Sphincterotomy

[Diapered Dave]

Brian,

It's been another 5 days - Has your swelling gone down? Are you leaking now, or still have to strain to pee? Still passing blood?

[wolfpup2008]

Using a medical service online market place, I found a clinic in Costa Rica that's offering to perform a radical urinary sphincterotomy for $6,000.

[Baby Brian]

So I just had my follow up appt with my urologist. He said that some minor swelling would still be occurring, but it wouldn't be enough to cause my continuing obstruction. Like me, he believes it just wasn't effective enough, and reminded me this was a possibility it may need to be reoperated on any ways.

He is interested in doing the surgery again (as am I), but they have a general waiting policy of three months before the can start rooting around in there again-mostly to make sure everything has absolutely healed and stabilized.

For now, I'm set to get another appt with him in early December to start the pre-op tests, and may have the surgery re-done before the end of the year, or possibly early January (thanks to the holidays).

[babyleanna75]

Hope the next surgery works.

[Bettypooh]

We're interrupting this program to bring you a vitally important message

[wolfpup2008]

:-)

You're the best, Bettypooh !

[Baby Brian]

I've actually looked into Cost Rica (and a few other places). They were willing to maybe do my surgery there for around $5K but I'd have to handle all other expenses (so around $6K total). I found them through medibid and looked into the facility there. It did look promising, and they were going to be my backup plan had my urologist not agreed to go through with it.

The only problem I saw was that they wanted to do their own tests first, then see about going through with the surgery. In other words, there was the possibility I could take off from work, fly there, spend a few days waiting on their tests, and still get rejected having wasted so much time and money. Still, when you run out of options you go with what you have to.

If you have to pay out of pocket for any surgery, and you're serious about getting it done, I'd recommend medibid.com. You have to pay $25 to set up an account and post a surgery bid request, but I got replies from all over the world and USA.

[rh1979]

He is interested in doing the surgery again (as am I), but they have a general waiting policy of three months before the can start rooting around in there again-mostly to make sure everything has absolutely healed and stabilized.

[Baby Brian]

Wow. Three months. I bet that's gonna feel like forever! I hope it goes by quickly for you and hopefully, this time, they will get all of that bugger.

It already does!!! And yeah, I intend to push my urologist to try and get it all this time. Hopefully he will also be able to make sure the band of muscle is completely severed too, this way it will have no chance of ever clamping down on me ever again.

Just to let everybody know too. There hasn't been any further developments. I'm still in the same overall condition I was a couple of weeks after my surgery (minus the bleeding which is gone). My sphincter is still spazing out on me from time to time (which momentarily hurts a bit when it does). I am also still having to push and strain to pee, and still waking up a couple of times a night with my usual urges. So yeah, no great improvements just jet. Maybe next time around.

Don't be surprised if I don't have any other updates for a while. I'll start posting a lot here again when things start happening again.

[Baby Brian]

One more month to go! My sphincter has calmed down and doesn't spas out any more. Of course the bleeding and discomfort has already gone away too. I still have the usual urges, wake up a couple times a night, and still have to strain to pee.

I just got my next follow up appt for December 1st. My doc also ordered a kidney ultrasound and the usual blood and pee tests a week before my appt.

I'm hoping he will say all is good to go for a second try. I intend to push him to remove all of my sphincter this time. I will also ask him about severing the nerves to my sphincter and/or adding in botox injections to calm things down there while I heal. Well see though.

[Dill_Pickle]

cross your fingers!!!

[Baby Brian]

It's back on again!

[Dill_Pickle]

Brian,

Wonderful!

[Guest YoungZeppelin]

Well im sure at some point, 2-3-12, surgery's from now they will have removed enough for drainage.

[Bettypooh]

Darn Doctors- you can't live with them and you can't live without them They might be right about the Botox thouugh. As potent as it is and with there probably being no studies on how it affects surgically damaged areas undergoing healing I too would want to 'err on the safe side'.

[Fakename4me]

It's back on again!

[Baby Brian]

Well I had my surgery done this morning and it pretty much went as expected.

[Guest YoungZeppelin]

*crosses fingers*

[adhb]

Good luck. I hope that this time you get the result you're looking for.

[Bettypooh]

Here's to hoping that this time works

[Fakename4me]

Glad to hear that this is working out so far. And I hope you are not too uncomfortable.

And let's have a speedy recovery also!

[Baby Brian]

Here's to hoping that this time works Too bad medical work doesn't come with a warranty As pricey as it is, there are just too many instances of failure for me to believe that 'professional' people are doing the work In my busiuness if I don't get it right I don't get paid or I have to correct it for free in a timely manner- that is how real Professionals behave

Bettypooh

Thanks bettypooh, luckily (or unluckily) I had a medical discharge from the usmc. My tricare prime insurance is second only to the one congress gave them selves. My co-pays are incredibly low so money wise I can always afford to get another surgery or two (dozen), health wise, we'll.....

[Baby Brian]

Glad to hear that this is working out so far. And I hope you are not too uncomfortable.

And let's have a speedy recovery also!

Thanks franken4me. This go around is a bit odd. I started off with a bad recovery, but I've had almost no bleeding since then, really. Last time I bled for over a month straight.

My guess would be that because the doc used a slightly larger catheter this time it is just big enough to stop up my urethra and prevent the continued loss of blood. Of course that means I'll probably bleed a lot once the catheter comes out.

For now I'm back at work (desk job), and thankfully not in too much pain.

[Diapered Dave]

You're able to sit for several hours with a 24fr cath in???

[Baby Brian]

You're able to sit for several hours with a 24fr cath in??? I've had a 22fr cath before, and it felt like a garden hose shoved up there.

I am, and it does. It helps me to apply some lidocane gel to the tip of my penis. It really reduces the rubbing and irritation right there. Still, it is very irritating and having it in for a week is going to be difficult.