Proffesor Davies - Trigger Point Injections..

[Dolly82]

Hi There everybody,

I am new to this site- to give you a little bit of backround I am 29 diagnosed with Fibromyalgia 2 years ago. For the last 2 years I have been back and forth to my GP and Rhematologist constantly but as Im sure many of you have discovered there is only so Much they can do. Last week I decided to go private to see Professor Davies at his Marylbone clinic for Trigger Point Injections. I found him to be a very nice, sympathetic man who basically 'confirmed' I had fibromyalgia and administered the injections in my back. The long and the short of it is, as lovley as the professor was - the injections didnt do anything for me apart from make me sore for a few days and bring on abit of a flair.. I was wondering if it was one of those things that is 'trial and error' as in works for some not for others or if it was the situation as in the more you have the better you will feel? Anybody that has any information on this that wouldnt mind sharing I would be really grateful - I have tried to get in contact with Prof Davies but its proving rather difficult (hes a very busy man it seems) I am happy to brave the discomfort every week if it will make things better long term but have no desire to throw away money on injections that will never work for me

Sorry to waffle on - Hope everyone is feeling okay today. Best wishes to all xxxxxxxx

[han5_5]

My step daughter (22 years old) had Botox injections all over left side of her head hoping to stop the constant Fybro Migraine that she suffers from (in addition to the joint pain and non functionality with tiredness). Sadly this made her feel worse (and sore like you say) but it has had good results for other sufferers. We are at our wits end as to know where to turn now. I am coming to the conclusion that ANY kind of treatment for Fybro is trial and error for the sufferer - which is heartbreaking for her each time it fails and for her loved ones as we would do anything to stop this pain and help to get some kind of normal life back for her again.

[LindseyMid]

Trigger point injections tend to work best for people with localised myofascial pain problems - myofascial pain and trigger points being something that many people with Fibro also have (myofascial trigger points or TrPs are different to the tender points used in diagnosing Fibro).

If you have severe, widespread myofascial pain, then although the injections may release a few TrPs, there is still so much restriction that they soon build back up again. So whilst more injections may help, if you feel that the first lot have been no help at all, it does rather suggest that you might need a more overall approach to treating the myofascial pain aspect of Fibro. Medications like clonazepam can help, as can stretches & appropriate physiotherapy. In my experience, specialised myofascial release (MFR) therapy massage with someone experienced in treating people with Fibro is the most effective treatment for myofascial pain. Unfortunately, this is not available on the NHS (at most, NHS physios know the basics of these techniques). I know a few really good people, some in London, some in Berkshire - message me if you;d like their details.

Talk to Prof about this ( I would call his secretary and see if you can book a phone consult with him, assuming he still does those - it was a lot cheaper than trekking into London for a simple question/discussion). If you don't want the injections, you don't have to have them. I remember when I felt that the Myers injections I was getting from Prof were not helping much and didn't warrant their cost. I was so nervous about saying so, but Prof was great about it, absolutely fine and we worked on other medication options (I also used a multidisciplinary approach involving MFR, physio, nutritional supplements and stress management as well). I later then found that the Myers worked best for me when I was doing better generally and then had a flare.

[judrop67]

Hi i am my husbands carer who has had injections in his shoulder and knee of which he had flare ups and in his words made it worse. There isnt a joint in his body that isnt tender and its especially bad when he has 4 joints attacking him at once however he has recently bought a tens machine which interrupts the pain and is hoping to try the hydrapool at physio soon to see if this helps.

[FionaP]

I recall in 2005 that Professor Davies was doing intravenous treatments over a number of days, something like 8 hours a day over 5 days to stay pain free for up to three months. It was very expensive and would cost around £3,000 a time.

Looking deeply into the research I found that the figures were not that good and pain free was Up to meaning it could be as little as a week and also as long as you did nothing strenuous.

It is good that we have someone who is willing to be looking into getting us pain free. Sadly there is no definitive answer yet.

Think I'll keep my eye on his work and any money in the bank for now.

[AriadneJones]

I have visited Professor Davies and had two sets of trigger point injections in my shoulders and hips. The shoulder injections were amazing and the hip injections helped but not as much as the shoulder. I had it done privately and it was money well spent. I am lucky enough to have been referred as an NHS patient to Guys and hope to continue treatment there. I need to be treated as a person and a not collection of symptoms as my GP has done for the past few years. Professor Davies is great at what he does - you need to talk to him to get it right.

[fibrodude]

I recently was referred through the nhs to Prof Davies at his Guys Hospital Clinic...he seemed nice enough but confided in me that actually anything he could try would not really have much lasting effect and was a waste of time. Keep doing what I was doing and try as best as I could to manage the pain myself. He didn't really do anything. He also said that I would get very little out of group support as he didn't think it would benefit me but make me miserable...actually I get a great deal out of talking to others...thanks to everyone on this site who is thoughtful and helpful and is giving me more encouragement than the fibro specialist...although he was still a lovely man.

[fibrodude]

p.s Im not shaming the prof...he was completely honest with me...and as we all know this is an uncurable illness that we need to learn to manage...I just wanted him to wave a magic wand...which he couldn't of course.