My recent kyphosis surg :)

[Ryy]

Hi all want to tell about my surgery for kyphosis, and hopefully get and give some guidance if possib. Fused T3-L3, I'm male, 24 (25 in a few days), 80 degree kyphosis pre surg, live in Albany NY.

I had anterior (through the left side) surgery to remove the discs on 9/21/10, then a week later, posterior for the fusion w/ instrumentation. Went in the hospital on 9/21/20, got out yesterday 10/5/2010, 1 day short of 2 weeks in there. Was in a lot of pain and discomfort, even with the meds. I pulled/tore something in my left side a few days after my first surgery, and is very swelled and sore now, and shows no sign of going down. This seems to bother me more than the stiff back. I started walking a few days ago, yesterday with no walker. I've had bloating issues for years now with no real solution other than the less i eat, the less i blow up. Seems to affect my breathing. I have a few questions for you guys!

1 - I'm having a very hard time doing the basic things around the house. My back is very stiff and my left side is very sore in there. I tried using my bed last night but not ready for that. Turning and especially laying down and getting upright from the laying down position is the worst. None of the chairs in my house are comfortable either. The best chair is a reclining chair in the living room, but it's still so uncomfortable. I wouldn't be able to do anything if i didn't live with my parents and brother to help me. Did the basic things get easier and what did you do about finding a comfortable chair and sleeping place?

2 - I'm extremely bloated, all the time. It affects my breathing. I can't really take a deep breath, or let a breath all the way out. It's just kinda frozen. I use the spirometer thing that the hospital give to all surgery patients, but it helps minimally. I have to take in and let out every breath mentally and physically expand my belly when inhaling, and physically push/tighten it in when exhaling, it's not automatic. Any advice on the bloating and breathing?

3 - When i walk, how should i lean and what muscles should i use? My legs are dying to get back to normal. It's like they don't know how to use themselves yet. Should i just relax everything, or maybe lean forward with my pelvis a little bit, and tuck my neck in a bit? My way upper back still looks kinda hunches over way up by my neck, and my neck still seems to pertrude out forward more than normal. I'm afraid of developing junctional kyphosis at the top of my fusion. Any tips on walking, as well as developing my new body correctly as i heal?

4 - How long until you felt normal, like you could do almost anything again? How long until you could drive with no back pain? How long until you could run/jog? I'm really scared that once I get to this point, that when running or doing a movement that i will damage my fused spine either suddenly, or over time.

5 - For the guys: When we orgasm, our spine locks up and hunches over. I'm afraid that the power of this will do some serious damage to the spine and surgery work. How did this department change for you after surgery (pm if you want on this)

Thanks guys, appreciate it so much

[ddb]

Hi Ryy - I'm not a guy nor did I have this surgery, but I have 2 DD's with scoliosis. One had surgery last Feb - a short fusion T-11 -> L-3, all posterior. The first week home she needed lot's of help.

She used the beathing device given to her often, and got better and better the more she used it.

Bloating happened, but did not cause her much discomfort. Pain Meds can cause some issues, and she was on MiraLax until a week after she stopped pain meds.

She is young - 16 - at her 6 month check up all restrictions were lifted. She is fine and doesn't have mobility issues at all - I know I'm much more worried then she - Dr. said the spine will be extra strong in the area of fusion. I worry more about the unfused areas - and she is now in PT to strengthen her core muscles to protect those areas.

I'll be watching your progress - My 20yo DD will be have the same surgery you had expect all posterior 11/9. She also has Kyphosis, but was never given a degree.

Wishing you a speedy recovery.

Dee

[peachrush7]

Sorry to hear you're so uncomfortable!

I haven't had the full fusion yet, but I have had 3 spinal surgeries, and ALWAYS had a problem with bloating. It is very uncomfortable!!! I couldn't live without FIBER ONE cereal, it saved my life I swear! Eat it 2x a day, just small bowls, and then take a stool softener everyday, (i took it as often as I took my pain meds to counterbalance their awful side affects.) Doing these two things really seemed to help. Both of these ideas were recommended by my dr's.

Hope it helps!

[Ryy]

I think I jumped the gun on this post. My doctor says to just relax, walk a bit, eat right, and that's about it until my post op visits. I'll worry about these questions later. Any words are very welcome of course

[loves to skate]

Ryy,
It took me well over a year to be comfortable sitting on a soft chair. I still get uncomfortable sometimes in the evening so end up sitting on my rocking chair. Did they teach you how to log roll in the hospital? You should get out of bed by log rolling from now on. You don't want to damage L3-L4, L4-L5 and L5-S1 or the discs above your fusion.

