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Pros to having corrective surgery?

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  • Pros to having corrective surgery?

    Hi there,

    I would like everyone that has had surgery, if they would, please tell me about the benefits of surgery. If it dramatically changed their lives for the better. Did it cause new pain , less pain different pain?
    Were there any trade offs, such as less mobility etc.
    I am new to the idea of possibly having surgery for the first time.
    I have an appt. to see a spine specialist thursday, I just got the results of my scoli study; 30 degree dextroscoliosis of lower thoracic spine and 38 degree levoscoliosis of lumbar spine with left-sided rotation of lumbar vertebrae. Advanced degenerative disc disease at L2-3.
    I don't quite understand when the curve is considered bad enough for surgery, or is it the rotation I need to be concerned about.

    Thanks for any advice or opinions,
    Juliann

  • #2
    hi, juliann! i am 5 months post-op and i knew the day after surgery i had done the right thing. the nerve pain in my left leg was gone and i could put even weight on my legs. at christmas i could stand in the kitchen and bake all afternoon without pain; i was tired, but i didn't hurt anymore. i am finding in pt that i have much more mobility than i imagined i would. i am glad i waited years and tried alternative methods to relieve the pain, because i knew then that surgery was the absolute right thing to do. good luck as you gather information and decide what to do. (i'm going now to shop for a skirt; it will hang evenly now. haven't worn a skirt in 15 years!)
    Sue


    Milwaukee Brace from ages 8 - 16
    T36 degrees/L56 degrees Pre-Op
    Fused T3 - S1
    Surgery done Sept. 15, 2004
    Dr. Robert G. Viere
    North Texas Spine Care @ Baylor

    Comment


    • #3
      Hi Juliann...

      Most surgeons won't perform scoliosis surgery on an adult with curves below 50 degrees, unless there's a very specific reason to do so.

      In my case, I didn't really care too much about the cosmetic result, but I'm very glad I had surgery because of the amount of pain I had.

      If you haven't seen it, I've got a draft on my website, of a questionnaire to help people decide if surgery is right for them:

      http://www.scoliosislinks.com/ShouldYouHaveSurgery.htm

      Regards,
      Linda
      Never argue with an idiot. They always drag you down to their level, and then they beat you with experience. --Twain
      ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
      Surgery 2/10/93 A/P fusion T4-L3
      Surgery 1/20/11 A/P fusion L2-sacrum w/pelvic fixation

      Comment


      • #4
        skewed results?

        If I answered truthfully, and my results are 16 Should, 2 Shouldn't - am I skewing the results because I WANT surgery, or is that my real score? My back hurts so bad today...
        Age: 30
        Pre-surgery: upper curve 44 (and kyphosis), lower curve 45
        Post-surgery: under 20, both curves (doesn't even qualify as scoliosis anymore )

        surgery: August 29, 2005
        fusion T5-L3
        Surgeon - Dr. Ted Wagner at University of Washington (Seattle)

        Scar getting to the point where people either don't notice it or think it is from something much less serious!

        Comment


        • #5
          Since it's not a scientific questionnaire, there is no way of really validating your score. Only you know whether you answered truthfully.

          I tried to answer the same questions in terms of how I felt when I made the decision to have surgery 13 years ago, and my score was similar to yours.

          Were there any questions you couldn't answer, or which you had difficulty answering?

          --Linda
          Never argue with an idiot. They always drag you down to their level, and then they beat you with experience. --Twain
          ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
          Surgery 2/10/93 A/P fusion T4-L3
          Surgery 1/20/11 A/P fusion L2-sacrum w/pelvic fixation

          Comment


          • #6
            the ones relating to the curves, since I have more pain than my degrees would indicate...
            Age: 30
            Pre-surgery: upper curve 44 (and kyphosis), lower curve 45
            Post-surgery: under 20, both curves (doesn't even qualify as scoliosis anymore )

            surgery: August 29, 2005
            fusion T5-L3
            Surgeon - Dr. Ted Wagner at University of Washington (Seattle)

            Scar getting to the point where people either don't notice it or think it is from something much less serious!

            Comment


            • #7
              I'm not sure I follow. I don't think there's any question that deals with both pain and Cobb angle. Did I misunderstand your response?

              I'm trying to make the questions relatively black and white so that people won't have difficulty in coming up with answers to each question. It seems to me that the only subjective questions are the one about back pain and loss of function, the one about how realistic ones expectations are in terms of pain reduction, and possibly the one about the cosmetic aspect.

              --Linda
              Never argue with an idiot. They always drag you down to their level, and then they beat you with experience. --Twain
              ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
              Surgery 2/10/93 A/P fusion T4-L3
              Surgery 1/20/11 A/P fusion L2-sacrum w/pelvic fixation

              Comment


              • #8
                Thanks everyone that responded to my inquiry. It is helping me to prepare for my for my first surgical opinion. Your experiences and insight is invaluable.

                Thanks,
                Juliann

                Comment


                • #9
                  That's what I meant - I always feel that I should be considered like I have a larger angle because of the pain...
                  Age: 30
                  Pre-surgery: upper curve 44 (and kyphosis), lower curve 45
                  Post-surgery: under 20, both curves (doesn't even qualify as scoliosis anymore )

                  surgery: August 29, 2005
                  fusion T5-L3
                  Surgeon - Dr. Ted Wagner at University of Washington (Seattle)

                  Scar getting to the point where people either don't notice it or think it is from something much less serious!

                  Comment

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