What complications did you experience?

[icnmgrjill]

Let's see if we can put together a list of the common complaints that patients have had after having the trial and/or implant. For those of you who HAVE HAD COMPLICATIONS, what did you experience???

Jill

[ICNJess]

I don't know if this is my fault or not for not researching it more, but I had an ultrasound, an internal one. I turned my stim off, and then when I came home after the ultrasound, I turned it on and my toes were going nuts. Then I got pins and needles feeling in my leg where I couldn't walk. So I turned it off, and it went away. All I needed was a reprogramming thankfully, but the ultrasound messed up my stim. I had no idea it could do that with the unit off!

[rjyoon]

During the trial: External neurostimulator box kept turning off. Thought it was the wires & had surgical revision. Turned out to be static electricity shutting the box off. Used Static Guard on clothes & fixed the problem (my pastor's idea!). Supposedly the first time Medtronic & uro heard of such a thing. Not happy about unnecessary surgery, so want to warn others.

[carly]

Besides not working for my frequency, I had a lot of shocks. The surgery itself was very painful for me. I did not think it would hurt that much.

[Teri]

So many of you know my story so you can just skip over this post. For those who don't know, after having 18 months of success (I did have a very annoying pull of my big toe on the side the lead was connected) the unit quit working. My medtronic rep worked with me for 1 1/2 hours trying to get it up and going again but it was hopeless. I thought my surgery was being scheduled to have a revision, instead, I ended up being dumped by my uro and ended up having the revision done by a dr who my original uro had trained (and who I believe sat in on my original surgery)....this dr is still my uro and I think the world of him. In my opinion I was dumped by the original surgeon because if he would have done my revision, I would have been listed as a failure in his records and he didn't want that.....he was only interested as long as I was a success....that's why I don't trust the "studies" they say are being done.

While on the operating table for my revision surgery, my uro was (at my request) removing the old lead because we were going to use the other side and I didn't want the wires left in me (we decided to go thru the whole 'trial' all over again since I had nothing at all coming from the unit) I woke up screaming on the table because something in my back was hurt and hurt badly enough to wake me up. It was so hard for me to explain that I was in horrific pain because I was so groggy and with the tube down your throat, it's pretty hard to talk. My trial was horrific. I was a complete emotional wreck and I was in so much pain. I was completely shocked because with my original surgery I was ready to cut the grass after a week....with this revision, I wasn't able to sit behind the wheel of my car.
My trial was a total failure. No matter what the medtronics rep tried to program me at, we got NO results. I didn't know what I was going to do until the last second but I figured, everything it in there, I may as well give it one last chance and we went ahead and completed the surgery. The recovery took forever. I aways felt like I had a severe flu. Went from one dr to the next dr. Finally, my Neuro told me that it was almost as if my body was trying to reject the foreign object in my body.
Meanwhile, I was driving over an hour each way to have my device reprogrammed weekly, then e/o week, then monthly, then, after a year, I had to give it up and admit that I had lost and it wasn't going to work no matter what we tried.....(somewhere in the middle of all of that my medtronics rep told a patient at another office that I wasn't getting well because I didn't want to cussing cussing HUH!!!!)So, I had the unit removed. Much to my surprise, all of my flu like symptoms stopped. My fibro sysmptoms got better. I did end up with something that I hand't planned.....remember that pain that woke me up on the operating table??????
I have lived with that pain every day for 2 years and 4 months now. My quality of life is much worse than it was before any of this interstim stuff started.....with no hope of this "new" me getting any better I live on high doses of pain meds and the favorite thing in my life has been taken from me....my grandchildren. I am no longer able to watch them and spend long hours with them as I use to. Okay, people are saying, "she had a hack for a dr" or "she should have done more research." Welp, the only thing that I should have done was READ before I signed my name to that surgery consent form that tells you what might happen. We always think that those complications don't apply to us. They only apply to the other guy....well, at any given moment we can become the other guy.
I have an excellant uro. I would never think of changing dr's. It's just something that happened and something that unfortunately can not be fixed. If I could have lived my life with the interstim all over again I wouldn't have let anyone mess with my spine the way that I did.
WHAT was I thinking? I am 100% worse now than I was pre-implant and I know that there are so many other girls who's lives have changed for the worse and they have stopped posting because they have always been met with a cold response from others. I know for a fact that 2 of my friends, same dr, have had complications. One had to have her device removed and the other hasn't decided what she's going to do yet but it's been over 2 years and her's has never worked.
We walk into our uro's office, usually after being up all night peeing and he offers us this miracle cure and our minds shut down.....all's we hear is the miracle part. We don't hear about the bad things that could happen (are we even told? I was so geeked at the possibility of being 'normal' that I don't remember.)
For as many people that we have here defending the device (and YES, it is a fantastic device but enough research has NOT been done on it yet) there are just as many people who have had their lives completely ruined by it. The first one I remember was named Melanie. That was years ago and my heart blead for her. She felt that SHE failed, not the unit.....I've never felt that way....I've always known it was the unit that failed.
I am now left with the 24/7 back pain, back to peeing 20-30 times a day and 3 4inch scars on my back side. There isn't a day that goes by that I don't wonder what would my life had been like if I would have walked away from letting someone mess with my spine???? The only spine I am ever going to have.
I do believe that down the road this is going to be such a huge part of our treatment but there are so many bugs that still need to be worked out. I didn't mind being one of the originals. Of the girls here on the ICN I was the 3rd to have mine done. Well, once something went wrong, I minded alot but it's alittle too late now.
I've seen the new device. There will not be as much scaring. There won't be as much cutting involved. They are using different nerves to place the leads....so much has changed, and keeps changing but that pain in my back will remind me for the rest of my life that in one split second, my life was forever changed and if I can keep that from happening to just one person, my pain will not have been a waste.

