that your surgeon has taught this kind of surgery around the world... can you ask him if he has ever come here (Spain) to teach it, please? This info would help me a lot!
    And just by curiosity... why do you need total replacement? What's wrong with you?
    I'm going to get married next June and I'd like to become mum soon but I don't know if tmj dysfunction can be a serious problem when you are pregnant because you cannot take any pill.
    And the last question, please: did you bite change due to the tmj issues? I have a sligthly open bite now and my bite is off! Thank you for your help. You are very nice ;)

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    1. Hi Lidia, I'm happy to answer your questions :) I see my surgeon in a couple of weeks and I will definitely ask him if he's ever been to Spain.
      I need a replacement because I fell and broke both of my condyles and badly damaged my joints. They did not heal properly, and they cannot be reconstructed. I am also planning to have another baby (I have one child, had him before my TMJ issues) and my surgeon told me that although you cannot take any pills, often the hormones of pregnancy (relaxin) can help to alleviate TMJ pain. Although I do worry about going unmedicated for 9 months, too.
      Yes, my bite is very off. I have an open bite, and my lower jaw swings to the left. This will be corrected with braces (on currently) and the surgery. My surgeon will wire my mouth in proper bite during surgery, and use the implants to hold it there.
      Hope this helps! Feel free to ask more questions. Perhaps other readers will also share their experiences.

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  7. Thank you so much for helping me, you are very friendly. Probably you have already read this blog but I post the link just in case. It's the story of another Canadian woman whose surgeon is also David Psutka.

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    1. Hi Lidia - can you please share the link :)

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  8. http://tmj1.weebly.com/questions-and-answers.html

    Sorry, I forgot to post it. Hope it helps. I'm sure you are going to feel great little by little after the replacement. Please, when you ask you surgeon if he has ever taught this procedure in Spain, write me an email: lgonmar@hotmail.com Thank you so much!

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  9. Hi, again! Had you seen the blog before? Hope it helps! ;)

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    1. Hi, yes I had seen that one before. But she has a link to a new Youtube channel that I want to link in here. Odette does great at updating each step of her surgery!

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