CRPS Treatment: pain in foot and ankle for 6 years

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CRPS Treatment: pain in foot and ankle for 6 years

Contents

General details and patient's info

Gender:Female.
Age:49 years old at the time of treatment.
Home Country:Canada.
Illness duration:6 years prior to the Neridronate Treatment.
Cause:Ankle sprain during a hike.
Symptoms:Stabbing sensation, burning pain that sometimes goes higher up in the leg too. Muscle spasm. Can not walk without using a wheelchair. Ankle and foot both swollen at al time. No color change.
Clinical evaluation:CRPS.
Time of treatment:February 2018.

Why the Patient decided to undergo the CRPS Treatment in Italy

The patient had heard about the treatment years before, but not knowing much about it, hadn’t contacted us back then. 3 years after, one of the patients who had just gotten back to Canada from her infusions week in Italy convinced her to get in touch with us. 2 months after that, she was in Italy.

Medical treatment the Patient underwent in Italy

Complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS) is a severely painful and disabling disease for which a multitude of therapeutic interventions have been proposed. In the past two decades, only Bisphosphonates gained credibility. In recent years, more convincing evidence has become available on the use of Parenteral Neridronate. Since 2014, this drug is registered and marketed in Italy for the treatment of CRPS. To date, the only therapeutic schedule that is recognized to be able to confer benefit is the intravenous (IV) administration of 100 mg given 4 times.

4 neridronate infusions (100mg, I.v. in saline Solution 0,9% 250 ml)
See the Official Study on the Oxford Academics website: https://academic.oup.com/rheumatology/article/52/3/534/1777330

4 Pantoprazole infusions; Paracetamol.

3 sessions Neuromuscular Rehabilitation Treatment with Physiotherapist.
Rehabilitation therapy is a full body workout which focuses on the general wellbeing of the body, to help the affected limb get back to its normal self.

7 days Light Therapy (in the hotel room, 30+ more minutes each day)
30 minutes or more of usage of the MTI Light Therapy reduces inflammation, increase micro-circulation, relax nerves and muscles, reduces pain transmission, accelerates healing, regenerates cells, and promotes cells activation.

Daily Report

DAY 1: Arrival at the Venice airport, greeted by her Patient Manager, followed by check-in at her Hotel in Vicenza. Briefing focused on the next days.

DAY 2: Rest day in the hotel, in contact with her Patient Manager.

DAY 3: Morning pick-up by her Patient Manager, 1st visit with the Rheumatologist Professor, 1st Rehabilitation session, and 1st Neridronate infusion.

DAY 4: Morning pick-up by her Patient Manager, 2nd Neridronate infusion. The patient reports some flu-like symptoms (bone pain, headache), the professor prescribes Paracetamol.

DAY 5: Morning pick-up by her Patient Manager, 2nd Rehabilitation session and 3rd Neridronate infusion. The patient still reports a light headache.

DAY 6: Rest morning in the hotel, in contact with her Patient Manager. Patient feels much better, so we organize a tour of Verona with the wheelchair in the afternoon.

DAY 7: Morning pick-up by her Patient Manager, 2nd visit with Rheumatologist Professor, 3rd Rehabilitation session, 4th Neridronate infusion. Tour of Verona again, upon request of the patient who loved the city yesterday.

DAY 8: Pick-up by her Patient Manager and drop-off at Venice airport.

Follow up

APRIL 2018 (2 months after Neridronate treatment): patient reports the swelling has gotten down, but the pain levels are still the same.

JUNE 2018 (4 months after Neridronate treatment): the swelling is nearly gone, pain levels are about 30% lower.

OCTOBER 2018 (8 months after treatment): Patient reports she can now sometime walk without the need of the wheelchair, and general improvement of pain and symptoms would be of 60%.

Conclusion

It is difficult to guess the results of any medical treatment. In the case of the Neridronate infusions, the earliest they are administrated, the better results can be expected.
However even in this case of a 6 years long CRPS, daily improvements such as not needing the wheelchair at all time is to be recognized and appreciated. The patient’s mood was very low entering the treatment, her pain was slowly pushing her into depression. A year after, she sounds happier and has gotten back her hope for a better life, and she confirms improvement of pain and symptoms of 60%.
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DISCLAIMER
This is not a medical case study; it merely describes each patient’s journey, and it omits all personal data. The people who redacted it are not doctors but all the facts reported are objective and represent the patient’s reality thanks to the information in our possession. The report is not part of any clinical trials. It was written to provide more information to patients who have made multiple requests for treatment outcomes of cases like theirs.