[ICNJess]

(((((((((((((((((((Teri))))))))))))))))))))

I knew you had a hard time but this is the first time I was able to read your horrific tale. I am so sorry that you went through all of that. If I had gone through that I would have been angry as hell, too. There's no excuse for any of that. Poor treatment, all around. That really sucks. I am very fortunate, not to sound snotty, that the stim is much different today. Unfortunately it had to ruin some lives to get to where it is today.

Hugs and love,
Jess

[Teri]

Jess~I think that the unfortunate part is all of the people who have been pushed from here, the only place they had to go for help. I remember Melanie saying that, how she was the first one it didn't work for and to be completely honest, no one here knew HOW to comfort her. I know so many people who are in the need of revisions or who have been walking around with this device not working for better than a year because the surgery was so tramatic that they just don't want to have to go thru it again. (most of these women are of thin build)
And, naturally, the promises of the dr's with "well, we do it so different now." And, I know that for a fact they DO. Mine was ancient because the original surgery was in Oct '99 and I didn't have it removed until Oct 2003 but that doesn't mean that the damage won't happen.
I would give anything if I had the e-mails of the people who left (which I did have at one time but my computer crashed and burned and I lost all of them) to tell them that there is a safe place to come. I know that some aren't coming because lawyers are now involved.
I have to get my message straight.....it was my revision, with the new uro when that pain happened. It happened when he was taking out the old leads (which would have had to be taken out even if I didn't have the revision) He is the most wonderful, caring dr I've ever know and I love him with all my heart and wouldn't think of leaving him.......it's just that one of those things in the fine print of the agreement for surgery we are suppose to read ended up happening to me and I can't stress it enough.......find out EVERY stinkin' thing that could go wrong. Pray for the best but prepare incase the worse does happen. I don't want anyone to have to go thru the days that I go thru.
We all have a little voice inside of us and my little voice was telling me from the day my original one quit working to have the dang thing taken out and that voice kept getting louder and louder and I will regret for the rest of my life that I didn't listen to that little guy~

[lotsofgirls]

(((((Teri)))))

thank you so much for sharing this with all of us. You are 100% right, this is the place that people should be coming to for support. I wish there was a way to let those others know that we would love for them to come back.

