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  • Need revision surgery in Charlotte, NC

    Looking for patients (current or former) of Dr. Craig Brigham of Orthocarolina(formerly Miller Clinic) in Charlotte, NC.

    Anyone else in Southeast have good revision results?

    Is there any single physician in US who has reputation as the ultimate revision expert?

    Thanks!
    Carol

  • #2
    Dr. Oheneba Boachie is one of the best. Go to "Search" on the top and type in his name and you'll see plenty of posts about him. He is at Hospital for Special Surgery in New York City.
    1981 Surgery with Harrington Rod; fused from T2 to L3 - Dr.Keim (at 26 years old)
    2000 Partial Rod Removal
    2001 Right Scapular Resection
    12/07/2010 Surgical stabilization L3 through sacrum with revision harrington rod instrumentation, interbody fusion and pre-sacral fusion L5-S1 - Dr. Boachie (at 56 years old)
    06/11/14 - Posterior cervical fusion C3 - T3 (Mountaineer System) due to severely arthritic joints - Dr. Patrick O'Leary (at age 59)

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    • #3
      HOW DOSE THE instrumentation feel?

      Hi i have made my decision to have my surgery the end of this summer if i can control the pain that way, but i dread the thought have having all that equipment in me. I dread the thought of being cut open frount and back, it seems so invasive! i have an80 + lumbar curve. After reading these postings my pain is actually minimal, but my deformation is getting worse. Let me know thanks.

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      • #4
        Surgery

        Hi Joanne,

        Well, at least you've made the decision to have surgery. Like you, I'm a woman in my 50s with a 75 degree lumbar curve and minimal pain. But I know what you're saying about the increasing deformity. Have you lost height too? A doctor suggested to me to wait until I can no longer function to have surgery, all the time stressing this is really BIG surgery. I don't know what to do. I've seen three doctors thus far and it seems pain is the motivator for them to recommend surgery, not so much the deformity. I suspect you will be undergoing anterior/posterior fusion to the sacrum, which is what I would have to undergo. Where will you be having it done?

        Chris

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        • #5
          the pros & cons....

          Joanne, Chris,
          I can tell you there has not been a day since I was checked (by Dr. Boachie in Dec.) that I don't think of what I should do about this back thing...
          Before, doing nothing was ok., I guess. Now, it is one of my three choices..
          #2 choice is take pain medication when the pain starts & #3 is surgery. I do not have major pain now, although the hump area does bother me mainly at night. I have to say that what I am scared of is my organs, chest cavity being shrunk.I was just out to eat last night and felt so tight in the stomach after eating. I can feel the food going down the pipe a lot(yukky), bad acid reflux and coughing. I almost hate to go out to eat now....Also, sometimes I feel, on left lower side, something poking out--what organ could that be??? that, girls, really scares me. somehow I thk this stuff is connected?? I will decide by the end of January or it all will drive me crazy.........decison's the hardest part.. & make sure you have the Best surgeon........Lynne (60/ 60 curves with 95 thoraclumbar............

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          • #6
            Pros and cons

            Lynne,

            You poor thing. You have my sympathy. You have seen one of the best surgeons. Does Dr. Boachie recommend surgery for you at this time? Did he indicate that your internal organs are being compromised? I'm curious about your curves. If you have a thoracolumbar of 95 which spans the thoracic and lumbar spine, where are the 60s located?

            Sending you good thoughts.

