I was admitted to Stenum Hospital on Thursday, January 22, 2004. That first day, we met Malte Petersen, the head of the international medicine department. He was a great man who coordinated every aspect of our trip to Germany. He was with us at the hospital every day and many times we saw him more than once a day. He saw us in Bremen after my discharge from the hospital and he even called us to check on my progress.
That first day I also had xrays, doctor's evaluations and blood work done. My husband and I met Dr. Zechel, the Head of Orthopaedic Surgery, who would be performing my surgery along with Dr. Ritter-Lang. Dr. Zechel was a compassionate and optomistic man, and a brilliant surgeon! He would come to be one of the biggest cheerleaders for my recovery!
On the day of my surgery, there were 2 other Americans having ADR surgery and a young man from India. I had one artificial disc, a Charite III disc, placed at L5-S1. According to my husband, my surgery took just under 2 hours.
I was first taken to a procedure room where I had an intravenous (I.V.) cannula placed in my arm and an epidural catheter placed in my back. Later that day I was very happy to have the epidural catheter in place for pain medicine delivery! Soon I was taken to the operating room and don't remember anything until I woke up in I.C.U.
I remember some of the night in the I.C.U. They move the post op patients there for one night for close monitoring. The German nurse on duty was superb! She medicated me, helped me to move and stay comfortable.
In the morning, my roommate , Carol, and I were moved back to our room on the ward. Soon the physical therapist came and helped each one of us stand for a moment by our beds. We were one day after surgery and already out of bed. I was shocked!..and happy. You see, when I woke from the surgery, the excruciating pain I had been experiencing in my back and down my leg was gone! And it has never returned to this day!
It was a slow 2-3 days moving after surgery and there was a bit of pain. Most of the pain was from the incision in my abdomen. For ADR surgery, the incision is through the abdomen and they avoid cutting the muscles of the back. The pain medicines helped with moving/walking and the staff did everything they could to make my recovery go smoothly. I stayed in the hospital for 7 days after surgery. And I was thankful for every day. Not at all like an American hospital, where I had surgery on one day and was sent home the next! My discharge from Stenum Hospital was based on my readiness to leave, not the insurance company's decision to pay...or not.
Exactly one week after my surgery, my husband and I were moved to the Marriott Hotel in Bremen, Germany, where we stayed for another 10 days recuperating. While at the hotel, the physical therapist and the massage therapist came to treat me. My husband and I walked all over the city of Bremen and could take the train wherever we couldn't walk! I experienced some shooting leg pain after the surgery, but Dr. Zechel assured me that was normal due to regeneration of nerves in my back. It passed in a couple of weeks.
I tell folks that finding Stenum Hospital and Drs. Zechel & Ritter- Lang was a miracle! I was nearly incapacitated with pain before I went to Germany and I have not had that pain since my ADR surgery! It seems "too good to be true" but I tell you, it is true! I thank God for Stenum Hospital and their staff!
My story of recovery concludes at : http://adr-reality.blogspot.com
Link to Stenum: http://www.stenum-adr.com/html/procedure.html
