Reflex Sympathetic Dystrophy (RSD)

[thoracic]

I got hurt at work and Thank God i reported it right away. I have had two surgerys. The first one didnt work. I got worse, My right hand started to swell and was cold and puple. My shoulder and neck was worse. MY doctor said he thinks i have thoracic outlet and RSD. No one where i lived could give a diaignose. So i found one and drove three hours to see him. It took him 5 min and said yes i have TOS, and needed sugery. I had the sugery and now the pain is the upper extremites. Swelling in hands,left hand cold, right hand to hot. Both shoulders burn all the way down to my fingers. From the surgery i now have RSD Raynaunds diase, and horaunds. So the big mistery is, did that surgen read possible rsd. If he did then why would he cut me open every doctor should know, sugery causes rsd, well i must of had it because it spread.My rsd is visable, right hand swollen and red, left hand turns colors and cold. I have tremours in right hand. Same pain in upper extremies but 10 times worse. Im driving works comp nuts. Any one else on works comp.

[mrs_hippie]

Yes, I'm on Worker's' comp, too. It is a pain in the neck, but at least I have it and I do get some weekly compensation. oh yes, I, too, had surgery on my ankle, but at that time, I had not been diagnosed with RSD. You would have thought that an orthopeadist would have recognized the symptoms prior to doing surgery, wouldn't you? My RSD got worse and spread after the surgery also. BUT, I had to go to the doctors THEY chose and go when THEY want me to go. My case management nurse has to go with me to every appointment. As for treatment, well, I went 2 1/2 years before they would let me see a specialist and get me therapy! So now, I am going to therapy 5 days a week, 1 1/2 hr. drive one way on 4 days, and 3 hr. drive one way on 1 day....crazy! Luckily, I can still drive and they pay some on mileage.
However, I am learning to make the best of each moment, count my blessings, and always look for the good in each day. Otherwise, I get very depressed and find myself having a "pity party"....which does NO one any good. I am going to live my life as best as I can....doing the things I want to do as best as I can. I may not beat RSD, but I"m definitely NOT going to let it beat ME!

[thoracic]

mrs hippie,
Wow i cant belive you have to drive that far. I live in Syracuse NY if you have a attorney here, you do not have to deal with comp nurse. Are law is when you need to see a doctor it has to be in a 60 mile radius. Comp nurse was nice to me, but found she was setting me up pretending to care. Couldnt figure out why nothing was getting approve till i got a attorney. After i didnt have to speak to her, everthing started to get approved. your one special person to put up with your pain, and all that. i give you a lot of credit. Rsd is so painfull, My first sugery failed, then started to get sytoms of RSD, had a second sugery for thoracic outlet sugery, and pain tripled, and rsd but he did the surgery any way. And now im left with tos and rsd and raynaunds, and horner sytrom, all from one surgery. Very angery that he would do that, not to mention never return one of are phone calls sense surgery. I hope you all the best. Email me any time. Thoracic

[reddingaz]

We've been dealing w/ Workers Comp for 3 years now - the case has been open & shut twice & we just went to court again Monday to try & get it re-opened. As soon as my husbands pain doc uttered the phrase RSD the WC insurance company had an IME set up w/in days to try & disprove it. They want nothing to do with an RSD diagnosis that's for sure.

Good luck!!!

[Kunstor]

Good day, I'm new here and haven't been diagnosed with RSD yet, even if I'm experiencing all the signs. Had a work related accident 9 weeks ago, the drill caught up and twisted my right wrist. A clean break of the radius semed to be easy enough to get back together in a cast for 4 weeks.
After they re X-rayed they decided to put another cast on, and the same happened after week six again. I guess they just saw me sitting there with my hand out of the cast, all swollen and in pain and figured that the break wasn't totally healed yet. That's when my common sense came in and I refused to have another cast for another two weeks put on, and we settled for a removable splint. With that I went to my family doctor, and when he saw that "2 lbs. ham" attached to the end of my arm, he sent me to a specialist. This doctor than told me, that the fracture was healed (from the x-ray) and I should go right away for physio therapy to get things moving. So that's what I'm doing right now, and I'm not looking forward to it, but it has to be done. The pain is something I never experienced before when they try to move my fingers or the wrist.
All that long post (sorry) just to let you know that I'm on workers comp, but they were setting the date of going back to work for the beginning of July........
Right now I can't barely tipe on the keyboard, so to work as electrician is probably not going to happen that fast.
I will update you gals and guys about my upcoming WCB meeting.
Hang in there!