Bone growth

So this is a new discovery for me. My last visit to the doctor, when he explained that one of the screws (who's job is to hold my spinal fusion together) has started to back itself out, he prescribed more physical therapy or I should say more "intensive" physical therapy, and something called a bone growth stimulator. The P.T. was pretty much self explanatory but the bone growth stimulator was a little more of a mystery to us. I didn't think to ask at the time of the appointment and Suzy and I just figured it was some sort of medicine that helped to strengthen your bones. I guess that seemed to make sense, I mean they have all sorts of stuff for people who have low bone density or osteoporosis. My mother in law Anna takes something like that and I guess that is what I was expecting. Well, I was way off.

The bone growth stimulator is actually an electronic device that you wear over the area that needs to be stimulated. It looks sort of like a small tennis racket without a handle that has a giant c.b. radio mic attached to it. I have since done some research on the subject and found that they have an impressive track record of making huge improvements in users quality of life. Having said that I am going to document my progress here.


The company's rep. came by last week for a quick tutorial and to explain the devices limitations. I was surprised to learn that, because of the company who make them, the devise has a relatively short lifespan (because they set the device to automatically turn itself off after nine months, so it can not be used longer then prescribed, it is also set to only be used once every twenty four hours). I was at first a little pissed about it but I suppose I understand why they do it, I guess they have to protect their company's future. I think I would not be quite as calm about it if I had to actually pay for it out of my own pocket, seeing that the price of only one b.g.s. device, that you can only use once a day for nine months, costs over five thousand eight hundred dollars, and even my insurance company who has a contract with the supplier still pays over twenty five hundred dollars for it. Anyway we had already met our out of pocket maximum for the year so it didn't cost us anything, and the rep. who delivered it said that if I am still using it at the end of the nine months that they had to give me another one free, so I will be sure to keep track of his card.

I am using the device daily trying to keep it close to the same time, so as not to mess up the every twenty four hours rule. Obviously, I have not seen any sort of results yet as it takes several weeks to start making progress. For those of you who are interested, the way it works is by emitting electro-magnetic energy in a focused area that causes increased blood flow in the inner part of the bone, the cells in the bone are then caused to build their structure more rapidly then they normally do. I guess it is a similar ideal to all those magnetic necklaces, bracelets, shoe insoles and such, only on a much more powerful scale (like 5000 times more powerful). So for someone like me who has a degenerative disease that keeps your bones, joints and cartilage from growing as strong as they should, it makes your bones stronger and more dense (less likely to crack or break). And in my case specifically it will make the donor bone that replaced my damaged vertebral disc and my own vertebrae (which are now fused with titanium screws and a plate) grow together faster and stronger (hopefully).

We will see if the bone growth stimulator is all it is cracked up to be.