Hi Prickler any news on how the injection went after a bit more time?

Hope all is ok.

Thanks

You still have the RT option and since you are from CA check out Dr. T in San Diego, if Germany is not in your cards. Your insurance might just pay for the procedure, of course there is no guarantee that it will work. It does work for a lot of people though, there is no one procedure that is 100%. Even the steroid injection works for some for others it does nothing. It's a shame that there is not a lot of research put into this disease since it can be so debilitating.

Also check out Penny's post:

http://www.dupuytren-online.info/Forum_E...tion-1_274.html







Christl

Also, I have found that daily stretching and deep massage of my hands helps me to keep strength. Yes, there is a tendency for my fingers to curl as I do have an advanced case of DC in both hands in all fingers and thumbs except my pointing fingers. I also have nodules in my feet. As I mentioned previous, Ibuprofen has help me a lot. I also suspect my daily doses of Glucosamine may have something to do with maintaining strength and dexterity. My father had this as well as my aunt. Dad had the surgery and helped him for about 3 years. Then it came back with vengeance. No other know cases in the older generations of my family. I have avoided surgery, prescription drugs and NA, so far!

SP,

Thanks for your reply. I do not have experience that is verified "clinically". I have seen several doctors over the years. Their suggested methods did not appeal to me as I am very active and chose to not disrupt my life due to the recovery process. I hear a lot on clinical treatments, surgeries etc...While some clinical approaches could benefit some, it appears to cost plenty with limit success.

My DC experiences (not verified by the doctors) at the moment are favorable. I have had DC for many years and my hands show the pulls and twists associated with the disease.

I do not have the "facts" you are wanting. The fact is, this is working for me at the moment. I am able to function (Tennis, weight lifting, fishing, yard work etc..) by taking care and continuing with methods that work for me. I am 55 years old and will continue to stretch, massage, take Ibuprofen and Glucosamine

I truly wish you well. I appreciate all these inputs to this forum.

Bill

Hello Prickler & everyone else,

My husband is a 43yo male who is also in the early stages of DD and probably LD. We are going in for his 2nd round of RT with Dr. Gottshalk at UCSF on Monday, whom we found through this website. Dr. Gottshalk treats both DD and LD, with approximately 4 patients coming in for these specific issues each month. He reports good success (approximately 75-80% seeing halt in progression after RT) with the group of patients he has been working with over the past several years. I have been reading here a long time but haven't posted yet; I wanted to create a profile to share our experience regarding insurance.

We had Kaiser when Rob was diagnosed, and Kaiser WOULD NOT COVER RT. We appealed, had his "case" heard by a panel who clearly could not care less, and the Kaiser hand "specialist" also suggested he just come back when it was in contraction for surgery.

We changed insurance providers during open enrollment with my employer in order to switch from Kaiser to BLUE CROSS BLUE SHIELD in hope that they would cover this treatment, which we had a good feeling about through some research, and thankfully, they DO cover it as of today. We are only responsible for co-pays, which has made this a much more viable option for us. Though DD was previously diagnosed, we did not run into a "pre-existing condition" issue, probably because there was no gap in insurance coverage (and also maybe a new Obamacare rule, not sure).

That being said, I cannot yet report on the success or failure of these treatments for him. There was no improvement in pain/tenderness or stiffness after the first round of treatment, which was performed in early January. I read another story from a patient who did a great job documenting their experience and emails with Prof. S, who suggested both rounds of RT. I'm unsure how long it will take to judge the success or failure of this approach for my hubby, but- as implied by my username- I'm hopeful.

Prickler, you may want to consider "cryosurgery", discussed in this thread: http://www.dupuytren-online.info/Forum_E...ld-1_230_2.html I just watched the video from that doctor speaking during the 2010 Symposium describing this process. His website is FOOTFREEZER.COM. It may be a good pain management option in addition to / in lieu of RT. Again, no personal experience with that, just research. Good luck.