Hi all, hope everyone is doing well pre and post-op. Just wanted to know (if anyone has experienced this), what are the chances of damaging your hardware approx 9 months post-op. I ask this because, yesterday my husband fell through our verandah (he was cleaning the gutters as we had had record rainfall for the first time in three years!), hit the outdoor setting on his way down, then hit the concrete with the table on top of him and a chair. When i heard the thump, i 'ran' outside to find him not responding. My instinct was to lift the table and chair to help him and of course i totally forgot about being fused. Firstly let me add that he is very battered and bruised but he is fine. The hospital released him, but he will have more followups tomorrow to check C3 and left sided ribs and why he had no heart rate for a couple of minutes (bloody scary s....!). As for me, i awoke in a lot of pain around the top of my left rod, a real bad headache and pain down my arm (right). My question is as above, "What are the chances of damaging your hardware this far down the track?" I would have thought that i would be nearly fused completely. Thanking you in advance for any responses.
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chances of damaging hardware
Vali
44 years young! now 45
Surgery - June 1st, 2009
Dr David Hall - Adelaide Spine Clinic
St. Andrews Hospital, Adelaide, South Australia
Pre-op curve - 58 degree lumbar
Post -op - 5 degrees
T11 - S1 Posterior
L4/5 - L5/S1 Anterior FusionTags: None
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Vali
You husband is very lucky. Falls off ladders and step stools are something that we as scolis should avoid at all costs.
I really don’t think you have to worry about your hardware as much as you have to worry about disrupting a fusion. Integrity of fusion at different time periods has not been defined. It was one of my questions. There are many factors and age plays a big part in this.
Even though the only way to verify that a fusion is solid, is to run a ct scan, it probably isnt worth it unless there is pain involved. Cts emit 440 times the radiation over a standard coronal x-ray.
Im sure you have heard that without BMP, 12 months is the fusion timeframe. You are almost there.
I don’t own a ladder. I wont buy one.....Too dangerous.
Ed49 yr old male, now 63, the new 64...
Pre surgery curves T70,L70
ALIF/PSA T2-Pelvis 01/29/08, 01/31/08 7" pelvic anchors BMP
Dr Brett Menmuir St Marys Hospital Reno,Nevada
Bending and twisting pics after full fusion
http://www.scoliosis.org/forum/showt...on.&highlight=
My x-rays
http://www.scoliosis.org/forum/attac...2&d=1228779214
http://www.scoliosis.org/forum/attac...3&d=1228779258
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How are you today, Vali? Any improvement after a sleep?
Did you receive BMP?
Perhaps, for peace of mind, an email to your surgeon telling him what you've told us, might be warranted, if there's no improvement. Good luck, and let us know the outcome, won't you?Surgery March 3, 2009 at almost 58, now 63.
Dr. Askin, Brisbane, Australia
T4-Pelvis, Posterior only
Osteotomies and Laminectomies
Was 68 degrees, now 22 and pain free
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oh gosh, Vali...hope you are OK and not in too much pain...
if you develop pain, i think you need a scan...maybe a call to the doctor, pain or not! just to reassure you...or to tell you what to look out for!
thank goodness your husband is OK...it could have been...just so much worse!
please take care....maybe no ladders for awhile!!
jess
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Hi Vali...
There's no way that you can break the implants unless there was already an area that wasn't fusing. You can, however, pull screws out of bone. To put your mind at ease, you might want to ask your surgeon to take films, but the additional radiation is probably a bigger risk than waiting until your 1 year follow up visit. In truth, I suspect the damage is far more likely to be of the soft tissue variety.
Glad your husband is OK. Hope you are as well.
Regards,
LindaNever argue with an idiot. They always drag you down to their level, and then they beat you with experience. --Twain
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Surgery 2/10/93 A/P fusion T4-L3
Surgery 1/20/11 A/P fusion L2-sacrum w/pelvic fixation
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update
Hi everyone and thankyou for your responses. After reading your responses, it made me think.........Dr Hall and i agreed that we wouldn't do unnecessary xrays due to the fact that i have had Malignant Melanoma 4 times, therefore i knew that if i rang him, he would probably say, 'take some pain meds and rest up. If your still having problems, call me in a couple days'. So..... I decided to 'suck it up' and see what happens! I upped my dose of Emu Oil Capsules to 3 caps/3X daily and applied Emu oil to the painful areas 3x daily and then at night, i took 2X Panadeine Forte. This seems to have worked, as now the pain is nearly non existent! I think everything will be OK, but i still might speak to Dr H. on Monday.
