Back home from Amarillo!!!!

[Theresa]

Hi All,

First off, please excuse any mispellings or typos as it is not that easy to sit yet. I had my Revision surgery Monday, May 21st. The actual surgery (incsion) started at 8:30 am and lasted until 5:30 pm. Then 2 hours in recovery so my family didn't actually get to see me until a little after 8 pm and visiting hours were up at 9 pm. Dr. LaGrone ending up only needing to do one PSO osteotomy at L2, fuse my transitional vertebrae at S2 or S3 (I forget which one he said) and install the pelvic instrumentation. He thoroughly inspected all my screws and fusions and said that everything looked great!!! Nothing loose. He used the cell saver but with all of my new growth that I had I bleed alot! They ended up giving me 6 units of blood and 2 units of plasma in the CCU. The heavy bleeding is also what caused the surgery to go the 9 hours. I had something happen that I hadn't heard anybody discuss before and that is that I was given 3 shots of insulin during my stay in CCU. They said my blood sugar was messed up, I have never had a problem with my blood sugars before?!?!?! My husband was told they were messed up due to receiving so much blood in a short time span. During my first surgery I had a 2 week hospital stay, during that stay I received 7 units of blood with no problem with blood gases. Has anyone heard of this before........Linda Racine?..........Karen Ocker?

After 2 1/2 days in CCU I went up to the 7th floor, then was moved into rehab on Sat. I was released on Monday. After filling prescriptions we started our drive back to Houston. Monday wasn't that bad, we made it to the north side of Fort Worth, about a 4 to 5 hour drive. My younger brother from Dallas came to visit us at the hotel and then after that I went to bed. The next morning we left about 10 am to make the final part of the trip to Houston. By time we got home I was white as a sheet!!!! The second part of the trip was awful!!!!! The weather was also changing so I don't know if that contributed to some of the pain. Usually when the weather changes I really hurt!

When I look in the mirror at the side view of myself.....I'm so straight!!! At the top of my back, near my neck, my rod used to stick out quite a bit, but now it doesn't. I really hurt a lot more with this revision than with the last one. The doctor said he really did some untwisting and tourking on the spine.

I will write more later.

[felix999]

Hi,

Just wanted to ask your curves before surgery were quite small had they increased before this surgery?

Thanks
Amanda

[Theresa]

Amanda,

If you click on my name, then click on my posts you will see that this has been a 3 year work in progress. I had my A/P surgery done in April 2004, my curves were T79 and L44 (there's also a 30 degree curve in the cervical area but we aren't dealing with that). After surgery the curves measured to what I have in my signature list. They had changed some from that due to settlement and stuff. I had my first revision surgery a year later for thoracularlumbar kyphosis. I don't know the degree of curvature for that. The doctor performed a PSO osteotomy at L3 taking a little over an inch out of my spine. After this surgery I was still leaning forward somewhat, went back into theraphy for a year, and still progessively got to where my c7 was 14 cm to far forward of my sacrum (Flatback). That is what this surgery was all about. Another PSO osteotomy at L2, fuse a transitional vertebrae that I have on my sacrum, extend the fusion from S1 to S2 or 3(?), install pelvic screws to help suppport my spine and to also help with my hip flexion contractures.

So as you can see, I had curves everywhich way, not just the side to side curves. The doctor also derotated my spine some more this time as well.

[MariHOU]

Welcome back!

My friend, Theresa.

WELCOME HOME!!!! I am so glad that you are now walking straight and are doing much, much better.

Did you get my emails at the hospital? I hope that you knew that we were out here praying for you and still are.

Stay in touch.

Marilyn

[Theresa]

Hi Marilyn,

They only brought me one e-mail while I was in the hospital. I forgot who it was from but I do know it wasn't from you. It was from someone on the Flatbackers site. I don't think they could keep up with me there. I was on 3 different floors between Monday to Monday. The hospital called yesterday and wanted us to grade them. My husband told them the doctor (LaGrone) receives a 10 but the hospital a 4!!!! Even though I had this big yellow band on my arm telling them I'm allergic to tape, you would not believe how many times we had to stop them and tell them paper tape!!!! My face had scabs on my eyelids, to the sides of my eyes, and two big scabs on both sides of my face just above the jaw bone. My husband and family said when they first saw me in recovery I didn't have the scabs, but when they came back the next day for visiting hours I had these sores on my face. My whole body was super bloated that they had to use Lasicks (sp?) to help get the fluid down. I can remember someone washing my face and telling them to stop because the wash rag felt like it had a piece of something sharp in it. Since my skin was so stretched out with fluid it probably felt like that because of the roughness of the wash rag. The food service people never got my food right, they would have me fill out a form, and they would cross things off saying I was on a restricted diet. I wasn't, I was on a regular diet, the nurse even called down to them a couple of times!

