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    Hi, I had surgery in May & June, I did great, no pain, no cane, on pills. Until Oct 14, I was walking and I felt a pop in my back, with some pain, felt like a pulled muscle, but was getting worse,and my ribs have a lot of pain. I went to see Dr. he x-ray me and it is cracked, (a old rod from 2002) he did not go up that high his work was all at the lumbar and sacrum. So sad to say I am having surgery Jan. 9 to replace 2 old rods. As everyone knowes this is very upsetting, but the pain fells like a knife is in the center of my back. Lu

  • #2
    So sorry to hear of your troubles. I hope that all goes well with your January surgery. How did the old rod break?
    Melissa

    Fused from C2 - sacrum 7/2011

    April 21, 2020- another broken rod surgery

    Comment


    • #3
      Lue,
      I "feel" your pain...don't know if you have read my post but I just broke a rod a couple of weeks ago. I just had my revision 18 months ago and was
      doing great so this came as a complete surprise to me. I'm sure it did to you as well. Do you feel the rod moving now that it is broken?
      My back feels clunky and loose. I wish you luck in your surgery in January...
      May 2008 Fusion T4 - S1, Pre-op Curves T45, L70 (age 48). Unsuccessful surgery.

      March 18, 2010 (age 50). Revision with L3 Osteotomy, Replacement of hardware T11 - S1 , addition of bilateral pelvic fixation. Correction of sagittal imbalance and kyphosis.

      January 24, 2012 (age 52) Revision to repair pseudoarthrosis and 2 broken rods at L3/L4.

      Comment


      • #4
        Hi Lue - - ((hugs)) - - i'm so sorry you're in so much pain. Last we spoke (after you broke your rod), you were doing so-so and were waiting to go see Dr. Kebaish. Can he give you anything for the pain until Jan.9th rolls around?? It sounds like you're really hurting...are you still able to work or did you have to stop?? Call anytime...my rods haven't broken (yet!!) but we can vent to each other about all this back crap! It's for the birds! Ok, take care --- TTYS

        Michele
        1993/1995: PSF w/ Harrington rods T3-L4
        Jan. 24, 2012: ALIF of L4-L5, L5-S1 w/ cage spacer and BMP
        Jan. 31, 2012: PLIF of L1-S1 w/ pelvic anchors
        Scheduled Nov.15, 2012: Fusion T2-S1 w/ pelvic anchors to fix T12 fracture
        http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c3...ot/myback2.jpg - BEFORE
        http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c3...CT2342x406.jpg - AFTER
        http://i31.photobucket.com/albums/c3...CT1410x229.jpg - AFTER
        www.jerseyot.blogspot.com

        Comment


        • #5
          Originally posted by Lue View Post
          Hi, I had surgery in May & June, I did great, no pain, no cane, on pills. Until Oct 14, I was walking and I felt a pop in my back, with some pain, felt like a pulled muscle, but was getting worse,and my ribs have a lot of pain. I went to see Dr. he x-ray me and it is cracked, (a old rod from 2002) he did not go up that high his work was all at the lumbar and sacrum. So sad to say I am having surgery Jan. 9 to replace 2 old rods. As everyone knowes this is very upsetting, but the pain fells like a knife is in the center of my back. Lu
          Lue, sorry to hear that. I'm wondering why the older rod would have broke unless there was a nonfusion there. You would think that after all this time they would have known, unless those rods were just really strong for a long time. Anyway, I'm so sorry you have to go through this again. There are so many people having revisions lately. I hope this is the last time and you are finally pain free. Gentle (((hugs)))
          Be happy!
          We don't know what tomorrow brings,
          but we are alive today!

          Comment


          • #6
            Lue

            Oh boy, I cant believe it. I hope you can control the pain until surgery.

            I had the soldering iron at 2 years out and thought I might have broken a rod, but didn’t. It was a soft tissue injury. It’s a scary thing.

            Hang in there
            Ed
            49 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

            Comment


            • #7
              Is there a reason for a rod to break other than pseudoarthrosis or sheer blunt force trauma?
              Be happy!
              We don't know what tomorrow brings,
              but we are alive today!

              Comment


              • #8
                If there is movement, they bend just like a paperclip. Eventually, it will break. I have read a million cycles. If there is no movement and a solid fusion can occur, the rods don’t do much.

                Fusion mass can vary, from cheesecake, to stone. Everyone is different. Why this happens, nobody knows.

                When we have full fusions with many levels, the odds are higher that a level can be compromised. It’s a numbers thing.

                Anterior and posterior fusions balance out the fusion and are used in difficult cases like myself.

                Ed
                49 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

                Comment


                • #9
                  So wouldn't it be better to get the hardware out, assuming that the fusion occurred and is solid? Or do you just wait for a rod to break and then have it out? If the rod breaks, can it cause dammage requiring new instrumentation?

                  Sorry for the ????
                  I don't want to scare anyone.
                  Be happy!
                  We don't know what tomorrow brings,
                  but we are alive today!

