R.S.D. symtoms and treatments?!

R.S.D. symtoms and treatments?

My husband got hurt at work almost 2 months ago in the hip area, untill the other day the doctors didn't have a clue. They are thinking now, he has R.S.D. He goes for a 3 phrase bone scan on Tuesday. But does panic attacks and sick stomach go with it? (The R.S.D. i mean) Plus his knee is swollen for no apparent reason. He's in so much pain all the time, even though he's on meds. This is all very scary, I dont know what to do. Is there any good websites that tells the symtoms etc?

I'm sorry to hear about your husband's injury and continuing pain. RSD is a serious disease, but is usually very treatable if treatment is started within the first six months. Your husband is well within that time window.

First of all, I will warn you that statistics show that triple-phase bone scans only show RSD in about 50% (or less) of cases. Diagnosing RSD is an imfamously difficult process. I hope that if your husband has RSD, they figure it out for sure soon.

As for panic attacks and stomach problems...they are not really symptoms of RSD specifically. I would say that they are most likely symptoms of uncontrolled pain. If his pain is treated, hopefully those problems will also get better. The stomach problems may also be from his medications.

Swelling, on the other hand, is very much a symptom of RSD. If your husband's initial injury was to his hip, it would be unusual for RSD to only effect the hip. Generally, RSD effects the most distal (lowest, in this case) part of the limb up to the previously injured area. That means, if somebody got RSD from an knee injury, the entire leg from the toes to knee (and sometimes higher too) would be effected. If it's a shoulder injury, the RSD is usually from fingertips to shoulder, and so on and so forth. There are exceptions, of course...but that's how RSD usually presents.

The last poster gave some good sites, especially the RSDSA at http://www.rsds.org ---do not hesitate to get in touch with that organization. The executive director, Jim Broatch, is very helpful with finding knowlegable doctors and other resources.

As for treatments, each person responds differently to different things. The first step in treament is usually a series of nerve blocks (lumbar sympathetic, in your husband's case). Also, physical therapy is very important. There are many medications that could help him as well, and new ones are discovered all of the time.

Good luck, and I hope that you find the help that you need!