Dupuytren's contracture have it getting worse

[blazer2007]

could get worse if you need surgery money wise . Mine hat to be done from a plastic surgeon. Long wait but I was lucky and sorta work for the health program and they set me up in 2 weeks. I,m in Can. so is sorta free

[special-K]

Originally Posted by Ol Blue K20

It really sucks that you have to wait for insurance approval. $3300 for one injection sounds expensive but I have learned a lot about medical costs in the last couple years. It's shocking.

Learned, yet not understood?

[Ol Blue K20]

Originally Posted by special-K

Learned, yet not understood?

I got copies of the bills my insurance was paying for my treatments for lymphoma it went over a million between hospital stays and the treatments. It made my co pay feel so much better. ...lol

[shifty]

Originally Posted by Ol Blue K20

I got copies of the bills my insurance was paying for my treatments for lymphoma it went over a million between hospital stays and the treatments. It made my co pay feel so much better. ...lol

Silly part about it is $1mil in "insurance billing" terms is closer to $100k in "real money". Our healthcare system has been so fraudulent for so many decades now it's not even funny, it's just somehow normal to everyone these days (I guess)

I remember when I got pneumonia in the late 90s at age 22. Walked into the ER with a 106.5° temp. They put a paper mask on my face, hooked me up to an IV and gave me two 1000mg pills of Ibuprofen. Hospital billed insurance $650 for the ibuprofen alone. I could've bought a bottle of Advil at the store with 25,000mg worth of ibuprofen in it for $6.50 and eaten about 20¢ instead of $650!

I just ... what the hell man. Our problem ain't ACA or any other gov't programs. The problem is the medical industry and insurance company have a total damn racket going on and nobody dares to do anything about it. They're using these inflated prices to jack up costs on everything, including insurance.

[special-K]

Yep. That is our "health care crisis" right there. People who could do something about it have free health care for life. Hmmm...

So I don't think I have this condition... not yet. But I do have hurtin' and worn out hands from other conditions. I was thinking about my girlfriend's sister who recently had surgery on her toes for a genetic condition that had her toes get to where they curled under her feet. They're all about being Scots, but probably have that dang northern European in them.

[72c20customcamper]

Got the call . I get the injection on the 22nd of July and they break it up on the 23rd. Need 2 weeks therapy and a splint for 3.

[Ol Blue K20]

Best of luck to you! I hope it works

[blazer2007]

Originally Posted by 72c20customcamper

Got the call . I get the injection on the 22nd of July and they break it up on the 23rd. Need 2 weeks therapy and a splint for 3.

My therapy was a joke 65.00 a visit and go sit and squeeze a tennis ball then play with some elastic bands ,never went back.Did the exercises at home myself

[special-K]

That's good to hear and I hope I hear better once you get through the recovery/therapy. Things they do for PT may seem like a waste to those who "get" what gain is needed and how that is done. But sadly, many people don't and it is what they need. Some wouldn't do enough to recover (wimps) while others do to much (macho man)

Good luck Mark!

[blazer2007]

I even took out my own stitches,they forgot to set me up for a appointment

[shifty]

After I shattered my small toe and had to have it surgically pinned straight again, I thought it was really stupid to do PT on my toe. "Ok, I'm going to go to therapy to flex my little toe? Pffft."

My first mistake was assuming the PT was only useful to help me get my range of motion back. "Who needs range of motion on their little toe?!" So I went to the first PT visit just to confirm that's what they wanted me to do, I did one session. My second mistake was being too headstrong or confident in my assumptions to actually ask the professionals questions about what would happen if I skipped the sessions and didn't go out of my way to do the exercises.

Everything was fine the first decade or so after. If you'd have asked me 5 years ago (at the 10yr mark), I'd have told you, "The PT stuff is a waste of time, don't bother!"

But now, 15 years later, my toe is sadly totally locked up and now getting arthritic. Anything beyond normal walking can be painful and I feel pretty stupid for being so headstrong, thinking PT was BS.

Now I'm back at the doctor again to assess what we can do to fix the issue I created by skipping PT. PT would've cost me $35/visit back then. Now I'm potentially looking at several hundred $$ (I hope not thousands) to try and surgically repair my stupidity. And will probably end up having to do PT all over again after surgery, only now I'm looking at $50/visit and two or three times the visits.

Learn from my mistake: Regardless how stupid the PT sounds, feels, or how much it costs, if a medical professional prescribed it, there's a strong chance you'll regret not doing it later on down the road. At the moment, it may not make sense to you - you, the guy without the medical degree - why you should "waste your time" doing it. Last thing you want is to be like me, 15 years down the road, in worse shape than you were originally.

At this point, I kinda wish the doc would've just amputated the damn thing.

