How long???

[Sharon C]

Fun with Kyphosis

Hi Lynne,

I guess if your surgeon said he "fixed" it, then it's fixed. Or are you having indications that it is not so?? Your fusion starts much lower than mine, and I'm new to the kyphosis game so I'm not sure what criteria constitute the
affliction. Guess I better start reading up!

Regards,
Sharon

[Singer]

Lynne --

Don't go there -- the B-Man knows what he's doing!!!

[Susie*Bee]

Trust

Hey ladies-- this has been interesting, to say the least! I didn't mean to start something where we're questioning our doctor's wisdom though. I think it's really a matter of trust. They are the trained professionals and should know what they're doing. I sure wouldn't want to go into such a serious surgery without a positive feeling of trust in one's surgeon. And hey, there's more than one way to skin a cat--and I'm sure if you consulted more than one doctor, they would come up with differences in which vertebrae to fuse, etc. I think it's best (especially after the fact!) to trust in their decisions and know that no scoli surgery is foolproof and revision may be something that comes up at a later time. Let's just hope and pray it doesn't! Thanks for all your input!

[CHRIS WBS]

Susie,

I totally agree with you about Dr. Hammerberg’s excellent credentials. But I do think that he and his colleague Dr. DeWald shy away from large curves. This was evident when I first met with Dr. H. and asked for patient referrals of cases similar to mine. While I was referred to patients around my age, their curves were nowhere near my size. Like you, Susie, their curves measured around 50°. The one woman I spoke about who was at the support group meeting I attended was one of my referrals. She is a lovely woman who spent two hours on the phone with me discussing her experience. She spent two weeks at Rush plus another two weeks in rehab. And as I mentioned, she is fused from T-1 to the sacrum. I would have questioned the need for such a long fusion, considering that her thoracolumbar curve was only 50°. She had a very long recovery and appears quite stiff. [Lynne and Chris, you were fortunate to have been treated by Dr. Boachie and be thankful that he did not see the need to fuse you that high.] In fact, wasn’t there some mention here that some top-notch surgeons are discovering they can achieve the same goals with a shorter fusion?

Susie, I have also consulted with Drs. Schafer and Gupta in Chicago and spoke to referrals of theirs who were initially turned away by both Dr. Hammerberg and Dr. DeWald. Both women had curves exceeding 90° and have been successfully treated by Dr. Schafer and Dr. Gupta. The woman who was treated by Dr. Schafer underwent 30 hours of surgery in two operations to treat her 95° thoracic curve. Dr. Schafer, who is considered the best in Chicago, is so thorough that he actually repaired the damaged lung tissue caused by her rotating rib cage, thus the need for so many hours in surgery. Five years later she is doing very well at age 65.

While I’ve heard nothing but good things about Dr. Hammerberg, even from other surgeons, I really do believe that he prefers to limit his skills as a surgeon to the treatment of adolescents and younger adults and the occasional older adult with moderate scoliosis. He may very well feel that surgery then becomes too risky for someone outside that realm.

Best wishes to you in your recovery.

Chris

[Susie*Bee]

Chris...

Chris-- Again, thanks for your comments. I have no idea if Dr. H limits his surgeries in older adults or not-- I didn't think so, and in my case it doesn't really matter. I think I did read somewhere that your compensatory curves might progress if the stress that has mainly been on the major curve is taken away (by fusion)-- so I'm thinking that is possibly(?) (and I'm guessing at that) at least one reason why my fusion is from T2-L4. I will trust in his decision and leave it at that. Best wishes for your recovery as well. Susie