Once you have been to St. Luke's here in Houston on the Spine floor, I don't think anywhere else can compare to the care that is given here. At BSA they didn't even have nurses that were specialized with spine patients. It really makes a difference. They know how to prepare your bed better for you to turn you and move you and how to make you comfortable. There they would just have someone roll you towards themselves then someone else stuff a pillow under you.

Oh by the way, Dr. LaGrone did saw that everything else with my spine looked great! He said the work looked great, if you get my drift. How is your PT coming along? I go see our friend next Friday afternoon for my 2 week checkup.

I hope you're doing better!!!

[Theresa]

Hi All,

I finally got a picture taken last night of the hardware that was removed from my back. I will post them here so you can see what it looks like. I will scan my new x-ray in later this week.

[Cakedec]

Awesome looking hardware!

Wow, the size of those screws! And on the 2nd picture, what is that longest flat looking bar?

Thanks for sharing your most recent surgery story. I also had a brief blood sugar problem after my first scoliosis surgery. It was also after getting the extra blood, now that I think about it although they didn't make any connection with that. It was 3 days after my surgery and they had unhooked me from iv and that night I started getting heart palpatations and a very fast pulse. They had to hook me back up to the iv, checked my heart, blood, etc. and said later that it had been a blood sugar fluctuation.

Hope that everything heals well and each day gets better for you. Looking forward to seeing your newest x-ray!

Deb
surgery 7/24/06 at age 47
T5-L5
for T72, L77 curves

[Theresa]

Deb,

That flat thing was a ruler showing the size of the rods. The longest one measured 9 inches with the curve in it. In order to post the pictures here they came out real little.

Thanks for posting about your blood sugar problem with your surgery. I hadn't heard of it before. I even looked up transfusions and I didn't find anything on the net about it.

Maybe you can see the pictures better this way. You can double click the picture to see it bigger.

[PNUTTRO]

Glad you are back.

I haven't logged in for a while, but I wanted to say Hi and congratulations for getting it over.

Sorry that the hospital sucked. I think I'll make my husband stay with me all the time at my next surgical intervention.

My sister had her hip joint revision done this week. The hospital that she stayed at wasn't the greatest, but when the staff knew who her surgeon was, they all made an extra effort. I guess the surgeon can have some influence if they want.

I am happy to see that you're back.
Take care.

p

[CHRIS WBS]

Theresa,

All I can say is you are a real trouper. I honestly don't think I have the wherewithal to survive what you'be been through the past few years. I hope it's smooth sailing from now on for you.

Chris

[Theresa]

P and Chris,

Thanks for the welcome back!

Chris, You will be surprised what you will put yourself through when you hurt enough every day doing the simplest things. I didn't want to only be sitting around mainly for the rest of my life. I knew there was still some options out there to get straight. Yes, this revision hurts alot more post-op but I can also see how straight I am with no leaning forward. I walked a mile today on the treadmill and the main part that was getting sore and tired were the pelvic joints where the screws are. I have my good days and my bad days but try not to dwell on the bad because I do know it will get better in time, a long time.....but will be better.

[jensmom0018]

Please help me....i have a 15 yr. old daughter who has now had 17 spinal surgeries of which 14 have been for her scoilosis...and yet her curve is still around 70 degrees...she has a hump on her shoulder and on her ribs....she is so miserable....she just wants them to look smaller...she does not expect it to be perfect but this is too much....her surgeon at the cleveland clinic said there is nothing more he can do....she has rods and yet she is still at 70...did i fail her by believing the doctor....is there more we can do.....does anyone know where the best doctor is to correct her curve?

[Theresa]

Hi Jensmom,

Welcome to the forums! I see on another post that Dr. Boachie, Bridwell, and Lenke were already referred to you. My doctor was Dr. LaGrone. He is out in Amarillo, TX. Dr. Boachie was not on my insurance, Dr. Bridwell and Dr. LaGrone were. Staying in Texas was easier for us that's why I chose Dr. LaGrone. Have you checked on the SRS (scoliosis research society) website to see if your daughter's doctor is listed there. It could be also that he is good at doing an original scolio surgery but might not be trained enough with doing the revisions. Was your daughter's curve always 70 or was it bigger before the surgery? My doctor here in Houston was able to get my 79 degree curve down because he removed 3 disc in the area of the curve. He also removed 3 discs in the lumbar area as well. When they take the discs out the spine becomes more flexible to work with. I hope you find a solution for your daughter. Have you tried seeing other doctors that are skilled for doing revision surgeries?