Useful Websites

[David Hosobuchi]

Use this thread for posting other websites relevent to this forum....:)

[linniec]

The National Institute of Neurological Disorders is a good start
http://www.ninds.nih.gov/disorders/arachnoiditis/arachnoiditis.htm

[guineapig]

http://www.cofwa.org/


COFWA (Circle Of Friends With Arachnoiditis) is here for support of those who suffer from or know someone with Adhesive Arachnoiditis. COFWA offers education, friendship, caring, sharing, and advocacy to all who are in need. We are here to assist with questions and concerns regarding Adhesive Arachnoiditis, some which may be answered in the information provided here, within these web pages.

Adhesive Arachnoiditis is a disorder which causes severe, chronic, intractable pain. It is the inflammation of one of the spinal cord coverings (meninges), the middle meninges, the arachnoid and nerve roots that causes Adhesive Arachnoiditis. This inflammation causes the covering to become "sticky", adhering it to the spinal cord and the nerve roots as they exit the spinal canal.

The inflammation causes the nerve roots to become adherent to each other and to the meninges, this is what causes the pain. Adhesive Arachnoiditis can be progressive in some cases. It can also cause loss of motor function, numbness, tingling, loss of bladder and bowel function, the sensation of walking on rocks or glass, burning, groin pain and can, in some rare instances, cause paralysis. There is currently NO CURE and NO TREATMENT for Adhesive Arachnoiditis other than pain management.

COFWA was first founded through postings at Massachusetts General Hospital's NeuroWeb Forum in the Fall of 1996. The publication of COFWA's first website in early 1997, automating our mail by the use of our first ListServe in 1998, and now of these pages as well as our On-going activity at Yahoo!Groups where our members continue to enjoy sharing e-mail correspondence via an automated Listserve.

Our membership continues to flourish (with well over 1,000 active members), as the word spreads and the awareness of Adhesive Arachnoiditis becomes known, we are here to offer all Adhesive Arachnoiditis sufferers the means to share their experiences, to learn from others, to realize they are not alone as we continue to combat this unrelenting disease together.