Durapair

[Cheryl R]

   I had my surgeon visit yesterday past my trans lab surgery and then the 2 week later CSF leak surgery and found something VERY interesting.      The hospital had just changed the type of material used as an adhesive or material that helps hold things together and found out that it doesn't work.   There have been 3 leaks now at my hospital and the nearby VA hospital.     They will not be using this material again.    It should work from the description of it and the fact it is FDA approved.           When they got inside they found that the body should have had scarring  or granulation to the material and it had not.     That is too bad that it was me that ended up being one of the patients who had to have surgery again.   I am glad it won't happen to anyone else.
  I did a search but did not find much about this produc,.durapair.        I assume this is the right spelling as had no luck with other variations.             
Something else for possible surgical patients to ask their doctor about.
       I have the stitches out now and it feels much better.
                                       Cheryl R.
                                     

[ppearl214]

Hey Cheryl,

Do you know if the FDA is going to pull the adhesive that was causing the issues?

BTW, thrilled the stitches are out and hun, fast road to recovery for you!!!!!!  (ok, slow and easy but hey, let's get you mended!  You've been through far too much!)

xoox
Phyllis

[Gennysmom]

Interesting, I just met with my surgeon today and he said that it's his practice to stitch the dura before putting the belly fat in, and he's gotten his CSF leak rate down to 3%.  That's what he'll be doing on me in July.

Sorry you had to have a second surgery...I'm guessing us translab'ers definitely should ask the question of the doctor pre-surgery how they close up the dura. 

[Battyp]

Do translab patients have more problems with CSF leak vs retro? 

[Gennysmom]

It's my understanding that it's a greater risk, but I don't know that it happens more often.  It's my understanding that since they remove the inner ear which leaves the eustacian tube exposed, then pack fat into it, you're removing more parts that have to be re-sealed so that a CSF leak doesn't happen.   I may be way off, but that's what I've picked up on during my readings. 

[Cheryl R]

When I was in the hospital with the CSF leak,I had one nurse say they hardly ever see a patient with a leak.      This is at the Univ of Iowa.and they do many AN surgeries.             
 This round of the 2 surgeries was easier in some ways since had the mid fossa in 2001 so had no vestibular problems to deal with.    Was up and at 'em easily, just weak feeling.      I am doing very well now!               I knew I was feeling better when the sale ads of stores started looking good again and I have the shopping urge.        Haven't been out much  yet and with the gas being so high,can't afford to!               I am still going to be off work till end of May.   
   In case a newbie is reading this,   I have NF2 and is probably the reason had a second tumor grew as was not a regrowth of my first one.           My tumor in the other side is small and time will tell what happens there.
                                             Cheryl R.
 

[Battyp]

Thanks for cleaning that up Mom,..no one mentioned any fat grafts to me I had a retrosig nor did I read about any fat grafts in my op report...Now if they wanted to take some fat from my hiney and put it in my head I'd not have stopped them especially if it make me look smaller 

[Gennysmom]

Yeah, unfortunately they won't do a full lipo on my belly.  I asked.  Thought I could kill two birds with one stone. LOL!!!   Not sure how much they take, but not enough to make a difference in my belly.  I guess when I wake up I'm going to have a tube still in my belly, maybe I can con the nurse into helping me out. 

[Battyp]

If anyone sees mom taking a vaccumm to the hospital with her...STOP HER..it just isnt' worth it mom. LOL  I an see you attaching it to your tube and helping yourself out 

[Gennysmom]

I'll just grab a slurpee straw when I'm at 7-11 grabbing the spork.

[Battyp]

Oh NO..not the spork???!!!

[Cheryl R]

   I have found out that I had the spelling wrong of the material that didn't work in my head and may have caused the CSF leak.   it is durepair and is a collagen implant.     I found the info after a another nurse friend who works in surgery let me know.
                                    Cheryl R.

[Static]

If I am remembering things I've read properly, retrosigmoid is the same or similar as suboccipital :/?  Anyway, I had suboccipital, at least that's what it said on my chart, like I said, if I'm remembering right (cause I usually don't).  Anyway, what I'm getting to is that I didn't have any fat pulled to plug up the hole at the time of my initial surgery, but after a CSF leak was discovered, it was repaired through the mastoid bone with a fat plug from my belly and they definitely don't take enough fat out!!!  I have the tiniest little scar on my belly from that repair and a second scar right behind my ear.  They didn't go into the same incision in my head which was a bit farther back maybe because the AN was pressing on the brain stem.  Not sure, but I have a few new questions for the doc if I can't find my copy of the report!  I really just wanted the stupid thing outta my head and wasn't concerned as much as I should have been with the details :/

[russ]

Hi
  This 'Durepair' is popular among the Drs who do the minimally invasive at Skull Base Institute.
   Had a woman in our group who developed quite an infecion and had some CSF leakage after arriving home, 1300 miles from LA after one of Shahinian's, ah....experiments... A local neurosurgeon had to reopen and clean the area and use the traditional fat graft. Total recovery time for minimally invasive that time: 3 months. The woman could have easily gotten meningitis.
   Russ