Was surgery the right choice for you?

[Getfixedordietrying]

Hey all, I’ve been having pidental issues for a while and am going down a rabbit hole of surgical/procedure option because things just seem to get worse as soon as I’m not doing PT every day for 2 hours… nerve block had success, some more imaging coming to rule out other things. And I’ve read stories on here. I but I really want to make an informed and not emotional decision on this stuff. how satisfied were you with your decompression surgery? Any tips/suggestions in general?

Thanks

[jaxi123]

Surgery for me was a complete failure. The surgery needs to be perfected 1 million times over what it is now. it’s literally butchering people up at this point.

[Getfixedordietrying]

Surgery for me was a complete failure. The surgery needs to be perfected 1 million times over what it is now. it’s literally butchering people up at this point.

I am starting to see your sort of experiences as a trend. It’s hard not to consider when you’re so desperate though. Hope you’re feeling better these days

[harry_nerve]

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[harry_nerve]

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[Natedogg91]

I had surgery this past year (transgluteal) approach in the states. I had all of the signs and symptoms of pudendal nerve entrapment with worsening nerve dysfunction despite multiple rounds of pelvic floor therapy, pelvic floor stretching, acupuncture and nerve blocks. In my case, surgery was the only option that was able to help me. I am 5 months out now, the recovery is a long process, but I would stress in my case it was worth it. My PNE was largely congenital and exacerbated by high intensity weight lifting with congenital scoliosis as well.

It’s an individual decision for sure… I would recommend to anyone to put forth effort in multiple conservative therapies first and if you’re not noticing much improvement or worsening of your symptoms to consider surgery. It has come a long way in the last 20 years. Transgluteal and laparoscopic approaches seem to have the highest success rates, although the data is fairly limited as a whole. I chose Transgluteal because a good portion of my symptoms were rectal. It has one of the most documented success rates among the surgeons in the U.S. Laparoscopic is the new up and coming approach, but there is less data on it among general populations. Both approaches do generate some scar tissue which is inevitable - post rehab and being active after you’re recovered from surgery is critically important to reduce your risk for pelvic floor tightness and scar tissue development.

[harry_nerve]

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[jaxi123]

Which doctors are doing the decompression surgery via robotic laparoscopy? How many people can report cured from this particular type of surgery?

[harry_nerve]

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[Violet M]

how satisfied were you with your decompression surgery? Any tips/suggestions in general?

Very satisfied. 95% better and I have a great life now. Tips and suggestions would be to be pretty sure it's a nerve entrapment before going the nerve decompression surgery route. I recommend reading the following article that can give you an idea as to whether it's likely pudendal neuralgia caused by a pudendal nerve entrapment.
https://www.pudendalhope.info/wp-conten ... iteria.pdf

Your history is also an important consideration. If you likely had something like lyme disease trigger your neuralgia then I think it would be less likely to be a nerve entrapment than if it was started by something like exercise.

What type of PT do you get? For me, internal PT really irritated the pudendal nerve and caused a flare-up. Exercise irritated the nerve also, because if the nerve is entrapped it can't glide freely.

If you've tried the usual conservative, non-invasive treatments, nerve blocks and other diagnostics are pointing toward an entrapment, and nothing is working, then you sort of get faced with the next agonizing decision as to whether to head into surgery. Since it's not 100% successful and has a slight risk of making you worse, then you basically have to decide if your quality of life is bad enough to take that risk. For me, life was so bad it was worth it to take that risk but only you can determine if you are there. I know it's a tough decision.

Is your doctor recommending PNE surgery?

Violet