TMR at the time of amputation may be an option if you can medically tolerate the additional surgery time required. TMR is not a treatment option for patients with spinal cord injuries, brachial plexus injuries, or who are generally not healthy enough for surgery. Your physician will help you determine whether TMR is right for you.
If you decide to pursue TMR surgery, your surgeon may perform a test to determine whether TMR will be effective to reduce your pain. This simple test involves the injection of a numbing agent to the site of your pain.
Most people experience surgery-related pain but not nerve pain immediately after the TMR procedure. The nerve then “wakes up” causing an increase in nerve pain soon after. Your doctor may prescribe medications to help manage pain following surgery. Your need for pain medication may decrease over time as the nerves heal. If the TMR procedure is successful, you will experience a reduction in both nerve pain and surgical pain compared to your pain level before having surgery.
If you currently have phantom limb pain, recovery may take longer (six to nine months) for the phantoms to improve. Over time, many people can reduce or eliminate the need for pain medications under their physician’s supervision.1
Targeted Muscle Reinnervation (TMR) is a surgical treatment that is gaining acceptance for nerve pain associated with amputation.
TMR is not a treatment option for patients with spinal cord injuries, brachial plexus injuries, or who are generally not healthy enough for surgery. The procedure does present typical risks of surgery. Patients may experience a temporary increase in pain as part of the nerve healing process. Your physician will help you determine whether TMR is right for you.
Gregory Dumanian, MD, is medical director of TMRnerve.com. He is a paid consultant of Checkpoint Surgical, Inc.
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