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29 June 2015

Dr. Karan Madan

  I have gone to dozens of doctors in my life because I have several chronic pain conditions. Some of these are Fibromyalgia, Spinal Stenosis, Degenerative joint disease, Bursitis, worn out hip sockets, Osteoarthritis, Scoliosis, Herniated discs. I had surgery in 2002 and they put in 2 titanium rods and 6 screws in my back, plus 3 other surgeries. Needless to say I am in pain most of the time I am awake.
  I live in a small town and there aren't any doctors that specialize in pain conditions. I found a doctor in Houston and his name is Dr. Karan Madan. When I first went to see him, I was nervous. I had to travel an hour and a half to his office and I didn't know what to expect.
 The minute Dr. Madan came in the exam room I felt a vibe of peacefulness and I liked him very much. He ordered an MRI, examined me and I was to see him in a month. I had the MRI in December and the next visit he explained to me the results. I have two herniated discs and it is right above where the titanium rod and screws are. I am not ready to have surgery, even though the doctor wants me to. It took a couple of months before I felt really comfortable enough to let Dr. Madan start me on steroid injections. I had injections in San Antonio a few years ago and they were so painful I did not want to ever go through that again, but I gave in because I trusted Dr. Madan.
 On March 31, I drove into Houston to a pre-surgery center for the procedure for my hip.. The first injection will be to the left hip and then I am scheduled for an injection in my back in June.
 As I was waiting to go in the procedure room, I was thinking about how long it's been since my left hip first started bothering me. I went to England in 1997 and I remember I was already having trouble. It angered me that, here I am in England - my life's dream - and I am starting to limp. When I returned from England I told my doctor at that time how much my hip hurt and the entire left leg. He Xrayed my leg and saw nothing wrong. This is what so many doctors told me also. It wasn't until 2010 when I went to a Orthopedic Physician that the mystery was solved. He said that my hip sockets were worn out. The bursitis in my hip was so bad that I had a fairly large bump on the side of my leg. He said he'd have to build me new sockets once he got in there. That sounded so scary, I wasn't ready for that.  So I have just lived with all this pain in the back, hip and legs for at least 18 years.
 Here I was sitting and waiting to go in for the procedure. I looked around and older ladies like me (ha ha) were playing games on their phones. It was hilarious. No need for magazines here....
 They called my name and I wheeled myself to the back. I try to walk when I can but on that day my left leg was so bad, I was dragging it. I was hooked up to a blood pressure machine waiting for a pain shot and I was already nervous. All of a sudden the Fire Alarm went off!! If you know me well, you know I was next to a fire in San Antonio and went with my daughter where we had a fire - so fire alarms at this moment in time are not what I want to hear. I started shaking. The phone rang and a nurse answered it. I said, "What's going on?" She said, "There's nothing to worry about - at least that's what they're saying." The lights were blinking and the alarm went on and on. They were just testing the system I was told. Really? Are you kidding me? I hope no one was getting an injection when they first set it off. Jeez.
 I had trouble getting on the procedure table. It's like my left leg is made of wood and doesn't work anymore. The injection was so fast and so painless. I couldn't believe it. The doctor showed me the images of the needles going down into my hip and this mass of inflammation. I got off the table by myself. That quick it started to work. I was stunned. He said in five days it should be the best. I came in dragging my leg and I walked out of there with it already working.
 On the way home I left my purse in a restaurant and had to go back twenty miles to get it. Also on the way home a truck lost a part and it went up under the car. I was a nervous wreck. But I made it home safe.
 I have many hurdles to overcome. I hope I can do it,
 Thank you Dr. Madan for taking my hip pain away. Hugs to you.