greetings friends,
i'm a guy and i'm twenty years old. height is 5'10" and weight is 125 lbs. i'm having a posterior spinal fusion next thursday, and being a very type-a person and somewhat of a perfectionist, i've been questioning myself at every step in this process. i really want to make sure i'm doing everything right and not digging myself into a deeper hole with this scoliosis thing.
now, a brief medical history: i've been asymmetrical-looking for as long as i can remember, but never made the connection to scoliosis or attributed it to a serious abnormality in any way. my parents never noticed because i was always pretty self-conscious about it and made every attempt to cover myself adequately.
i was officially diagnosed last july at a regular checkup with my general practitioner after i complained to her of some back pain. x-rays confirmed two curves, a forty degree lumbar curve and a thirty-eight degree thoracic. it was described as 'levoscoliosis with severe rotation.' apparently the rotation is disproportionately severe given the cobb angles, resulting in a more visible deformity (yay for me). the curves have both progressed by approximately two degrees each in the past nine months.
so, the first specialist i saw (this was last august) put me through a bunch of unnecessary radiation and diagnostic testing. i felt as though i was being strung along, and i didn't like it. tests would be done, then i'd wait, then more tests, then more waiting. then he said there was nothing he could do. after all that. it was already march 2010, and nothing had been done. i actually took a year off school (i was going to college out-of-state) to get this whole back thing sorted out. it was already march, and i wasn't about to take another year off for this.
anyway, i finally sought a second opinion from a dr. james w. simmons at the south texas spinal clinic. in order that i might make it back to school by the fall, my surgery was scheduled for the soonest possible date. i just found out last week that my surgery is going to be may 20.
okay. so i am actually fine with the idea of surgery. i've been having bad back pain for a while, and it's only gotten worse. the pain lies mainly in the convexities of the curve, and has gotten worse as the curves have progressed, which is proof enough to me and my doctor that this is scoliosis-related back pain. i ran through the whole protocol: i tried physical therapy, chiropractic, electric stimulation, deep tissue massage, yoga, acupuncture, inversion therapy, and otc pain management. i've determined surgery to be the only viable option at this point, as a last resort, of course. i was not open to the idea of prescription pain management without surgery because i am strongly opposed to slapping a band-aid on this problem, instead of addressing the structural deformity, and i would likely need the pain pills for the rest of my life anyway, which would suck. at least with surgery, there is a chance i won't have to be on pain pills, or at least not as high a dose. a chance i'm willing to take at this point.
someone out there must be experiencing similar pain to mine. can anybody identify? it feels like a stinging sensation; it starts rather dull but becomes increasingly sharp as it gets worse. soon it spreads from the convexities of the curve to most of my back. my back actually feels numb to the touch and is very warm when this happens. the pain is triggered most by standing still. walking is a little better. sitting is too. laying flat on my stomach is best because it takes the whole load off.
another question: while i am posting this in the adult forum because i am twenty years old, my bone age (tested for a totally different medical problem unrelated to scoliosis) was determined to be seventeen. i'd always wondered why i looked younger than my peers. my body thinks i'm seventeen. anyway, do you think this will play out to my advantage for the surgery? will i get a better result given that i am still sort of an adolescent? i would think that i'd get a better result because my spine is tad more flexible and not fully mature yet. the bad part about having a younger bone age and slow growth, of course, is that there would be more opportunity for curve progression. how good a job does surgery do at arresting that progression?
also, does posture generally improve after surgery? it's weird because i think i'm standing up straight; then i look in a mirror from the side and see how hunched over i look. could this be scoliosis related? i know i don't have kyphosis or anything like that. it just looks like my neck is arched forward too much. the over-prominence of the shoulder blade and the rib hump certainly don't help my postural appearance either. i try to push my neck back and kind of puff my chest out a little in a vain attempt to look like i have normal posture, but somehow, that actually HURTS my back, esp. between the shoulder blades and down in the lumbar area. i don't feel i should be punished with pain when i try to stand up straight like a normal person. haha. i definately had much better looking posture as a kid; it kind of got worse when the curve, unbeknownst to me, was progressing throughout my childhood and adolescence.
finally, from your knowledge or personal experience, how much does a leg length discrepancy factor into your recovery and does it impact the success of the fusion? my left leg is structurally 7.5 mm shorter than the right (most of this difference being in the tibia), which i've heard is not actually too severe a leg length discrepancy. but clearly spinal fusion in itself cannot correct a tilted sacral plane, right? is it possible that after surgery when my spine is straighter, my left leg will grow to compensate for the new equilibrium?
finally, i did my pre-op testing earlier today, but didn't have to do a blood gas test. also, i wasn't asked to donate my own blood. should i be worried about this? the doctor never mentioned anything.
oh, and if you were treated by dr. james w. simmons, please offer your feedback on your care! i think i trust this guy's expertise, but some extra reassurance would really calm my fears TREMENDOUSLY.
thanks for listening to my long and winded nervous babble. and thanks in advance for your help and support. it means a lot.
i probably have more questions but i can't remember them at this time. haha.
