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  • Chris, yes, yes, and yes. The only thing I don't think they could ever get me to do again is to go to a nursing home for recuperation. I asked Dr. Viere last week if there was any possibility of that and he said no. I could have hugged him.

    I'll look backwards in this thread, and see if I can find your story.

    (saying that reminds me of the old TV line about New York that started off -"there are 8 million stories in the city") There are so many of us Scoliosis Survivors and it seems each story is different.

    I never gave scoliosis any thought because I didn't know anyone that had it and it took me close to a year to find a doctor who diagnosed it.
    Diane in Dallas
    Adult Ideopatic Scoliosis (37%) and Kyphosis (65%)
    Surgery #1 8/4/03 - Dr. Shelokov, Plano
    Surg #2 12/8/03 - Dr. Shelokov, Plano
    Surg #3 1/10/05 - Dr. Shelokov, Plano
    Surg #4 9/10/07 - Dr. Viere, Dallas
    Surg #5 1/28/08 - Dr. Viere, Dallas
    Surg #6 4/27/09 - Dr. Viere, Dallas

    Comment


    • I'm in port aransas, texas. I wore a milwalkee brace from 1972-1976.with no results. In 1979 I had surgery on my S curves. I had two herrington rods and bone grafts with bone from my hip.My dr. was albert Sanders, San Antonio,texas. I was pretty much pain free until 2004 .I started having neck pain and pain in my arms and hands. In 2006 at times I have pain in my legs it's more like my legs are tired as if I had walked 10 miles. Has anyone had similar pain and what has been done for it.

      Comment


      • To Diane in Dallas

        Diane did you have a bone growth stimulator after your surgeries? Just curious--I am almost 2 years post op and have some of the shoulder area pain you mentioned. It is not constant though, and infrequent. All my Xrays have been OK and I am not due to go back to Shelokov until December I think. I can't imagine going through all you have. Thanks, Judy

        Comment


        • Surgery 1982 vs. 2007 style

          Re-post:

          I had my surgery in 1982. My rod goes from between my shoulder blades down to the lumbar region, had to wear a cast for 9 months, bone fusions, the whole 9 yards. At the time the Harringtons were all the rage here in Houston with Scoliosis Associates. They must have done about 25 Million Harrington rod surgerys during that time in the early to mid 80's (okay not THAT many). Now the partners have retired, (I'm certainly not advocating it, but I believe there were a few lawsuits nationwide involving screws and rods not being FDA approved, etc.) so perhaps they got out while the getting was good! My surgery was a success, I am very active, and I had no trouble with my rods or back for 20+ years, thank God!

          My little half sister, who had mainly swayback and kyphosis, just had her surgery in June done by Dr. Hanson with Baylor here in Houston, mainly on her upper and mid back. She got the screws, mini rods, (not the Harrington), and no cast or brace. She is doing well, looks and feels great, got good correction (shoulders are going back for the first time since her early teens). She is very thankful as well.

          I have recently had a lot of pain in the past 3-4 years, especially in the early mornings while sleeping (trying to anyways!). This seems to be a common theme with most of the Harrington recipients. I am considering re-surgery to add more curve back into my back which has flattened out several degrees from the side view, and maybe ditch the rods. I still have great lateral correction, I run, swim, and am very active. I am toying with my options, but am leaning towards a "wait and see" what happens with a good chiropractor, masseuse, hot tub, pool, and gym. Dr. Hanson does this corrective surgery, but I'm a little worried about adding even more hardware to my spinal area and even especially about cutting out some bone. I have also been toying with having the rods removed as I suspect they are the culprit with the back flattening further. Any suggestions?

          Comment


          • To houstongal

            I understand your apprehension. I have been toying with the idea of another surgery since 2000 when I had hardware removed. Believe me, if the hardware was the problem, I think you would know. A number of people on this forum have described the pain they have had with broken hardware.