Cath

[Mimi-in-Chicagoland]

I had shocking (when going through metal detectors and around security devices at the mall) and an increasing in voltage from my implant a few months after my permanent implant was installed. I had several reprogrammings and it didn't help. My pelvic floor muscles tightened up and my abdomen got really sore. I went through pelvic floor muscle therapy. We noticed during biofeedback that my tensions were higher with the implant on than with it off. Which is the opposite of what it is supposed to do...so we figured out that there was something wrong. I went to my new urologist and we tested the device with the rep---my voltage was twice as high as it should have been and my serial number had erased off the generator. They weren't sure what had happened. I had also lost weight, so they wanted to move the implant pack over on my hip. When they went in during the revision, they saw that the connector wires between the lead and the generator were corroded. I had lots of drainage after surgery and I have a blood clotting disorder I wasn't aware of--I'm sure that had a lot to do with the corrosion. They cleaned everything off and repositioned the same generator--which was fine. As for the shocking--they disabled the feature that allows the implant to be turned on or off by magnet--and I no longer am bothered by metal detectors or security tag detectors at the mall. I used to feel a large shock in my abdomen when I walked by Ann Taylor or other places that used those large tags. I have not set off a metal detector at the airport since--and I did all the time before. (which meant I had to show them my implant scar) Had the generator been defective, the FDA would have it now.

[Teri]

Wow Mimi~you sure went thru alot. I am so glad that things worked out for you:D

[Mimi-in-Chicagoland]

I am just glad they got it working again. It was SO nice not to have to worry about my bladder flaring up while I was in the hospital last fall with my two strokes. I did have ultrasounds with no problem--with my implant on...but they weren't near the implant. Cat scans didn't bother it either. Bear in mind that my magnet feature is off. If I had needed to turn it off, my urologist was in the same building. ;) When they tested my implant before the revision it read that electronic devices had turned it on or off 172 times!!!! The rep's palm pilot turned the magnet feature off. I haven't needed to turn it off anyway. I probably wouldn't have had a problem if I wasn't so juicy.

[blondee]

I have experienced immense pain at the surgical site since the implant March 20. The first week or two I came to expect it but I am now over 4 weeks post op and still cannot sit, lay down flat or lean up against anything without horrific pain. I am begininng to wonder if the implant is too low??? Has anyone else experienced this? I am trying to wean off of 900mg neurotin but finding it hard at this time.

On a positive note it has decreased my frequency significantly, I even got to sit through a movie with only going once!! It has also helped with some of my daily pelvic pain (maybe the PFD?)
Will the pain eventually get better...cause this is H _ _ L!!!

jax

[peiti]

I have this sporadic shocking pain on my incision site. I had my implant on 10/31/2003. Sometimes after the workout or stretch, the pain would hit me. Though it was not very bad, still curious of what is happing in there.

[rachelm]

So far I've only had the old trial (a month ago) I'm scheduled for the stage 1 next week and then plan to have the stage 2 device implanted on 4/22. I also experienced my unit turning off all the time. It did get better as someone else said, when I changed the battery. After a few days of this my dr. gave me a new one and it was fine as it stayed on all the time. The other problem I had was something I have learned to prevent in the next stage 1 trial. I teach 1st graders and when I went back to school one of my kids hugged me and accidentally turned up the unit. I looked like a freak for a second and threw my arms up shaking and spilling all of my paper work. I was able to turn it down once I registered what had happened. This happened another time but this time I was the one that accidentally turned it up. After that I taped over the knob so it wouldn't happen again.