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    Lue and Kristi,
                    I'm so sorry to read about your broken rods. I'm not sure I want to try to play golf for awhile even if Dr. Lenke gives me permission. I've been told that they won't know if you are fused or not, even at a year, unless you get a CT scan. Were you both told that you were completely fused or was it just assumed at a year?
                    Karen

                    Surgery-Jan. 5, 2011-Dr. Lenke
                    Fusion T-4-sacrum-2 cages/5 osteotomies
                    70 degree thoracolumbar corrected to 25
                    Rib Hump-GONE!
                    Age-60 at the time of surgery
                    Now 66
                    Avid Golfer & Tap Dancer
                    Retired Kdgn. Teacher

                    See photobucket link for:
                    Video of my 1st Day of Golf Post-Op-3/02/12-Bradenton, FL
                    Before and After Picture of back 1/7/11
                    tap dancing picture at 10 mos. post op 11/11/11-I'm the one on the right.
                    http://s1119.photobucket.com/albums/k630/pottoff2/

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      Linda would answer best, but assuming that the fusion occurred is not something they do, they go in and see, and then deal with the situation.(re-fuse) Ct’s are used to take a peek first.

                      Broken rods that rub will create metal particles and can lead to infection.

                      Removing hardware is not something that you take lightly. It has happened, and over the years the forces “can” re-curve the spine. Karen Ocker knows about this, she had a scoli surgery in the 50’s before any hardware was used. It only makes sense in a revision to keep things simple, work on that specific level without opening up a large area.

                      I said that rods don’t do much after a solid fusion BUT, in this case they do........bone remodeling happens in about 2 years.

                      Do all scolis remodel and re-curve without hardware after fusion? I don’t know this answer, or percentages.

                      Ed
                      49 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

                      Comment


                      • #12
                        Karen

                        I took things easy in my recovery. My arm and shoulder were broken, so this is understandable.

                        After my shoulder surgery and my shoulder was healed, it was about 15 months, I relayed the fact that I was nervous about skiing to Dr Menmuir. He ordered me to go skiing, and if I didn’t go, he would go with me......take a day off! Wow! He didn’t want me walking on eggshells for the rest of my life. Shooting another CT isn’t worth it, the radiation is too high. If a pseudarthrosis happens, it happens, then hardware breaks.

                        I too was pretty nervous,(I have a Utah Park City thread with pics), but it all worked out slowly, just a little at a time. It took about a year....

                        See what Dr Lenke says, I would guess that he will want you to “slowly” work on your swing. Just a little at a time. No heavy driving for awhile.

                        Ed
                        49 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

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          Originally posted by rohrer01 View Post
                          So wouldn't it be better to get the hardware out, assuming that the fusion occurred and is solid? Or do you just wait for a rod to break and then have it out? If the rod breaks, can it cause dammage requiring new instrumentation?

                          Sorry for the ????
                          I don't want to scare anyone.
                          If the fusion is solid, the rods aren't going to break.

                          The only trauma that would break a spinal rod that's intact would probably be the force of a freight train hitting you head on.
                          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


                          • #14
                            Ed & Linda,
                            The way I understand it from Dr. Lenke's office is that after a year, they do not take a CT scan, but "assume" you are fused unless something looks odd in the x-rays. I was just thinking that if I'm not 100% fused, which from what I've read on the forum is normal, that a repetitive movement could break a rod like a paper clip that bends and bends and then breaks. I can believe that this wouldn't happen if you have a solid 100% fusion, but what if it's only about 75% fused at a year?
                            Karen

                            Surgery-Jan. 5, 2011-Dr. Lenke
                            Fusion T-4-sacrum-2 cages/5 osteotomies
                            70 degree thoracolumbar corrected to 25
                            Rib Hump-GONE!
                            Age-60 at the time of surgery
                            Now 66
                            Avid Golfer & Tap Dancer
                            Retired Kdgn. Teacher

                            See photobucket link for:
                            Video of my 1st Day of Golf Post-Op-3/02/12-Bradenton, FL
                            Before and After Picture of back 1/7/11
                            tap dancing picture at 10 mos. post op 11/11/11-I'm the one on the right.
                            http://s1119.photobucket.com/albums/k630/pottoff2/

                            Comment


                            • #15
                              Originally posted by golfnut View Post
                              Ed & Linda,
                              The way I understand it from Dr. Lenke's office is that after a year, they do not take a CT scan, but "assume" you are fused unless something looks odd in the x-rays. I was just thinking that if I'm not 100% fused, which from what I've read on the forum is normal, that a repetitive movement could break a rod like a paper clip that bends and bends and then breaks. I can believe that this wouldn't happen if you have a solid 100% fusion, but what if it's only about 75% fused at a year?
                              I think that is a very good way to look at it. After all, why rush into something when you could have a bad result?
                              Melissa

                              Fused from C2 - sacrum 7/2011

                              April 21, 2020- another broken rod surgery

                              Comment

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