            Have you seen the doctor yet? He may tell you to wait and see anyway. As for treatment options, from my experience, the insurance company ususally requires that the least invasion treatments happen first.

            Best wishes.
            p

            Comment


            • hardware vs. software

              Hi,

              Thanks for your response. Did you have rods removed or what? How is the outcome? I did go see Dr. Hanson here in Houston. He seems to be one of the only Drs. that wants to do this type of surgery. He said he recommeded an ostiotomy. I described that procedure, it just seems really drastic. Any ideas?
              Deb

              Comment


              • Hi Everybody - Silly me, I broke my right leg

                That's the latest and greatest on me. I can't put any weight on my right leg for 6 weeks. Long Story that I will add at the end of this post. But what I have discovered while being immobilized for the past week is that my back pain has been almost completely eliminated! If my ankle didn't hurt so bad, I would be able to quit taking pain meds. So here's another long story - aren't all us scoliosis patients long stories?

                I mentioned in previous posts that I was rear-ended slightly on March 9 on my way home from PT. My last corrective surgery was June 19, 2006, so prior to the car accident I was so close to being all better. Before I was rear-ended I was walking much faster and nearly pain free. I was also forgetting to take my pain meds (yes, I have been taking them daily since my first surgery in 2002 and through my 7 surgeries). I was happier, getting out more socially, yada, yada, yada. Then that car accident came along. Just to protect myself and document the accident, I emailed Shelokov's office the day of the accident.

                Okay, it wasn't a serious accident - but with my (our) back - any bump can be serious. I didn't think I was hurt when it happened - but a week later when I drove to visit my folks 175 miles away, pain was generated in my right leg and lower back. This was all new pain! And it was unbearable. I had to get out of the car so many times to make the pain go away on the trip there and back. Ok, so I was injured in the accident - what now.

                I notified Shelokov's office of the new pain and they sent me for a nerve test on my legs which resulted in nothing and then a myelogram which didn't show anything either. The pain wasn't constant, occurring mainly when I drove any distance over 20 minutes long. And since I work from home I don't drive very often - so I really wasn't sure. I had to fly to CA in early May for a meeting so I knew I needed some kind of pain intervention. I was sent for injections and that helped for about 2 weeks.

                I have to walk my dog 4-6 times a day. (she's my therapy dog as I got her after my second surgery just so I would have to walk). So over the course of time, my back pain was bearing it's ugly head more and more. It seemed the more I moved, the more it hurt. I was having to use more and more pain meds and lidocaine pain patches seemed to really help the pain locally. I was considering trying to immobilize my body somehow - but how? Breaking my leg was not my plan.

                But as it turns out, now that I have been immobilized, that back pain is all but gone. Interesting. I hate having to sit all day with my leg elevated. And sitting all day is causing my butt and right hip to ache, but my back is not hurting!! I have concluded that hardware in my back was affected by the car accident and all the walking and other movement I have done over the course of several months has caused that hardware to become loose in there somewhere. Maybe it will heal up on it's own as I await the broken leg to heal. But more than likely, I will have to have some kind of surgical repair.

                And if you want to hear how I broke my leg, read on.

                I had to go over an 8 foot fence. I got locked into a friend's backyard while I was house-sitting/dog-sitting. I tried breaking into the house, screaming for help, etc. Spent all Saturday night locked out back with the two dogs (mine and theirs). Everything was locked inside the house, keys, cell phone, water, etc. I waited til daylight to go over the fence and thought I would be able to lower myself to the ground with a little bit more control - but that was not to be.

                It could have been a lot worse - I could have injured my back - but so far no new pains there! ) I haven't told my friends yet (they are gone for 2 weeks) - don't want to ruin their vacation. I was just a stand - in house-sitter for the weekend while the other person went to her sister's baby shower on the east coast somewhere.

