Dr. Boachie Named in Lawsuit

[LindaRacine]

Gal, I think there is a way to check the infection rate at any hospital you choose. I know it came up on the internet when I was checking one of the major Chicago hospitals.

Jackie...

I moved the post to which you replied to a new thread, but couldn't, for some reason, move your post to that thread. The new URL is http://www.scoliosis.org/forum/showt...for-NY-Surgeon

[jackieg412]

Gal, I think there is a way to check the infection rate at any hospital you choose. I know it came up on the internet when I was checking one of the major Chicago hospitals.

[richardis]

http://www.aaos.org/AAOSNow/2009/Oct...ging7/?ssopc=1

is "Ischemic optic neuropathy" the technical name? What is the cause of the vision loss?

[LindaRacine]

The aorta divides at the level of the pelvis to become the two main leg arteries and runs very close to the where they put the l5 nerve block in.

This was at The Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital London. I suppose it is possible that you know more than they do, Linda.

I don't know if that was meant to be snarky. That's how it comes across.

I was never doubting you or your doctor. I was wondering what I didn't know about anatomy that made it possible to hit the aorta with a needle from the back.

--Linda

[titaniumed]

Since my aorta and vena cava had to be moved or slid over from the discectomy zone, I have noticed that there is some material stating that these vessels can or do follow scoliosis curves, and with rotation, can present a non-textbook positional situation.....The abdominal aorta can also drift off the spine in non-scoliosis patients. (There is always something new)

The aortic aneurism material is scary.... Lucille Ball, and John Ritter had this happen.....(smug face)

Ed

[burdle]

Lumbar vertebrae are huge. It seems to me that the needle would have to travel maybe 4" to get to the aorta.

http://aorticdissection.com/wp-conte...2/aortic01.jpg

The aorta divides at the level of the pelvis to become the two main leg arteries and runs very close to the where they put the l5 nerve block in.

This was at The Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital London. I suppose it is possible that you know more than they do, Linda.

[LindaRacine]

Lumbar l5 nerve block.

apparently the Aorta does run close the this- she was very specific

Lumbar vertebrae are huge. It seems to me that the needle would have to travel maybe 4" to get to the aorta.

http://aorticdissection.com/wp-conte...2/aortic01.jpg

[burdle]

Hi,
Just to clarify the doctor was taking about the risks when doing the Lumbar. She said the risk for Neck injections were higher but not the same risks; so not the Aorta in the case of the neck ones. but she said I should have been advised about the risks when I had the neck ones.

[burdle]

Lumbar l5 nerve block.

apparently the Aorta does run close the this- she was very specific

[LindaRacine]

Awwww, thanks Ed.

Burdle... Did I understand you correctly? What kind of injection were you getting? I've never heard of anyone having their aorta nicked while getting a spinal injection. The aorta runs along the front of the vertebral bodies. The injections are typically done at the posterior elements of the spine. That's a pretty big distance between the two.

--Linda

[Pooka1]

I think of Joyful from time to time.

People need to realize that these things can happen without any error on the part of the medical team. Surgeons take patients as they come, with some patients often having spent years exhausting conservative options. Adults can have "windows" for surgery like kids. And some people just can't tolerate surgery I suspect no matter when they do it.

Dr. Hey seems like a bit of a lone wolf in advocating earlier surgery in the hope of a shorter procedure, shorter recovery, and longer life of the remaining unfused vertebra. I have to wonder about this issue of adjacent disc disease. We measure that as against normal but it should be measured against the incredibly uneven loading of an untreated large curve. So yes the fusion may damage the unfused discs below but is it more or less damage over a shorter or longer interval compared to the crazy loading of a large curve?

Scoliosis is example #3,890,551 why life is unfair.

[titaniumed]

Joyful was the only NSF member I know about that didn’t make it......

She will always be remembered.....

Ed

[Prfbones]

I've never seen a number anywhere near that high. I think that all the published numbers are between .5% and 1%.

And it's more related to anesthesia, not the surgical procedure itself.

[burdle]

This is such an interesting thread.


I recently had a second lot of injections- first were in my neck and the second in my lumbar spine.

The doctor who did the second ones went through the consent and at the end very formally stopped and said there was a risk of my being paralyzed if she 'nicked' the Aorta and did I want to proceed?.She would not know if she had 'nicked' it until too late.

I was dumbfounded - she said she would leave the room while I made my decision. I said I could not possibly make that sort of decision there and then- I had waited ages for the appointment, made a 2 hour Journey to the hospital at crack of dawn- was unfed and watered and in great pain.

I stupidly asked for odds - which frankly I cannot digest because to me I will always be the ONE. I asked her if she had ever nicked the Aorta and she said no. Later my brother said that oddswise it would be better if she had as that would mean the odds on her doing it again were in my favour ( ha-ha) but my brain does not work like that. Anyway the nurse present asked me what the problem was and told me they do hundreds of the injections with no problem. She was complete blasé about it all.

I told the doctor that no-one had mentioned any risk before when I had the neck ones and she said the risks were much higher for those injections. I don't think she believed me but it was true - no-one had mentioned risks specifically as she had.

By then I was incapable of any rational thought and was very upset- I was embarrassed that I could not think straight - I went ahead and quaked thru the whole process - I was rigid with fear - a horrible experience.

[titaniumed]

Susan

Nice x-ray! Hope your feeling a little better.....

This thread is almost a mandatory read for those having surgery. Any surgery.....

Linda is an excellent moderator.....

Ed