Hi all-- I learned today that when Peter fell (backwards) on 1/10/01 he
sustained a compression fracture of the 12th (lowest) Thoracic vertebra. I
mention this because at the time an Xray showed NOTHING! As he has
continued to have pain, we had another Xray yesterday, which DID reveal the
injury.......and ended my wishful thinking that it was "only" the pain from
PD spasms and rigidity. The poor guy can only wait 6 or 8 weeks for it to
heal, taking acetaminophen and Ibuprofen for the pain, as opiates are a
no-no with the PD meds. I also learned by calling our pharmacist that the
ER doc should not have prescribed Ultram (as an alternative to
Vicodin,Percocet,etc) because it can react dangerously with the Prozac he
takes, and cause seizures. Luckily, he only took one of those. I guess we
can't take ANYTHING for granted !
This reinforces what we are always telling ourselves and each other that it
is never safe to ASSUME that a symptom is from PD.......if it persists,
double check it to make sure ! Eternal vigilance may be the price of
freedom, but it is also the responsibility of CGs and PWPs.........
Camilla Flintermann, CG for Peter 82/70/55
Oxford, Ohio
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on the web at http://members.tripod.lycos.nl/genugten/flinterm.htm
and also at http://www.geocities.com/camillahf/index.html
"Ask me about the CARE list for Caregivers of Parkinsonians ! "
And visit the CARE webring at
http://www.crosswinds.net/~caregivers/index.html
