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First of all, thank you to anyone taking the time to read this. I find that where I am in the UK there are few people who know about or understand what scoliosis is despite living relatively close to a spinal unit and also to a leading uk orthopaedic hospital, and I was never pointed towards any support so I am relieved at stumbling across this site.
I was diagnosed with idiopathic scoliosis at the age of 11, and at 12 when it was discovered my curve had got to about 46 degrees my parents put the descision in my hands - we all know it, take an operation and risk instant paralysis or don't and be paralysed later on in life (though I only recently found out that my surgeon told my parents that with the speed my curve was progressing I wouldn't live beyond 21 due to lung compression). To me it was a no brainer and I was soon in theatre having my harrington rods. By the age of 14 I was experiencing lumbar pain and it was found that the lumbar spine was curving in the opposite direction and the bottom of the rod was interferring with the lumbar area. We tried a shoe raise and a boston brace but because I couldn't wear the same uniform I stood out to bullies and soon refused to wear them (if only I had understood then what I do now). Anyway by the time I got to 16 the pain was getting even worse and I decided to go under the knife again and have the rod removed and a chostoplasty at the same time to reduce my hump (wow what a difference that made). For a little while I was pain free again. At 22 the pain came back with avengence and my surgeon thought that if we shortened or lengthened 1 of my legs it would alter the angle of my hips and release some of the pressure. So as the recovery time was shorter I had my left leg shortened by 3cm with a rod through the middle of the femur held in place with 2 pins at the knee and 1 at the hip. As soon as the op was over I knew that it was shortened too much but I had no choice but to live with it for a year. The lowest pin by my kneecap was too low and 13 months after the shortening, the rod was removed. Since then I have got married, had a couple of miscarriages, a premature baby, a gall bladder removed, ovarian cyst, and now the latest installment. I am hobbling around on crutches and having trouble putting pressure on my left leg. My consultant is now a professor and has shifted me to another consultant, who doesn't seem to have a clue which is an old xray and which is a new one. It now appears that there are 2 discs (discs 4 & 5) which have actually shattered. I don't know whats in store now as i'm waiting for the results of my mri scan to see exactly how much damage has been done. Before the discs were shattered there was talk of having the correction surgery with rods from t4-l5 but I don't know if this will go ahead now.
So the big question is:-
do any of you have any words of wisdom? have any of you had discs shattered? and will I ever get off the morphine?
Thanks for listening/reading
Claire
I was diagnosed with idiopathic scoliosis at the age of 11, and at 12 when it was discovered my curve had got to about 46 degrees my parents put the descision in my hands - we all know it, take an operation and risk instant paralysis or don't and be paralysed later on in life (though I only recently found out that my surgeon told my parents that with the speed my curve was progressing I wouldn't live beyond 21 due to lung compression). To me it was a no brainer and I was soon in theatre having my harrington rods. By the age of 14 I was experiencing lumbar pain and it was found that the lumbar spine was curving in the opposite direction and the bottom of the rod was interferring with the lumbar area. We tried a shoe raise and a boston brace but because I couldn't wear the same uniform I stood out to bullies and soon refused to wear them (if only I had understood then what I do now). Anyway by the time I got to 16 the pain was getting even worse and I decided to go under the knife again and have the rod removed and a chostoplasty at the same time to reduce my hump (wow what a difference that made). For a little while I was pain free again. At 22 the pain came back with avengence and my surgeon thought that if we shortened or lengthened 1 of my legs it would alter the angle of my hips and release some of the pressure. So as the recovery time was shorter I had my left leg shortened by 3cm with a rod through the middle of the femur held in place with 2 pins at the knee and 1 at the hip. As soon as the op was over I knew that it was shortened too much but I had no choice but to live with it for a year. The lowest pin by my kneecap was too low and 13 months after the shortening, the rod was removed. Since then I have got married, had a couple of miscarriages, a premature baby, a gall bladder removed, ovarian cyst, and now the latest installment. I am hobbling around on crutches and having trouble putting pressure on my left leg. My consultant is now a professor and has shifted me to another consultant, who doesn't seem to have a clue which is an old xray and which is a new one. It now appears that there are 2 discs (discs 4 & 5) which have actually shattered. I don't know whats in store now as i'm waiting for the results of my mri scan to see exactly how much damage has been done. Before the discs were shattered there was talk of having the correction surgery with rods from t4-l5 but I don't know if this will go ahead now.
So the big question is:-
do any of you have any words of wisdom? have any of you had discs shattered? and will I ever get off the morphine?
Thanks for listening/reading
Claire
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