If you are treated at House & from out of state what happens after you leave CA

[Richardspengler]

I have a 2.1cm AN that was diagnosed last week. I have been doing a lot of reading on this site and it seems that the consistent theme is that you should go to a place like the House Clinic to have it removed.  At first I thought "no way" because I am in Michigan and house is in CA but as I read it seems that many of the prior patients are from out of state so I started to ponder the possibility.  Then the thought came into my head "no way because the insurance issues would be too much to go out of network".  Well, I checked and Dr Schwartz and St Vincent are "in network" for me.  What a crazy answer to prayer.  So, the next issue that came into my head was:  Well after I leave CA after the 7 day stay it surely must be a problem to be isolated in MI away from the doctors that did the surgery.

So, can you guys who went to House from out of CA tell me what happens after you leave CA?  Do you have to arrange care back at home?  I am not even sure what care I am thinking of because I am so new to this but I have seen references to physical therapists but are there other medical providers that need to be consulted with post surgery?  Any help or insight on what you needed to do after you left CA after being treated at House would be greatly appreciated.

[sharonov]

This is not an answer, Richard, so I apologize.  But I too am going to House next week (from Chicago) and have wondered what will happen if difficulties present themselves after I'm home.  The current neurosurgeon I've been seeing in Chicago is miffed that I'm not using him (he was never upfront enough about how many of these he does) so will he handle any problems that come up?  I suppose I could go to someone in another hospital, of course, but this thought also is bothering me.

So--anyone go to House from out-of-state and then experience problems later?

[ccooper]

You stay in CA for 10 days when any risks are likely to occur. I'm from CO and went out to House in July. That is one thing I've recommended to others is start planning now for after care support so you aren't scrambling. Physical therapy, acupuncture, massage, whatever you plan on your regimen being. I have emailed house following the procedure and they reply but they also take calls. Three months after my surgery, I had an MRI done back in CO and you just send them the images and they call you to discuss the results.

One thing I'd say is my first surgery I stayed in CO and ended up having to go to house for a second surgery. This is so completely uncommon. But I do regret not going with the best the first time!

[v357139]

Like the last post said, they keep you there about 10 days.  The main reason they do that is to make sure you do not have a CSF (brain fluid) leak before you leave.  If you have CSF leak, it usually requires a second (not as long) surgery.  These almost always happen within the first few days, so staying there 10 days is long enough.  They make sure you are good before you leave town.  I flew from NY and very glad I did.  I am on the cautious side, so I stayed an extra week just to be sure.  Was not really necessary, but that's just me.

In rare cases a person may develop Meningitis after coming home.  I heard of one case like that (not from House) and the person was treated by a surgeon locally.

[CHD63]

Hi All .....

This question was one of the first questions I had when consulting with Dr. Friedman (then at House) before going there for surgery.  He assured me that in the unlikely event I experienced any serious problems after returning home, he (or someone at House) would put me in touch with a physician who could handle it.  Fortunately, I had no post-operative issues.

Like some others, I made my flight reservations home a few days later than the recommendation to be on the safe side, but did not really need the extra time.  I was also assured by United Airlines that with a doctor's statement, I could change my flight without penalty.  I did not need to do that.

Best wishes to all .....

Clarice

[mroker]

I just had surgery at House on the 8th of November and I live in the Bahamas. Needless to say this is a far travel but I did not have any issues. House said I had to stay 10 days but I stayed longer just to be sure. Please let me know any questions you may have regarding this. Fortunately for me I knew someone who lived in LA so I was able to stay by their house during recovery.

[leapyrtwins]

Everyone I know who went to House was told to deal with a local doctor - if issues came up - once they went home.

It didn't always work out well for everyone, though.

Jan