                Anyway, after I landed on the ground, I knew something was broken - heard it, felt it. I crawled my way to the curb and the neighbor across the street just happened out on his front porch to put his flag in the the holder. I was so lucky they were up, and also that they were the neighbors with a key to the house!! They helped me in, iced my leg, and told me they would watch the house and take care of the dog until the other person returned.

                I called my friend (who had locked the doorknob the day before) and she came and took me to the emergency room. She had stopped by there with me a couple times on Saturday while we were out running around. I just didn't even think about her locking the door that way, I didn't check it when I went out into the backyard when I got back there Saturday night to spend the night. I just walked right out like I had been doing. And then I couldn't get back in. So I ended up camping out in the backyard with a can of insect repellent (a true Godsend), two small pillows and a towel trying to sleep on a flimsy chaise that was too low to the ground. It was going to get to be close to 100 degrees on Sunday and Monday, so I knew I couldn't stay and wait for the other house-sitter to get home late Monday afternoon.

                In hindsight, I guess I could have just climbed up the fence and waited up there for someone to walk by, all the while trying to maintain my balance up there? I don't know. It was a stupid thing to do, but I couldn't think of other choices. I was worried their old dog to die in the heat and I wouldn't have been able to live with myself then.

                Does anyone else out there have luck like mine?
                Christy
                Plano, TX
                Surgical dates
                3/25/02 - fused T1-L3, T - 88 degrees
                L - 74 degrees
                7/8/04 - repaired 6 areas of non-union & fused L3-L4
                12/15/05 - fused L4-L5, L5-S1
                2/27/06 - corrected hardware failure
                3/5/06 - corrected hardware issue
                6/16/06 - replaced broken screw in pelvis
                3/9/07 - rear ended auto collision
                2/12/09 - totaled car - someone pulled out in front of me - Yikes!
                3/30/09 - Revision surgery, removed & replaced t12through S1

                Comment


                • Yup. . .

                  Originally posted by houstongal
                  Hi,

                  Thanks for your response. Did you have rods removed or what? How is the outcome? I did go see Dr. Hanson here in Houston. He seems to be one of the only Drs. that wants to do this type of surgery. He said he recommeded an ostiotomy. I described that procedure, it just seems really drastic. Any ideas?
                  Deb

                  For an osteotomy in Houston, I think Hanson is your guy. (He's mine--if I ever decide to go through all of this myself.) If you want to travel to Plano, Amarillo, or St. Louis, there are others.

                  If Hanson said that you need one, then by all means, get another opinion, because it is a pretty drastic procedure. Make sure you see someone who is recommended by others on this forum. I saw that you got some input from a couple already.

                  Yes, I had hardware removed in 2000. It didn't solve my problem. It only allowed my to put off the inevitable.

                  p

                  PS send a PM if you want all the gory details.
                  Last edited by PNUTTRO; 08-14-2007, 05:38 PM.

                  Comment


                  • Judy, I failed to respond to you and I'm so sorry.

                    Originally posted by judyk
                    Diane did you have a bone growth stimulator after your surgeries? Just curious--I am almost 2 years post op and have some of the shoulder area pain you mentioned. It is not constant though, and infrequent. All my Xrays have been OK and I am not due to go back to Shelokov until December I think. I can't imagine going through all you have. Thanks, Judy
                    I had the 4th surgery in Sept 2007 after the rods in the lumbar broke, and I had just been released after 4 mos to return to work, then the following week, I started having severe pains and since Dr. Viere was on vacation, I went in to see Linda, his wonderful P.A. The xrays told the story. Again, rods on both sides broke, this time in the thoracic (T6/T7 I think).

                    To finally answer your question, I had a bone growth stimulator twice; the original surgery, then the 2nd surgery.

                    I have a friend here in Dallas who just had her 1st revision but couldn't return to Shelokov - no insurance & he won't take Medicare, even though he did her original surgery. He got her hooked up with a Dr. Carmody, and she likes him very much & the revision went very well. She's now had a 2nd bone growth stim, plus she gives herself injections of a drug called Forteo (by Lily). she liked this stim better because it's ony 30 min instead of the previous 4 hrs. daily the first time around.

