Teresa Balmaña. Arnold Chiari Syndrome I

Published by ICSEB at 4 July, 2006

Date of intervention: July 2006

I was 65 when in May 2005 I began to have triggering sharp pains incide the head, like electrical shocks, that radiated through the posterior part towards frontal areas and the eyes, its duration was for 15 seconds – 20 seconds, as as months went by the pain accenuated and the pains were alot stronger and repetitive. Soon I began to notice that sometimos I found it difficult to swallow food, when the month of December 2005 arrived, like how everything normal happens to me, I went to visit a doctor and he said dto me that it could be cervical arthiritis, nervouseness, anxiety, they prescribed me antiinflammorty and tranquilisers, but the pains didn´t go and everyday I was getting worse, to notice that the medication wasn´t having affect on me, in January 2006 my pains were accentuating, they were more repetitive, strong and very unbearable, later I then realised that these excuses were exacerbation ( that they begin) with a cough, sneezes, to raise and coger the head abruptly, if I spoke with a loud a voice I heard sstrong noises, when I had to g oto the bathroom if i had to force myself, if I had to move my head side to side to try and see something then is when it started, it was horrible what was happening to me.

The Neurologists doctors that I went to every single time they began to giveme tranquilizers and change of traditonal medicine, and I took all of them, al the doctors know of the medication that I was taking. I have always said the truth without lying to anybody, all of them agreed to the medication that I was taking, waiting for one of them to take effect. Most of them where tranquilizers, what did happen was that sometimes they relaxed me just for a short period of time but I was feeling that I was like drugged. It wasn´t me, if I had to g oto the street somebody had to accompany me, I wasn´t secure of myself, and every time I had to take more medication if I didn´t want the pains to be as strong as they were. I even remeber that I did g oto check my sight and my ears. Everything was correct. Then they did a TAC and nothing visible important was seen, and then they sent me to the Social Security Neurologist, he changad my medications but because they didn´t respond, they then did a MRI and unfortunately social security employees were on strike and I couldn´t wait no longer with the pain that I was suffering, and what I did was take my own cause on.

It wasn´t so long ago that I had bought a computer, I didn´t have any idea how it worked, the onlything that I did know for certain was that if I connected to Internet I World find everything, I did 4 classes and later on I got into Internet in Scientific Publications, how I wasn´t able to relax myself, I spent many hours at night and day reading and informing myself about everything. Headaches, Neuralgias craneal, migraines, Trigemino neuralgias, and more, all that for me it was lightening, hours past by, but at the same time it was hell, but I couldn´t find out exactly what had happened to me and I was suffering, and I was only just going for a solution or a remedy to not suffer as much as I was.

When I went to the S S Neurologist and brought the resulto f the MRI it showed the presence of a Malformation of Arnold Chiari 1. He prescribed me other types of medication, he had a loto f patience with me, and I am happy for the interest that he gave me trying to fin dan effective treatment and to avoid surgery, because he know that it was going to be my last chance, but because I was complaining so much and I couldn´t swallow solid food he sent me to the Neurosurgeon to inform me and it´s how it went, he was very tentative and with interest he explained to me in a gentle friendly manner all my questions but he said that I hended to have an operation. I answered that I would think about it.

All the doctors and neurologists that I have visited they said that if they could make it possible, not to allow me to be intervened on the head. I had spent several hours informing myself about my illness and what is the tradicional operation technique. In the scientific publications as many as there are, when I was searching on the computer, all of it was well detailed. I was so scared to go through this intervention; it is aggressive, not a loto f safe probabilities, a portion of that I didn´t accept and certainly with a lot of consequences, depending on each individual patient and for how long you have been suffering it and the clinical reports that exist.

I was desperate, I didn´t know what to do, hadn´t found another solution so I returned to the computer as therei s so much t oread and consult and I know that something Wad escaping me, something that I didn´t know. Then I had an idea to write down: HELP ARNOLD CHIARI 1 SYNDROME, appeared a lot of different kinds of publications and I read about the Neurological Institute of Barcelona, I clicked there and out came publications from Doctor M B Royo about Arnold Chiari 1 Syndrome, the technique od the Section of the Filum Terminal and what it consisted of, it Wad a simple intervention with little risk, it could prevent, stop, ande ven save the total causes that this illness produces and with just 1 day at the clinic. In the patients forum (on the web) all of them were satisfied with the intervention and the results. The section Filum Terminal consists of a little insertion on the sacrus bone at the end of your back where there isn´t any inconvenence in alterating the mechanisms of the vertebrae column. Doctor Royo explained to me slowly and with alot of patience how with microsurgery techniques he visulized the Filum Terminal and snipped it. Apart of. I had read other publications from Dr Royo. Ander my impresión, I saw him as a very professional person. I didn´t think any longer, I got into contact with him. He did all the necessary tests that I hended for the intervention, by the way, they have already declared smallscoliosis ando n the 4th of July 2006 I had the operation at the Corachan Clinic ando n the 5th of July I Wad discharged and sent home. On the 6th when I got out of bed I didn´t have headaches, I had my breakfast and I could swallow the solid food, I couldn´t relieve it, on the 12th he removed the stiches- I hardly felt anything. Before I felt that I Wad dead when I Wad alive, I Wad deeriorating everyday so quickly, and how I´m alive and feel so good, Thanks to God and to Dr Royo.

I´m so grateful to Doctor Royo and all his team. I read in some of his griten files that he has been investigating and working on his technique and putting into practise for almost 30 years.

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