Bloating is normal, but yours sounds like a lot more than I had. I had no trouble breathing. Best to ask your Doctor.

When you walk, stand up as straight as possible and hold in your abdominal muscles. They are probably weak right now so you can strengthen them by doing isometric exercises with them either lying down or sitting up. Walking will strengthen your back muscles, but be patient, it all takes time.

Normal is a new normal for me. I was able to start driving at three months, as soon as I was off of the narcotics. Ask your Doctor about running. I am fused to the sacrum and was told not to run ever. No big deal for a 70 year old. Your Doc will probably want you to wait until you are fused before you can run again.

Recovery take time and we are all so different, so don't try to be a manly man for awhile. Let other people do the lifting, furniture moving, tire changing or whatever. You will get there if you follow Dr's orders.

Sally

[ddb]

Ryy - I forgot to add DD was uncomfortable in any chair except our computer chair. She used it with a pillow behind her for a few weeks when she wasn't in bed. The arms helped with getting up and down.

Dee

[naptown78]

Ryy,
I have had 2 scoliosis surgeries. The key to getting comfortable in bed or any chair in the first few weeks is plenty of pillows...Every night I would build me a little nest with my pillows around me for support. I considered it progress when I could eliminate a pillow or two!
I am now 6 or 7 months post op from my second surgery and I can drive without a pillow behind my back and with no pain. But, I need to adjust the seat just right.

I have not run yet...scared to. I'm like you, I am real protective of my back and don't want to do anything that might hurt it.

As far as feeling normal, it is different for everyone. You are young so you have a big advantage. As someone else said, you will find a new normal....

[titaniumed]

Ryy

You made it! You are in the most difficult part of this right now, it was agony for me. Yes, the anterior's hurt, no doubt.

Negotiating the bed right now is a science. I found that once I set my hips down, it was impossible to move up or down the bed. If I was too far up, sometimes my head would hit the headboard and I would have to log roll out and off the bed and re-try. Setting your hips down in the right position is critical.

Your Dr is right. Take it easy right now, and walk a little. Its better to do many short walks than one long one. Walking will help with your bloating. It will go down in time....It’s a slow process.

Keep notes on your medication intake, food, bowel, etc. Try not to get constipated. Eat plenty of fiber, and drink water. It would be a good idea to have a bottle of Mag citrate just in case. Its sold over the counter.

On the orgasm question, my spine doesn’t lock up or hunch, but my head spins, and smoke comes out of my ears. lol

Foam for the bed will help with sleeping, along with plenty of soft down pillows.
Ed

[Ryy]

Hey all,

Doing a bit better the last few days. Getting in and out of bed is easier, and i am walking much more. Bloating is still there but a tiny bit better. My only concern now is PJK, but hopefully i'm just being paranoid. My neck seems to stick out forward more than normal. I'm doing all the chin tucking and standing straight up as i can. My post op appt is in a week. Wish me luck, thanks guys

[Hannamom]

Ryy
My daughter is fused T2-L4. She also had a curve similar to yours..81 degree kyphosis curve, 21 degree scoliosis curve. Her doctor said something that put it all in perspective...she will hate me for one full year!...and I have to agree. She is one year and 3 months post op and most of her issues have slowly disappeared. It just takes time.

Hannamom

[JenM]

Hi Ryy-

Just wanted to let you know that I had surgery on June 8 and I had neck issues for the first 2/3 months following my surgery. I had surgery to correct my 55 thoracic curve, 58 degree lumbar curve, and to correct my 68 degree kyphotic curve. I think the head/neck leaning forward after the surgery has something to do with the kyphosis. For the first 3 weeks out of surgery my neck was fine. I was able to lift my head up. Then around 3 weeks my head/neck collapsed and my chin was basically sitting on my chest from atrophy of my neck muscles. It was awful, but it is doing much much better now! I go to PT and they have me doing retractions for my neck to bring it in better alignment with my body. I am now 4 months post op and my neck still leans forward and isn't aligned properly...not sure if this will ever change. My neck still thinks I have the bad kyposis and doesn't want to sit up straight like it's supposed to!


Anyway, just wanted to tell you I experienced neck problems after the surgery. It will get better with time and physical therapy.

Keep us posted!!