The hardest part of the procedure for me was when the nurse tried to take out the right wire. The left side came out on the first pull and while it hurt (very sharp pain) it went away in a few minutes kind of like pulling a tooth. She tried to pull the right wire 3 times and sent me screaming out loud. She stopped and had me wait for the dr. He tried and commented that he had never seen one stick so badly. He pulled up against my skin instead of straight out and was finally able to get it out and thankfully in one piece. He said he was concerned that it might break off in the process so he checked it and assured me it was still intact. What a relief. I hadn't realized that possibliity but now I do so I'm asking 100 questions as I get closer to my surgery. My rep commented that I asked things that 99% of patients don't even think of. My position is that I MUST know EVERYTHING involved in order to make an informed decision and ultimately have good results hopefully. I hope this information will help someone else who is considering this procedure. There are risks so we must be educated about them as well as the benefits.

[icnmgrjill]

Rachelm,

Could you share the questions you've been asking?? It sounds like a great list that other patients could use.

Jill :)

[rachelm]

Here is my list of questions concerning the InterStim:
(It is a growing list as I think of additional ? I will post them)

What is your experience with this procedure? How many have you done? What are the complications you run into most often? How many pregnancies have you followed after the implant? What is your philosophy on when to do it and remove it?

What are the most frequent problems?

How long will I need to restrict my activities? What activities should I avoid after each stage?

Will I be able to strength train and do arobic exercise?

What type tests do I need to know about? Can I have an ultrasound?

How common is it to have to do revissions? What is the extent of most revisions?

How will pregnancy effect the leads and implant? What precautions do I need to take when I get ready to start trying and then when I get pregnant?

Will you be suturing my lead wires to my spine? Why or Why not?

Some people have reported that their implant stim wasn't as effective as the trial. How often does this happen? What can be done to increase the effectiveness?

In the worst case and best case scenerio how long will recovery take? What will be the most difficult part of recovery? Will their be swelling and if so where and how long?

How often have you had to remove the interstim? In those cases did the patient request this? Of those removed, how many had another generator or lead implanted to replace the old one?

What can I do to increase the benefits possible with the device?

What can I do to have the least amount of recovery time with the maximum benefit.

What happens if I experience additional pain that doesn't go away after the incisions heal? What are my options at that point and what would you suggest for treatment?

A medronic phone councelor mentioned that some people have difficulty getting the leads removed because of the scar tissue that grows around it. In fact, she said that some dr. believe that it would be more dangerous to take it out than to leave it in. What has your experience been with this issue?

I have been told to avoid hot tubs over 101 degrees. What other things do I need to avoid or be careful with.

I hope that this list will be helpful for those of you contemplating the InterStim. I am going through with this procedure but I'm informed of all the possible risks and I will continue to gather information from many resources. My rep says that I have asked questions that 99% of patients never think of. I feel that being proactive about our treatment is essential in getting good care. If a dr. is threatened by your questions run as far as you can because a good care giver will encourage patients to inquire.

Rachel

[icnmgrjill]

Rachel!!! Love these. If you don't mind, I'm going to reprint these in our newsletter. Awesome questions all around!

Jill :)

[dyno]

I agree, great questions!:)

[Audrey Rose]

Great questions Rachel!!! :thumbsup:

I agree with your advice about running the other direction if a doctor seems threatened by questions. That tells me he is either unsure of his skills or has something to hide and I want no part of that, either way.
:dogrun:
I always come in with a list of questions at my 1st appointment with a new health care provider. I decide whether I will be coming back based mostly on how they react to the questions. At my first appointment with my URO, he scooted his chair closer to mine when I brought out the list and he read them with me and even waited for me to jot down notes before going to the next one. I knew then that he was the right one!! :D I always leave with all my questions answered!! And that is how every dotor should be. IC is a tough disease to understand. Good grief, we need to ask a million questions just to figure out what the heck we can eat. And that's just the tip of the iceberg!!

Keep us informed about your progess Rachel. I expect we will all learn a lot about Interstim from you. I will say prayers that all goes well and you have a very good experience. Good Luck!!