            Chris

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            • #7
              Chris

              My curves( on the report) are 60 Lumbar/ 60 thoracic and 95 thoracalumbar(maybe you know what the last one means...) does'nt sound good...
              Of course, many people have acid reflux of course, but I also feel tight in my mid section. I'm sure whether or not it's related, the curve does'nt help the situation... I mean I was 5'8" in my 20-30's & now am 5'4".......
              I just know that intuitively, this surgery needs to be done since my curves will progress. I've noticed big changes in my body in the last 3 years..not good ones... I 've felt a weight lifted off of me as of yesterday because I feel I've made the decision fully & now just deciding on a date with my husband. I'm healthy now & want to be standing upright & healthy when these little boys graduate from high school.....................Lynne

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              • #8
                Carol, I know several people in my area who have had surgery by Dr. Wattenburger, who is highly recommended at Orthocarolina, formerly Miller clinic. Also, my daughter's surgeon at Shriners Greenville, SC, recommended Wattenbarger as one of his top 3 selections for my daughter's surgery in western Carolinas. The other 2 surgeons were himself and the other surgeon at Shriners who he works with on spine surgeries. I am guessing that gives Orthocarolina a good reputation, as Dr. Wattenbarger is in that clinic and is highly recommended. Hope this helps some. My daughter was a patient of Dr. Wattenbarger until we chose to transfer to Shriners for her surgery. Kris

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                • #9
                  drs in colorado

                  I found out i will have better insurance in march, so if i want i can leave Kaiser. I would love to hear any recomendations for dr's in the denver or north colo area. I am reconsidering my earlier desicion of surgery in the end of summer. Reading spinewine's reports on surgery scares me even more.It sounds like a lot of people continue to have pain and spasm after surgery. My pain is not unbearable. I guess my deformity can be lived with, i wish there was a scolios support group here in colorado. My lungs and chest arnt affected by my lumbar 85 degree curvature, but my leg(right) is. thanks for the recomendations . scared in colo

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                  • #10
                    large curves

                    The problem with large curves is that, no matter how you feel about them i.e. "it's big enough,already-how bad can it get"-- is--it continues to progress the rest of one's life.

                    Waiting for the pain to get worse means you go into mega surgery in less than optimum condition. Waiting for breathing problems to ensue--and when they do occur-- they progressed rapidly in my case--you go under anesthesia in less than optimum condition.

                    Scoliosis is a funny thing; it is seldom an emergency like cancer but it needs to be addressed. There's denial and fear which sometimes result in waiting too long for treatment to have an optimum result. On the other hand one must be ready to face it and pain is a potent motivator.

                    Karen
                    Original scoliosis surgery 1956 T-4 to L-2 ~100 degree thoracic (triple)curves at age 14. NO hardware-lost correction.
                    Anterior/posterior revision T-4 to Sacrum in 2002, age 60, by Dr. Boachie-Adjei @Hospital for Special Surgery, NY = 50% correction

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                    • #11
                      good point, Karen!!! Before my recent check up in Dec by Dr. Boachie, I had only been checked 3 yrs ago by a Dr. (in my plan) who told me there was nothing that could be done for me because he would have to go in from the back & front & it was way to risky... He said I should have had the operation when I was 15. He said it was a deformity & gave me a name to call for physical therapy. I rushed out of there in tears. I was 43 then & probably should have got another opinion after that but I was a bit soured by the whole thg! It took me 3 yrs to finally go get checked again only because of 2 signs, omens, that came one after the other to go see this particular Dr.....I finally faced the fears! By the way, I never want to see the first Dr. again. He treated his patients like cattle............
                      Last edited by lelc2002@yahoo; 01-19-2006, 02:33 PM.

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                      • #12
                        thanks for the reality check

                        you are so right chris o, about the increasing curvature, mine has followed exactly as book work, increasing 1 -2 degrees a year. The doctor i just saw mentioned people lived with these more or less just over 50 years ago and they coped with it, he didnt seem again to want to push for immediate surgery, so i went with it, only one doctor recomended immediate surgery, and that was 10 years ago. and i ran. is it ever the right time financially or emotionally, and i just remarried, i would like to enjoy this marriage before i place myself in this sugical risk. But i do just keep getting worse, so come march i will see another doctor and get moving maybe this kaiser dr is just trying to save kaiser money. hope i can hear from someone in colorado with a recomendation, thanks

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