Edit: @blazer2007, just saw your reply. Don't want you to think I'm knocking you. I can't compare what you receive up there in CAN versus what we get in USA. Healthcare systems between our two countries are fairly different.

[Steeveedee]

Shifty, don't blame not using PT for the problem. I had joint decompression on both big toes 14 and 15 years ago. Did what I was supposed to do, and had the left toe worked on again last May. I'll be having the right foot done again in about November. If I'm going to have to do this every 15 years, I'll be 81 next time. That's really gonna stink.

[shifty]

Originally Posted by Steeveedee

Shifty, don't blame not using PT for the problem.

Dunno, two different docs looked at it and told me the same thing, so I assume it's accurate. "Without doing repeated flexion and extension of those joints after immobilization, you didn't help break things up and restore ROM. Now the joint is fouled up. Best long-term option is to clean out the joint, PT, and hope for the best..."

Not sure what joint compression is. On mine, after catching the toe just right stepping through a door frame, my little toe was pointing out away from my foot at a good 45° angle. Doc couldn't set it because the bone was in shards. Taped it over, had me come back in 72 hours, took the tape off and it flopped right back over. Said he'd never had to do this on a small toe in his 30 years, but the only viable option he saw to straighten that toe for me was pinning it. Putting socks on and wearing shoes would've been painful had I not done it.

Procedure basically consisted of them giving me a nerve block, drilling through the first couple bones, then inserting a steel rod a little thicker than a paperclip through the first two joints to hold the bone in place and taping it to the adjacent toe, then stick me in a full-leg cast (3 months worth!) and crutches to keep me from bending the foot/toe. After about 14 weeks they cut off the last cast off and used a portable x-ray machine to yank the rod out.

First PT session was for freeing up my immobilized knee, ankle and toe ROM. I the toe stuff seemed stupid. I did the ankle and knee PT at home with green bands. Skipped the toe because, well, dammit, if I'm being honest it actually hurt pretty bad to do it.

This is one of those cases where hindsight is 20/20 and I regret not asking about it though. Even if I could've got another 5 years out of it without getting arthritic, I'd have been happy.

[shifty]

Found a pic! Apparently it was only 12 years ago, almost to the day. Dang!

[Steeveedee]

I had a pin like that this last time. No anesthetic when it was pulled. I'm surprised it didn't have pubic hair on the end, it was so long.

Let's give this thread back to Mark, though.

[72c20customcamper]

It's cool. I had 2 pins in my index finger 5 or 6 years ago .

[special-K]

I dislocated my left shoulder three times within two weeks (twice the first night). I went to the PT shop and before making an appt. I showed them my insurance card and asked, "You do accept this insurance don't you?". As if there was no reason to ask, the person answered, "Oh sure we do". I have my first appt and it's open your hand, now close it, open your hand, now close it. A two hour special treatment with me leaving thinking, "We need to step this up. I've already (carefully) dug six post holes putting up a fence". So before my appt two days later I get a call, "We don't accept your insurance", and to that I reply, "Then I guess you won't get paid. But they would gladly pay you if you accepted". I didn't push too hard, yet I worked at gradually increasing my range of motion a bit beyond my comfort zone and lifting more and more. That was ten years ago and I feel with certain injuries they need to make you feel they are necessary when they are not. There's no health care crisis, there's a bull crap crisis in the medi/pharma/ins world. Somehow the banks didn't manage to get involved

[72c20customcamper]

Found the pictures of my pins. Can't seem to get into my photobucket account but I had them on team chevelle. Go by Mark66ss there. Man 2013 is when I did this doing firewood.

[davischevy]

You mentioned therapy in the OP, and as I read through this thread I remembered Grumpy's post in another thread. I think I might do therapy if I could play with the squeaky toys Grumpy mentioned.

http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/n...eply&p=8550079

[special-K]

I don't need to click the link as I still hold that vision dearly from when I first read it. And told everyone one I've seen since about that... twice. Squeek! Squeek! Must give equal attention to both ya know

[Grumpy old man]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9xHuyiFGtl8

[Steeveedee]

Originally Posted by special-K

I don't need to click the link as I still hold that vision dearly from when I first read it. And told everyone one I've seen since about that... twice. Squeek! Squeek! Must give equal attention to both ya know

Well. Got to be equal opportunity, right?

[davischevy]

Originally Posted by Steeveedee

Well. Got to be equal opportunity, right?

At our age, we better take ANY opportunity.

[special-K]

I had a gal with a pair she paid for tell me they were already of a likeable size. Or is it lickable? Never could spell. Anyway, she got the "procedure" because they weren't quite even. My comment was simply, "So what?" She was a hardbody who went to the gym every day... and it showed. Mudflap girl for sure!

[davischevy]

Poor ole customcamper is suffering, and we are talking about our fantasies.

Don't worry custom camper, we are there for you. (As long as we can't find a squeaky toy.)