:pray:

HUGS,

[rachelm]

Well I did go to my pre-opp appt. with my list of questions. My fiance felt that it was a bit over the top but I explained that they were just a guide for me and I had already found answers to several listed. I didn't go down the list as an interview although if I had it would have been perfectly fine. My dr. is known throughout the hospital for his caring and listening skills with his patients. It's always so interesting to hear what other professionals like nurses and orderlies have to say about my dr. that I love so much.

I feel fortunate to have found him after only 9 months of searching. I trust him completely but I will continue to ask questions as I feel I need to. His nurse is also always there to listen and help me out as well. As a matter of fact I was in their office this morning very upset because my fiance was bothered and angry that I felt the need to call the on call nurse over the weekend. He waited until we were out the door before he unleashed this on me and it hit me really hard. He is unlike many men and has been extremely supportive along the way but I think he's just wearing from the stress of my illness while we get ready for our wedding. Needless to say he took me to the dr. and they agread that I definitely needed to be seen so I felt validated. I was still and emotional wreck and the nurse could tell that I had been crying. I waited to Brian was away before I told her what he was upset about. She told me I did the right thing and it's always better to be safe than sorry.

This process has been an emotional journey for me last year with the diagnosis and the addition of new drugs and now as I adjust to the InterStim implant. I will continue educating myself about this disease and the possible treatments for it. I will never appolagize for inquiring about something happening to MY body. Anyway my fiance later appologized and admitted that he's been stressed lately. I know that I probably overreacted but for God sakes cut me some slack because I have a 3 inch gash in my butt!

I had my stage 2 implant on Thurs last week and am doing very well despite my concern of infection (which is why I called the nurse) The huge welp like swelling went down today but it has been draining like crazy so I'm having to change the bandage every hour or so to keep it clean. Brian, my fiance, is doing this for me which is helpfull. I feel great except for the sting and pressure at the incision site that is subsiding each day. My pelvic pain has been greatly reduced and if I do as well with the implant as I did with the trial I will be able to go off all pain meds!! I'm hoping that my recovery goes smoothly because my wedding dress has to be altered next week and I'm on a strict time line leading up to June 26th. My family has been very helpful so I'm not stressing about the details yet. As long as my miracle box keeps on ticking I'll be o.k. I was very releived to hear my dr. say that he only has to do revisions about 10% of the time because he places the leads and confirms the stim with the patient half awake. I never felt anything except a little zap the first time and the second time not at all. I'm nauseas but that's not uncommon for me. I will be going back to work and grad class tomorrow at which time I will be teaching in front of my fellow classmates and prof. I'm praying that this all goes smoothly and I'm promising to take it easy throughout the day.

I finally got the nerve to turn my box up a notch yesterday and it worked! I just needed to know that I could control it in case something was wrong that needed to be fixed. Thank you all so much for your support! Sometimes even our most understanding loved ones don't get it like you. Take Care!!

Jill, yes you may certainly use the list of questions. I will be passing it out to our support group as well.

Thanks,
Rachel

[Teri]

It has been 6 months since I have had the device removed and I am still having involentary jerking movements in my arms and my legs.....I can't imagine what damage is going to show itself down the road:(

[christine41]

Originally posted by Teri
It has been 6 months since I have had the device removed and I am still having involentary jerking movements in my arms and my legs.....I can't imagine what damage is going to show itself down the road:(

Do any of you who have had the interstim have a history of adhesions? I am curious what role adhesions could play when having the interstim (surgically) implanted..

Also, how new of a treatment option is interstim? I had read it is not yet approved by the fda for IC and am wondering if this is still the case?

Thank you to all for sharing your experience with the interstim -- both positive and negative. I printed out the questionare and am saving it. Very excellent list of important issues to consider.

[dyno]

Christine,
I have not had the Interstim, but have researched it and know what I have read here on the boards.