                    When I first saw Dr. V last summer & we planned on surgery, I mentioned the 2 previous bone stim's and he suggested we could perhaps get them reset or recharged, something... but then and now, I cannot find the machines so I think I threw them away. I thought they told me they self-destructed (you know, like Mission Impossible) and I thought the black cases were cool so I still have them. Go figure.

                    If anyone had told me four years ago, I would be having my 5th and posssibly 6th surgeries, I'm not sure what I would have agreed to. Like you or someone else said, there is the pain issue and I have a very low pain threshold.

                    Hope you're doing well. What is your latest?
                    Diane in Dallas
                    Adult Ideopatic Scoliosis (37%) and Kyphosis (65%)
                    Surgery #1 8/4/03 - Dr. Shelokov, Plano
                    Surg #2 12/8/03 - Dr. Shelokov, Plano
                    Surg #3 1/10/05 - Dr. Shelokov, Plano
                    Surg #4 9/10/07 - Dr. Viere, Dallas
                    Surg #5 1/28/08 - Dr. Viere, Dallas
                    Surg #6 4/27/09 - Dr. Viere, Dallas

                    Comment


                    • I am doing fine, no problems at all. Good luck on your pending surgery, and keep us posted. Can't believe it is #6 for you. You are a real trooper.

                      Comment


                      • Dr. Marco

                        I'm trying to find out if my doctor I have an appointment with does posterior and anterior surgeries or just posterior. My aunt is doodles as some of you may have just got done talking to her. She just finished a successfull surgery in St. Louis. Thank you for anyone that can help, I have had a horrible time getting a human being on the phone, It just goes straight to the assistants voice mail. I've even left my request for information faxed to another doctor and question about the surgery and asked the assistant to leave an e-mail address or someone else to call me back if I was directed to the wrong person. I recieved two missed calls and one voice mail just asking that I call back. If anyone knows anything about the surgery that would be great.

                        After speaking with Dr. Hanson's office, which I spoke to someone directly and they spent about 20 minutes talking to me about the surgery without even asking my name. I was very impressed. Pete, I think his name was, I learned that sometimes cutting from the front and back are neccessary for flexibility depending on curve and age. I am 27 and have two 60 degree s curves. If anyone verify this also or know what I should expect as a recommendation from Marco I would appreciate it.

                        I met with Marco six months ago and he said he wanted to take another x-ray in six months which would be May 13. My mother said I should consider cancelling the appointment if he does both, she said from what she has learned on this forum that he deals mostly with adolescents.

                        Comment


                        • Hi Squiggles...

                          I suspect you're going to need to make an appointment to get your answer. I think most scoliosis specialists do both types of surgery. However, what needs to be done in your case could be entirely different than someone with similar curves.

                          Good luck.

                          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


                          • Linda

                            Thanks that is what I figured. I guess I will go to the appointment and see what they have to say. My mother thinks Dr. Lenke in St. Louis is the only way to go because he does posterior only, but I would rather do it here in Texas. So I guess I will wait until May 13.

                            Comment


                            • Dr. Lagrone

                              Dr. Lagrone just did revision surgery on me 4/6/09. It went really well. I hope that helps a little.

                              TerryB

                              Comment


                              • Surgery 1982

                                I too have had the Harrington rod in 1982 and I seem to be having alot of problems. I constantly hurt and cannot sit, stand, or drive for a long period of time. I feel like an 80 year old woman. Everytime I go to the dr he tells me the same thing, your rod is in place and the surgery was a success but all we can do for you is give you meds. What kind of job can you hold down when you are popping pills all day? Anyway, just wanted you to know that I have had surgery also and it was in Houston by Dr.Erwin Wendell.

                                Comment

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