My lumbar puncture is tomorrow at 1pm. I got the order from my NS, but the reason for the LP was stated at "Pseudotumor and H/A" (headache?). Nowhere does it say that I have a 6-7mm Chiari.
My NS wants the lumbar puncture to rule out PTC before decompression surgery is considered.
Anyway, the more I read about LP risks and Chiari, the more nervous I get. It is a radiologist (who a doctor friend recommended) performing my LP and I have NO idea if he has ever drawn fluid and measured pressure on a Chiarian.
What do I need to tell him? And what decreases the risks of furthering my herniation? The ONLY thing I could find online was drawing the fluid slower and some special kind of needle, but no specifics.
I understand your concern, but I have had at least 20 Lumbar Punctures with NS & Radiologists & never had a problem. Sometimes it was hard for them to get fluid.I did find these links. I hope they help
I had a LP a month ago. I have been decompressed so there wasn't a fear of my herniation getting worse but I will share with you what I learned. First a little about my experience. I met a wonderful nurse and a great doctor who explained the whole thing to me and with whom I was very comfortable with, not until I was on my stomach and ready for the proceedure did they then introduce 2 other doctors. Long story short I was used as a teaching tool and the doctor I met never touched me. It took over almost 2 hours and 5 punctures to get to what they kept calling "the pocket" I was just about ready to jump off the table by the time they said they were "in".
This is not ment to scare you just as a caution. I would ask when you get there who is doing the proceedure and how many they have done. I would also make sure they understand the additional complexities of your Chiari. It can pull the herniation down further into your spine. They can do things so this doesn't happen. Also the great thing they did was use imaging to see where they were going with the needle. That seems like a must.
At any point if you feel uncomfortable you have the absolute right to stop or delay the proceedure.
All that being said other than the bruises and soreness from them having to poke around 5 times it was easy. It didn't hurt until they made a wrong turn and hit something they shouldn't have because they had never done it before. I was very scared and had a huge phobia about a needle being put in my spine. (I had two children au natural because of this fear) It wasn't warrented.
I didn’t find out I had Chiari until last month. I just saw my neurosurgeon a few days ago for the first time and asked him to please show my MRI films from December (before my lumbar punture) and then the one I just had last month when I was diagnosed. The LP caused my Chiari to go from 2 to 7! The man who did my LP didn’t listen to me because I said every time I’ve ever had to get an epidural or LP I’ve always had to have it done a few times because of difficulties…anyways…now I have to have surgery and my health, it gone down hill since December and fast!