From my understanding, Interstim has been around for awhile, I am thinking maybe some where around mid 90's, but I am not sure on that, but the last I heard there has been no 5 year study released yet. It is not approved for IC, it is approved for frequency. It is not approved for pain. It is suppose to be a last resort treatment when all other more conventional treatments have been tried and failed.

[ICNDonna]

Jolene is correct. The reports just aren't out there for review. I absolutely agree that this should be considered only when all other treatment options have failed.

Donna

[DebbieB]

Hi Christine;

I have had the InterStim Implant for five years now and it was the very last resort of doing every possible meds and treatments available..

It is something you should read all the information on this procedure I suggest that you find a doctor with lots of experiences and ask to be able to get in contact with one of patients and hear what they had to say about the procedure and the doctor doing it..

I did not have problems with adhesions at all..

I only had problems with the InterStim Implant the second year that the lead wire crack in half at the center of the spinal core and later learn that the lead wire was a faulty lead wire.

You can read about it on the web site at www.interstim.com
It is not for pain and I was told right up front that is would not help the pain but in my case it helped my pain as I was a lot different in many cases we are all so different and it may help one and may not help another this is like any kind of procedure that you try...

I know a lady that had her InterStim Implant done in 1982 and doing just great with her it has been around for a while..
They are updating the InterStim Implant in the way they do the procedure then the way I had my done five years ago..

Debbie

[TheresaD]

Hi. This is my first time posting. I'm having a terrible time with my stim implant.
Last year I had it implanted and things were fine. After a few months I stopped feeling the pulsating. I went to the doctor and we discovered that the lead had fallen and was no longer working. This had only ever happened once before to someone in Japan, or says my uro.
In January I went in and he fooled around with it saying that it probably wouldn't work, but he'd give it a try. Well, it didn't work. It's even worse then before and now we have to start all over with him taking out the old one and putting in the new one. The pain that I'm in is excruciating at the incision point, and it's becoming infected a lot. Which scares me. It's definitely a defective product, and am actually considering taking legal actions, because of how much pain and money this is costing me. But I'm not sure if I should or not. I don't know if I should bother.
Any suggestions would be much appreciated. I feel for all of you that have had bad experiences. It's good to know I'm not alone.
Theresa

[christine41]

Originally posted by TheresaD
Hi. This is my first time posting. I'm having a terrible time with my stim implant.
Last year I had it implanted and things were fine. After a few months I stopped feeling the pulsating. I went to the doctor and we discovered that the lead had fallen and was no longer working. This had only ever happened once before to someone in Japan, or says my uro.
In January I went in and he fooled around with it saying that it probably wouldn't work, but he'd give it a try. Well, it didn't work. It's even worse then before and now we have to start all over with him taking out the old one and putting in the new one. The pain that I'm in is excruciating at the incision point, and it's becoming infected a lot. Which scares me. It's definitely a defective product, and am actually considering taking legal actions, because of how much pain and money this is costing me. But I'm not sure if I should or not. I don't know if I should bother.
Any suggestions would be much appreciated. I feel for all of you that have had bad experiences. It's good to know I'm not alone.
Theresa

Theresa,

My heart goes out to you as I know how painful IC can be. Have you considered not having a new Interstim implanted? I would seriously discuss this with your doctor, especially if you are not benefiting from the Interstim. I know when I had the DMSO installations, I ended up in worst pain than I was in prior to the installations. I recently read an article wherein researchers are questioning if DMSO can/does cause permanent nerve damage in some patients. This was over a year ago and at that point I decided against any further invasive treatments. Also, I elimanated many of the IC medications I was taking. I find the pryidium works and a low dose antibiotic occassionaly. I manage the chronic pain with a pm doctor and medications.

Thank you to all who replied and it is good to know we are not alone...

[ICNDonna]

It's been my perception that one of the biggest problems with the interstim is that information may not be being shared with doctors by the company. I do know that I have read many reports from people on these boards, who have had their leads either move or break and also reports of people who have had theirs removed due to ongoing problems. Your doctor has probably not heard about these people.

