If you have a pain pump, did you know the narcotics in it, may affect your hormone levels?

Some background on me… I’ve used the Medtronic intrathecal pump since 1995 (Well, I’m actually on my third pump, due to battery replacements). Up until the last two years, the only medication I’ve used in the pump, has been baclofen. This drug has helped my leg spasms, and back tone.

I started having pain in my lower back and legs, that was not allowing me to sleep. I’ve always had some type of pain, but it’s been tolerable (the burning in my legs in 1995 was anything, but tolerable. Thank God that went away. That’s another story though). My doctor recommended combining the analgesic narcotic, Dilaudid in my pump, with the baclofen. Dilaudid is similar to morphine, but has less side effects. I’m currently on a small dose of 0.3093 mg/day.

So, I’m getting a refill of drugs last week, and my nurse informed me that the Dilaudid could affect my testosterone level. She said, after time, the drug lowers the level of testosterone output in the body. This can lead to depression, loss of sex drive, apathy… you know, the usual stuff. I’ve been feeling as fine as a paralyzed guy can feel, so wasn’t to worried about it. It’s good to know though. She had one patient that had less testosterone being produced than a corpse. They gave the guy some type of hormone medication, and he feels like a new man.

Narcotics in the pain pump will affect estrogen levels in ladies, so another caution there.

I don’t like taking medications, but sometimes you must. Trying to tolerate pain, or spasms, can wear a guy out. The pump has helped me feel better. Knowing the side effects those drugs produce will help me stay that way.

I read some great news for Buffalo Bills player Kevin Everett today. He’s showing signs of movement after injuring his c3-4 vertebrae in a football tackle Sunday. That type of spinal cord injury usually leads to non-movement of arms and legs. I wish him the best.

What caught my eye was how he received hypothermic treatment immediately after his injury.

“Green said the key was the quick action taken by Cappuccino to run an ice-cold saline solution through Everett’s system that put the player in a hypothermic state. Doctors at the Miami Project have demonstrated in their laboratories that such action significantly decreases the damage to the spinal cord due to swelling and movement.

“We’ve been doing a protocol on humans and having similar experiences for many months now,” Green said. “But this is the first time I’m aware of that the doctor was with the patient when he was injured and the hypothermia was started within minutes of the injury. We know the earlier it’s started, the better.”

Cappuccino said Monday that the 25-year-old did have touch sensation throughout his body, showed signs of voluntary movement and was able to breathe on his own before being sedated. But he cautioned that Everett’s injury remained life-threatening because he was still susceptible to blood clots, infection and breathing failure.”

I went to the Miami Project a year after my injury, and participated in a few studies. This really makes sense. If they can slow down the swelling of the spinal cord, (which causes more damage) the injured person has a greater chance at keeping function.

I’m not a medical doctor, or researcher, but it seems it would advantageous to put a spinal cord injured person in that hypothermic state as soon as possible. Will emergency rooms be equipped with this possibility in the future? Maybe.