Cervical anterior discectomy w/ anterior fusion

[rohrer01]

Hello,

There may be a couple of you here who remember me. I'm posting here because my scoliosis is basically through my whole spine. It started with a tight upper convex left curve as a child. This curve has affected my neck and now I will be having the procedure in the title. I will be having 3 discs removed and the last 4 vertebrae fused next week. Has anyone else had this done?

Since I was here last, I learned that my scoliosis was not adolescent idiopathic as was first diagnosed. It is juvenile neuromuscular scoliosis. I have also developed osteoporosis which could be a complicating factor in my recovery. I will be needing to wear a hard neck brace for a minimum of 3 months.

Any advice or suggestions about recovery are welcome.

Thanks!

[Sweetheart92]

Good luck with it

[rohrer01]

Thanks. I know it's not the "big" surgery. But I am a little nervous.

[rohrer01]

Wow, I read some of my older posts. So I guess I'm repeating myself a bit. I'm disturbed that my osteopenia has developed into osteoporosis so quickly! I don't believe I've had a full spine x-ray for scoliosis since my 2020 post. But I can now slip my left scapula over the apex of my largest curve...eek! The neck is going down hill fast. My muscle disease has put me in a power chair for any distance walking...bummer. But I'm really fortunate my insurance paid for it. It's the super deluxe model that will go in any position and has a joystick. The problem is that my neck is so bad that it's painful to operate the chair at times. The bulging discs are starting to cut into my spinal cord according to my neurosurgeon.

So, Ed, if you read this I will let you know how it goes if you haven't had your neck done.

I had to drop out of graduate school halfway through. I got Covid and it messed with my heart and made my neuromuscular disease worse. I'm sad about it, but my health comes first.

Wishing everyone well that is scheduled to have surgeries!

[LindaRacine]

Hi.... Good to hear from you, but I'm sorry that things have gotten so much worse. People who are healthy have no clue how bad it can get. Are you scheduled for surgery? --Linda

[jackieg412]

Yes I had anterior cervical fusion C4-C7. Compared to spinal fusion it is much easier to recover and helps with the pain. Due to an accident that broke my neck belatedly at C7, I am also now fused from the posterior. But that is because of the accident. I can still turn my neck but with some limitations.
The bad news is the disc above I now failing. We are doing PT and I see the neurosurgeon at the end of the month.

[rohrer01]

Hello, again, Linda.

Thanks for your concern. I'm scheduled for Thursday this week, the 19th. Unfortunately, I'm having a pain episode in my upper back from the scoliosis. I think I over did things trying to get ready for the surgery. The surgeon did say this procedure is less painful than abdominal surgeries, which is all I have to compare it to. I will be required to wear a hard brace for at least 3 months due to the osteoporosis. If it fails due to this condition I will need posterior fusion as well. I will do my part and hope for the best.

I'm not a good candidate for scoliosis surgery, despite the pain. In my condition it would just make things worse for me.

I hope you are doing well.

Best,
Rohrer01

[rohrer01]

Hi, Jackie.

You had the exact same levels fused that I will be having. I'm sorry to hear your C3-C4 disc is going bad. My C2-C3 disc is already going, as well. I'm a little fearful that the fusion will hasten its demise. But at least there is CSF surrounding the whole spinal cord right now. Can I ask what kind of motion is left in your neck?

I'm hyperflexible toward the right because of the nature of my scoliosis. It will be quite an adjustment to have limited motion. I am looking forward to the pain relief and return of some strength in my arm. As I was told, this will be a marathon, not a sprint.

Take care and stay well.

Rohrer01

[jackieg412]

Good luck on Thursday. It really isn't A real painful surgery. After healing you will not notice much change I motion ability as I believe most neck motion is above that level. Now I had scoliosis fusion prior to that. So I was already fused to the thoracic. When I was in the auto accident with the broken neck, they had to extend the posterior fusion up to the C4 level. Now then with both sides fused and posterior C4 to pelvis, I have some motility issues. It is mostly the up and down motion. I can look right easier than left but I can do it for long enough to drive safely.
Best wishes for good healing.

[rohrer01]

Thank you, Jackie!

I really appreciate hearing how other's have dealt with pain and mobility issues. I'm really sorry you had to have a posterior fusion as well. My doctor isn't 100% convinced that the anterior only approach will work, but we are both hoping. It really stinks that my bone density took such a fast nosedive.

On top of everything. I just got a weather alert saying there will be 1-2 inches of wet snowfall per hour tomorrow night into Thursday morning. Now we have to decide whether or not to get a hotel room. It's not that far to the hospital, but it's about an hours drive with curvy steep hills...ugh!

My shoulder and arm hurt so bad today I was almost in tears. So I think I'm getting this done at just the right time. Now I'm just anxious to get this over with to get rid of that pain. I know I'll have surgical pain, but that always gets better. Thanks for letting me vent. :-)

Rohrer01

[jackieg412]

Again best wishes for an easy recovery. The anterior approach is usually very strong and the preferred. You may notice a little change in swallowing but not too bad. Once I had both done, it was a little more tricky. But still not bad. It is hard to compare because everyone is different.
I hope it doesn't snow too much by you.
As far as the cervical at least it just holds up the head, not like the spine holding up everything.
Too bad about the osteoporosis. That does complicate issues.
I will see my neurosurgeon on the 30th. Always something

[rohrer01]

All done and home. I had some complications due to my neuromuscular disease flaring up. That was where most of my pain came from. My mouth got stuck open a couple of times and I had a terrible headache and would choke. But strength came back to my right hand immediately! It was amazing to say the least. Last night they finally gave me muscle relaxants through the night instead of pain meds. That made all the difference for me and I turned the corner and was able to leave this morning.

Thanks for the support!
Rohrer01

[rohrer01]

Good luck with your neurosurgeon visit on the 30th, Jackie. You will be in my thoughts. It's a never ending battle with our spines, it seems.
(((hugs)))

[jackieg412]

Glad you are on the other side of this. It really is remarkable when the surgery works so well. I really don't think any surgery goes through without a little problem. With the hardware in there it is easier to choke. Some of the swelling goes down and then it gets better.
Keep healing

[rohrer01]

I was expecting some extra problems going in. I just wasn't sure what they would be. I had chest pain the night following surgery. I told them I thought it was intercostal muscle spasms. I've had them before. But to be honest it really is difficult to tell the difference between that pain and cardiac pain. At some point I had them, so I thought, and didn't go in. It turned out to be a suspected small MI. But no one, including me, knows when that happened. Since that was in my records, and they ALWAYS take chest pain seriously following surgery, I spent the better part of that night and morning having a thorough cardiac work-up.

Yes, choking is still an issue with me, especially with swallowing pills. We even tried stuffing one in pudding, but the pudding went down and the pill didn't...lol
Post-op I was choking on my own saliva because I had a severe muscle spasm that would not allow me to close my mouth. That happened twice. I think this was something the team had not experienced before and there was no standing order on how to treat it. The doctor eventually upped my muscle relaxant and made it around the clock instead of just daytime. That fixed the problem. ;-)

There have been no major issues at home. The Philadelphia brace they sent home with me to shower in didn't fit AT ALL. Thankfully I had a custom fitted one already. So I use that. My neck is extremely long and thin. I was a little surprised when even my custom collar was a little loose! It did work much better than the short, thick one they sent me home with...lol