My suggestion would be to seek a second opinion before going for a replacement.

Warm encouraging thoughts,
Donna

[littlebear]

Theresa, I'm so sorry to hear about all you've been through. I'm glad you've posted, though--this community will give you lots of advice, support, and encouragement. Best wishes, little bear

[chloe123]

I had my permanent implant done 1/4/04. I had alot of pain with this surger, I couldn't lay in a position that would be comfortable. Found out after 5 days that the medtronics rep forgot to turn on my device during surgery. Relief wise for my symptoms: I was going to the restroom 40-60times per day, I now go 5-7 times a day. I was waking up every hour at night to use the restroom and now i go 8 hours with no waking up. I still have a bad urge when I do need to go, but luckily I don't go near as much. It has been a real success for me. The only thing that I would suggest to people thinking about going thru this surgery, is to make sure if your needing to lose weight, that you do it BEFORE your surgery as I gained weight right before the staged implant and right after. So, when they placed the permanent, I was alot heavier. Now I have lost 30lbs and I think the box is lower and causing some discomfort and I can also feel the box in its entirety and will even protrude the skin in certain positions. I'm not sure if that's normal or not. I do have a question. Is it ok to go thru the metal detectors at the airport or a court house? I have my card and wasn't sure if i should just be showing that.

[DebbieB]

Hi chloe,

I am glad to hear that your InterStim Implant is working for you now..
As for you losing weight I have had my InterStim Implant for five years now and lost about 28 pounds this year and I to have notice that my Implant is protrude the skin in certain positions, my doctor told me that was ok for me not to worry about it.

Well as to the question about metal detectors at the airport when I went to the airport in Janaury as I was going on a cruise to the Eastern Caribbean I had full body search it was not very nice at all it was the most embarrassing thing that I have ever happen to me.
My doctor told me not to go through the metal detector at all and I show them my card and they never look at it..
As for other metal detectors in stores and other places I have never had any problem with them at all...


Hugs, Debbie

[chloe123]

Thanx for the information. I did go ahead and call Medtronics and they said to turn the device off and go around and get patted down. The wand that they use has a magnet in it, so that would not be good. I had to go to the courthouse yesterday and showed my card (which they didn't really look at) and got padded down. The officer asked me where the implant was and they proceded to feel it. Oh well, better then a shock or jolt from going thru the detector. On the subject of the protrusion, Medtronics also said that that was normal to feel it thru the skin. That would probably be my biggest complaint is that it can be felt outside the skin and that the unit probably could be 1/2 the size. Even the remote could be a smaller unit, it is just so big to carry around in a just in case moment.

Question, does anyone have an ID bracelet for this? I have heard it was a good idea, but wanted to make sure that if I was going to buy it, that it was a good one. Any suggestions.

Kimberly

[rjyoon]

I believe it's very important to wear a medical ID with an implant. I have one by Medic Alert (1-800-432-5378). My wording is "Bladder simulator. No MRI. No diathermy." When medical personnel call the phone number on the ID with my ID number, they get the full list of all the things that can't be done (e.g., no electrocautery). It's inexpensive for the peace of mind it brings me.

[Teri]

It's funny how dr's don't think alike. When we went on vacation last winter my dr wrote me a note, just incase I needed it and said I could go thru the security check at the airport with no problem. When I went the year before that uro said "NO",t hey have to do the hand search. Well, after some pretty humiliating stuff on that first vacation, I decided to try it the new dr's way and I didn't have a bit of trouble. No bells and whistles and no alarms going off:rolleyes:

Kimberly, I lost weight after I had mine put in and it finally found it's own comfy spot. Now that I don't have it anymore I still have the indintation on my cheek from how the dang thing was laying in there......I am soooooooooooo glad that I don't have any reason to show this scared up 53 year old body cuz it's really a turn-off:(

Wishing you the VERY best~