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  • Surgery the end of May

    This is my first time posting to any online forum. Most of my questions about surgery have been answered and my fears/worries validated by those of you who are about to go through it and all of the support from those post op - thank you! I'm scheduled for surgery May 31 at Mass General. I have a 45 degree thorasic curve, a 55 degree lumbar curve, and a rib hump. Not quite sure yet what will be fused. I have a lot of pain in what feels like my hip/pelvis. The doctor says this could be from the curves and rotation of the spine. Anyone else with hip pain prior to surgery? Did it go away after the surgery? My back hurts after I stand or sit too long. I guess I want to be assured that the surgery and recovery period are worth the end result.
    I also worry about what it feels like to wake up after the operation. I was very sick after my 3 c sections and very itchy from the morphine - this was just from the spinal. I'm 41.

    Has anyone had their surgery in two parts? I think I will have two operations four days apart so I'm not under for over 10 hours - this is what the doctor is telling me. I can't imagine I'll feel that great going into the second surgery.
    surgery 5-31-07
    Dr. Wood, Mass General
    Fused T10-L4
    Had 55 degree curve now 6 degrees

  • #2
    Hi Klein,

    Welcome to this forum!!! I still remember my first post, and I often wonder why I waited so long to do it. This is the best place to be for information and support.

    We have all had different surgeries and recoveries. So it hard to know exactly what it will be like. I had the surgery at the age of 45, from T-1 to L-5, and I had a rough recovery. But was it worth it??? I still have a rare bad day and I might say no, but most days I would say yes!!!

    The important thing is once you make up your mind to do it, don't compare yourself to anyone else. Don't feel bad about the range of emotions you may go through before and afterwards, it's normal.

    Stay here and express all your emotions, and vent when you need too, it helps a lot. I have found that there are so many caring people here, and there is always at least one person that is going through, or has been through the same thing.

    Shari

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    • #3
      welcome aboard..

      shari said it all so well, we are all trudging forward toward that same goal, and i personally am amazed at how many people have the same fears and questions i do. i havent posted much because my questions have been pretty well answered in previous posts. now, i do know what you are talking about with the hip pain. that is what was the last straw that pushed me to the point of quitting my full time position at work due to the pain, and seeing the surgeon. i limped so badly that the rumor among my co-workers was that i had suffered a STROKE!!! BUT- it was not the hip joint, but the muscles, ligaments, tendons, etc on the top of the hip bone itself, it was being pulled and twisted from the scoliosis. anything that i do that involves twisting, such as vacuuming, aggravates the heck out of it. i have improved since i stopped pushing myself so hard physically, but, i sure hope it improves after surgery. after reading about all these success stories, i truly believe it will. IF if does not all improve, i think this forum will also help in finding ways to cope or find additional resources. keep your chin up..
      Lisa age 47
      T curve 69 degrees
      L curve 40 degrees more or less - compensatory
      fused to from T-3 to sacrum
      anterior and posterior surgeries completed June 1, 2007
      pushing hard in recovery !!

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      • #4
        Hi KleinJ,

        Our dates are close, our symptoms are similar and we both seem to be in the Boston area although our surgeons and hospitals are across town from one another! I also have hip pain. I am hoping that it will be better after my fusion but fear that arthritis may be part of the problem and that it will linger post operatively. My surgeries (each about 8 hours) will be two weeks apart -- perhaps because I am a bit older than you and also because Dr. Frank Rand at New England Baptist prefers to do it this way. Are you working with Dr. Kirkham Wood at MGH? Feel free to send me a private message if you wish. I have not encountered many Boston area folks on this Forum and was beginning to think that everyone in this area (except me) had straight backs!

        Linda W.
        Linda
        Two-stage A/P fusion T6-S1 with lumbar implants June 12 & June 27, 2007 at age 57
        S curve 75+ degrees with kyphosis
        Now 45 degrees and standing 3 inches taller!
        Dr. Frank Rand, New England Baptist Hospital, Boston

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        • #5
          Thanks and rib question

          Thanks all,
          I feel better already. The doctor is telling me that he will use two of my ribs for the fusion. Is this common? Do you start a new thread when you introduce a new topic?
          Jody
          surgery 5-31-07
          Dr. Wood, Mass General
          Fused T10-L4
          Had 55 degree curve now 6 degrees

          Comment


          • #6
            using ribs for fusion

            Yes, it is common. The ribs removed to reduce the hump are "recycled" and make excellent bone graft for the fusion.
            Original scoliosis surgery 1956 T-4 to L-2 ~100 degree thoracic (triple)curves at age 14. NO hardware-lost correction.
            Anterior/posterior revision T-4 to Sacrum in 2002, age 60, by Dr. Boachie-Adjei @Hospital for Special Surgery, NY = 50% correction

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