mobility

[mada]

I would like to know if after the surgery one could recover his/her back mobility.

[Sheena]

well i had my op in aug, and i could walk about 3days after it....i couldnt walk big steps or quickly, and i couldnt climb stairs, but i had a physio and we practised twice a day everyday for the duration of my stay.
is that helpful?

[LindaRacine]

Mada...

You should definitely be mobile after surgery unless you have a very unique case.

If you're talking about flexibility, there are many factors involved. In general, if you have a shorter fusion (like 5-6 vertebrae or fewer), and in the thoracic spine (as opposed to the lumbar spine), you will lose almost no flexibility. If you have a longer fusion that extends into the lumbar spine, you'll have some loss of flexibility. I have a very long fusion, and actually expected more loss of flexibility than I actually have.

Regards,
Linda

[sweetness514]

They wanted me to walk after a day but I couldn't, waited two days.

As far as flexibility is concerned, I guess it depends how one is flexible before th surgery and what is done physically after. For normal things, flexibility is still there although I don't bend from my waist anymore, it hurts the lower back anyways for anybody with or without a fusion. I also always try to stand or sit straight, or else my fusion "pulls", if I can describe it that way. I was so flexible before the op that I do miss some of the things I used to do, and that my body and back were more "free", sort of speak. But it depend on if a person is fused only in the thoracic region or the lumbar, like me.

Now if we talk about professionnal dancing or driving a low sportscar(for example), wich I loved to do, those are not possible for me anymore, but I know everybody's different and heard that even gymnasts get fusions. I wonder how far can they bend backwards and if they can do their backflips the same, :eek:

[LindaRacine]

Actually, no one bends at the waist. Ask a normal person to bend over, and you'll see that they bend at the hips.

--Linda

[sweetness514]

Ok, I had to think about it for a minute and get the image in my head and that is correct :cool:

I prefer bending at the knees.

[SpineWhine]

I am having surgery next week of just my thoracic spine. I have been told that I will have no limits as to my mobility or flexibility once I am fully healed. However, immediately after surgery, I have been told to walk as best as I am able. No swimming for 90 days, lifting restrictions, bending restrictions, etc. It will get better as I heal, so I should initially have quite a few restrictions on mobility and flexibiltiy, but as I return to normal - I will essentially return to normal.