JenM

[Ryy]

Hi Ryy-

Just wanted to let you know that I had surgery on June 8 and I had neck issues for the first 2/3 months following my surgery. I had surgery to correct my 55 thoracic curve, 58 degree lumbar curve, and to correct my 68 degree kyphotic curve. I think the head/neck leaning forward after the surgery has something to do with the kyphosis. For the first 3 weeks out of surgery my neck was fine. I was able to lift my head up. Then around 3 weeks my head/neck collapsed and my chin was basically sitting on my chest from atrophy of my neck muscles. It was awful, but it is doing much much better now! I go to PT and they have me doing retractions for my neck to bring it in better alignment with my body. I am now 4 months post op and my neck still leans forward and isn't aligned properly...not sure if this will ever change. My neck still thinks I have the bad kyposis and doesn't want to sit up straight like it's supposed to!


Anyway, just wanted to tell you I experienced neck problems after the surgery. It will get better with time and physical therapy.

Keep us posted!!

JenM

JenM,

How is your neck stuff doing? Your story sounds like mine so far. I'm 5-6 wks post op. The first few weeks my neck was fine, but for the last wk my neck wants to look straight down, or if i use some effort, look way up. What exercises do they have you do in PT? My upper back way up under my neck still looks curved, and my neck is very forward, causing a lotta neck fatigue and aches. I'm really hoping this is something that will work itself out :/ Other than that, everything is going okay.

[JenM]

Hi Ryy-

Just wanted to let you know that I see you sent me a private message but I wasn't able to read it since my inbox was full. I just went back and deleted some of my messages so I have room in my inbox. If you can, please resend the message. I'd love to answer any questions you may have.

My neck leans very forward as well. I was under the impression that it would go back in alignment with my spine after surgery, but this hasn't been the case. The first 3 weeks after surgery, my neck was totally fine, but then the muscles atrophied and I was looking down all the time. I couldn't hold my head up if I wanted to. I asked my doctor why this happened and he said probably due to spasms within the muscles in the neck. I'm starting to think this happened because of the kyphosis I had. The muscles in our necks are probably weak due to the kyphosis. The kyphosis made my neck lean very forward, almost like a giraffe! It almost looked like I had a curve around the back of my neck before surgery. Well now that my spine was corrected for scoliosis and kyphosis, my neck has been really having bad spasms. I am about 5 months post-op now and I can hold my neck up straight. However, at the end of the day, I get really bad neck pain and need to lay down to relieve the pain. A few months back, I developed stabbing left sided shoulder blade pain. My surgeon said he thinks this is pain related to the cervical spine. I see from my MRI that I have a disc protrusion/herniation in C5-6 and I also have some dehydrated discs in my neck. I also have arthritis within the discs of my neck. I think it's kind of strange to have all of this in my neck when I am only 32 years old. Think it is all due to the kyphosis. When I did research on C5-6, it shows that pain is often felt in the shoulder blade area. As the weeks go by, it is getting alittle better, but I think it's only because I am going to the chiropractor just to get my neck adjusted.

Anyway, therapy had me doing neck retractions laying down in bed to strengthen the neck muscles. A retraction is basically bringing your chin back in as far as you can and holding it for a few seconds. I think the retractions helped because I can now hold my head up high for the entire day.

Have you ever had an MRI of your neck? Just wondering if you had similar problems in your cervical spine like me.

Keep me updated with how you are doing! Hope you continue to get better week by week.

JenM

[Ryy]

Hey JenM,
Yeah that sounds similar to me, my neck didn't really bother the first few weeks post of, but for the last 2 weeks, my neck gets aches and fatigue really quick. It wants to look straight down, or way up to the sky. If i hold it straight, it aches quite quickly. I didn't have too many neck problems before surgery, other than the classic kypho hunched back and my neck stuck out more than normal, but not too much pain up there, it was mostly back pain.

Sorry about your shoulder stuff. What is your doctor planning to do about your neck and shoulder stuff? I don't have any shoulder issues or anything, just the forward/down neck and aches/fatigue. I'm seeing my doctor soon, and see what he says. Where are you fused up to again? I'm T3-L3, 6 wks post op. I can't find that much on the treatment of junctional kypho (if that's the problem), other than to continue fusing up despite the huge risks of fusing C's.

I hope our probs will work themselves out! we're too young for this, take care!

[JenM]

Hi Ryy-

I was fused T3 to L3 as well. Your situation sounds very similar to mine. My neck would fatigue very easily. I could hold it up for an hour, and then it would just look down. The only way I could get it back up again was to lay down and rest. My surgeon did have me wear a neck brace for about 8 weeks. But I think the retractions I did in physical therapy worked the most.

I know, we are too young for this!! My neck situation was very scary the 3 weeks after surgery, but now I am able to hold my head looking straight again. Yours doesn't sound as bad as mine was. So I'm sure you'll be better as time goes by. The muscles in your neck are just adjusting to their new position. They were probably in the wrong position for 10-15 years or so.