I saw a scoliosis specialist today, Dr Gupta, and I have to say that he was simply awesome. He was able to answer all my questions, understood my problems and my history of living with my deformity. (My initial consult with another "spine specialist" did not go as well. He didn't have answers to all my questions, and he was not a scoliosis specialist.)
Dr Gupta discovered while looking at my x-rays that I have a double thoracic curve, the top is about 40 degrees, the lower at 53 degrees. He said that the decision to have surgery is all mine. I am not in constant pain, but I do have pain on ocassion. (During the exam today he had me lie on my stomach and he pressed down on my spine, looking to see if I had any pain. Uggggh, when he pressed down on my curve-area, it really hurt. I am still in some pain from that!) I told him that my main motivation is to stop my curve from progressing, and to rid myself of my rib deformity. I want to stop being a "freak" - I have felt this way my whole adult life.
He suggests that I think about it and see him again in a year's time, less if I want to. Because I have no earlier x-rays to compare to my recent films (March 2009), he can't determine how quickly my curvature is progressing. So I think that I will wait until the end of this year, have another set of x-rays, and see him again. I know that this is a big decision for me, and my family, and in the meantime I will continue to read articles and do my research, and of course, continue to read this forum. I have learned a lot here.
Dr Gupta discovered while looking at my x-rays that I have a double thoracic curve, the top is about 40 degrees, the lower at 53 degrees. He said that the decision to have surgery is all mine. I am not in constant pain, but I do have pain on ocassion. (During the exam today he had me lie on my stomach and he pressed down on my spine, looking to see if I had any pain. Uggggh, when he pressed down on my curve-area, it really hurt. I am still in some pain from that!) I told him that my main motivation is to stop my curve from progressing, and to rid myself of my rib deformity. I want to stop being a "freak" - I have felt this way my whole adult life.
He suggests that I think about it and see him again in a year's time, less if I want to. Because I have no earlier x-rays to compare to my recent films (March 2009), he can't determine how quickly my curvature is progressing. So I think that I will wait until the end of this year, have another set of x-rays, and see him again. I know that this is a big decision for me, and my family, and in the meantime I will continue to read articles and do my research, and of course, continue to read this forum. I have learned a lot here.
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