i'm a guy and i'm twenty years old. height is 5'10" and weight is 125 lbs. i'm having a posterior spinal fusion next thursday, and being a very type-a person and somewhat of a perfectionist, i've been questioning myself at every step in this process. i really want to make sure i'm doing everything right and not digging myself into a deeper hole with this scoliosis thing.
now, a brief medical history: i've been asymmetrical-looking for as long as i can remember, but never made the connection to scoliosis or attributed it to a serious abnormality in any way. my parents never noticed because i was always pretty self-conscious about it and made every attempt to cover myself adequately.
i was officially diagnosed last july at a regular checkup with my general practitioner after i complained to her of some back pain. x-rays confirmed two curves, a forty degree lumbar curve and a thirty-eight degree thoracic. it was described as 'levoscoliosis with severe rotation.' apparently the rotation is disproportionately severe given the cobb angles, resulting in a more visible deformity (yay for me). the curves have both progressed by approximately two degrees each in the past nine months.
so, the first specialist i saw (this was last august) put me through a bunch of unnecessary radiation and diagnostic testing. i felt as though i was being strung along, and i didn't like it. tests would be done, then i'd wait, then more tests, then more waiting. then he said there was nothing he could do. after all that. it was already march 2010, and nothing had been done. i actually took a year off school (i was going to college out-of-state) to get this whole back thing sorted out. it was already march, and i wasn't about to take another year off for this.
anyway, i finally sought a second opinion from a dr. james w. simmons at the south texas spinal clinic. in order that i might make it back to school by the fall, my surgery was scheduled for the soonest possible date. i just found out last week that my surgery is going to be may 20.
okay. so i am actually fine with the idea of surgery. i've been having bad back pain for a while, and it's only gotten worse. the pain lies mainly in the convexities of the curve, and has gotten worse as the curves have progressed, which is proof enough to me and my doctor that this is scoliosis-related back pain. i ran through the whole protocol: i tried physical therapy, chiropractic, electric stimulation, deep tissue massage, yoga, acupuncture, inversion therapy, and otc pain management. i've determined surgery to be the only viable option at this point, as a last resort, of course. i was not open to the idea of prescription pain management without surgery because i am strongly opposed to slapping a band-aid on this problem, instead of addressing the structural deformity, and i would likely need the pain pills for the rest of my life anyway, which would suck. at least with surgery, there is a chance i won't have to be on pain pills, or at least not as high a dose. a chance i'm willing to take at this point.
someone out there must be experiencing similar pain to mine. can anybody identify? it feels like a stinging sensation; it starts rather dull but becomes increasingly sharp as it gets worse. soon it spreads from the convexities of the curve to most of my back. my back actually feels numb to the touch and is very warm when this happens. the pain is triggered most by standing still. walking is a little better. sitting is too. laying flat on my stomach is best because it takes the whole load off.
another question: while i am posting this in the adult forum because i am twenty years old, my bone age (tested for a totally different medical problem unrelated to scoliosis) was determined to be seventeen. i'd always wondered why i looked younger than my peers. my body thinks i'm seventeen. anyway, do you think this will play out to my advantage for the surgery? will i get a better result given that i am still sort of an adolescent? i would think that i'd get a better result because my spine is tad more flexible and not fully mature yet. the bad part about having a younger bone age and slow growth, of course, is that there would be more opportunity for curve progression. how good a job does surgery do at arresting that progression?
also, does posture generally improve after surgery? it's weird because i think i'm standing up straight; then i look in a mirror from the side and see how hunched over i look. could this be scoliosis related? i know i don't have kyphosis or anything like that. it just looks like my neck is arched forward too much. the over-prominence of the shoulder blade and the rib hump certainly don't help my postural appearance either. i try to push my neck back and kind of puff my chest out a little in a vain attempt to look like i have normal posture, but somehow, that actually HURTS my back, esp. between the shoulder blades and down in the lumbar area. i don't feel i should be punished with pain when i try to stand up straight like a normal person. haha. i definately had much better looking posture as a kid; it kind of got worse when the curve, unbeknownst to me, was progressing throughout my childhood and adolescence.
finally, from your knowledge or personal experience, how much does a leg length discrepancy factor into your recovery and does it impact the success of the fusion? my left leg is structurally 7.5 mm shorter than the right (most of this difference being in the tibia), which i've heard is not actually too severe a leg length discrepancy. but clearly spinal fusion in itself cannot correct a tilted sacral plane, right? is it possible that after surgery when my spine is straighter, my left leg will grow to compensate for the new equilibrium?
finally, i did my pre-op testing earlier today, but didn't have to do a blood gas test. also, i wasn't asked to donate my own blood. should i be worried about this? the doctor never mentioned anything.
oh, and if you were treated by dr. james w. simmons, please offer your feedback on your care! i think i trust this guy's expertise, but some extra reassurance would really calm my fears TREMENDOUSLY.
thanks for listening to my long and winded nervous babble. and thanks in advance for your help and support. it means a lot.
i probably have more questions but i can't remember them at this time. haha.
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