To Ed, ladders give me the heebegeebees too!
Jen & Ed, I did not have BMP. So i guess that 12 months is the time frame for me, although we did see evidence of bone growth at 5 months post-op at L4/5-L5/S1. If i only knew how to load photos on here, you could have a look. I am not computer savvy.
Jess, thankyou for your caring thoughts.
Linda, I think you may be right about the 'soft tissue variety', cause i figured if there was more to it, i would definitely know about it! (Pain)Vali
44 years young! now 45
Surgery - June 1st, 2009
Dr David Hall - Adelaide Spine Clinic
St. Andrews Hospital, Adelaide, South Australia
Pre-op curve - 58 degree lumbar
Post -op - 5 degrees
T11 - S1 Posterior
L4/5 - L5/S1 Anterior Fusion
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Vali,
I'm glad you're doing better. Thank goodness the hubby is ok too. I won't go on ladders or climb things now, I try to protect myself.__________________________________________
Debbe - 50 yrs old
Milwalkee Brace 1976 - 79
Told by Dr. my curve would never progress
Surgery 10/15/08 in NYC by Dr. Michael Neuwirth
Pre-Surgury Thorasic: 66 degrees
Pre-Surgery Lumbar: 66 degrees
Post-Surgery Thorasic: 34 degrees
Post-Surgery Lumbar: 22 degrees
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That's good news Vali. It must have just been soft tissue damage. I hope your husband is doing ok too!Surgery March 3, 2009 at almost 58, now 63.
Dr. Askin, Brisbane, Australia
T4-Pelvis, Posterior only
Osteotomies and Laminectomies
Was 68 degrees, now 22 and pain free
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Thanks Debbei and Jen, I must admit, i feel way better today, the neck is still a bit sore but OK. My DH is being his usual self (bloody hilarious), he is having problems walking, sleeping etc, but he makes jokes about it all the time. Tells everyone he was visiting the mistress when her husband came home he had to flee from the balcony, but he slipped and fell! (obviously it wasn't Rapunzel!) To watch him reminds me of my spinal surgery. I'm trying to teach him how to log roll and make things easier for himself, but he just cracks up laughing all the time then complains that his ribs hurt. He sneezed twice today and OH MY GOD, thankfully the grandkids weren't around, the language was not nice! Once again thanks girls, your concern is much appreciated.Vali
44 years young! now 45
Surgery - June 1st, 2009
Dr David Hall - Adelaide Spine Clinic
St. Andrews Hospital, Adelaide, South Australia
Pre-op curve - 58 degree lumbar
Post -op - 5 degrees
T11 - S1 Posterior
L4/5 - L5/S1 Anterior Fusion
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Great that you are feeling better.
Your story reminded me of my one kid who was injured ~2 weeks out when she went to the prom and her friend hugged her and pulled her forward. She had severe pain right below the fusion for a week or so.
So it sounds to me like you did something right above the fusion to soft tissue or possibly your spine. It seems almost impossible that you could have affected the fused area with the instrumentation they use.
The fusion has to end somewhere at the top and bottom and those areas are definitely going to take the brunt of any differential movement over the instrumented areas. Hardware is so good that most kids at least need no physical restrictions whatsoever except the self restrictions from pain.
I'm betting you didn't do a thing to the fusion.
Good luck.Last edited by Pooka1; 04-12-2010, 11:57 AM.Sharon, mother of identical twin girls with scoliosis
No island of sanity.
Question: What do you call alternative medicine that works?
Answer: Medicine
"We are all African."
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Thankyou Pooka. I remember that episode with your daughter, it gave me goosebumps at the time!
Thankyou rohrer for the hugs. I'm OK, but hubby is still struggling a bit. As they say 'time will heal'.Vali
44 years young! now 45
Surgery - June 1st, 2009
Dr David Hall - Adelaide Spine Clinic
St. Andrews Hospital, Adelaide, South Australia
Pre-op curve - 58 degree lumbar
Post -op - 5 degrees
T11 - S1 Posterior
L4/5 - L5/S1 Anterior Fusion
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