So glad I found you guys!

[Elisa]

April 19th. still the second surgery dat.

Dr. K. has flown to Europe for a spine conference so I talked to his assistant about the possibility of bumping Elias’ surgery up if he isn’t getting any more correction with the weight traction and he said no.

Even when the x-rays show he’s still at the same degree, the reason they leave the traction on until surgery is b/c they want all the soft tissue surrounding the spine to stay stretched as well as heal as this makes putting in the metalwork easier as well as he will get a better correction. So I guess we are not coming home early and will stick to the plan of surgery on April 19th. Makes sense. He will be getting another x-ray later on today.

He got a much better sleep last night. My nose isn’t quite so runny but I plan to head over to OHSU in a while to pick up some antihistamines anyway b/c I’m still sneezing.

He’s up to 35lbs this morning… 5lbs to go!

Awww, such a cute lil kitty in that pics. I miss mine so much and I've asked my daughter to take some pics of them but she still hasn't. ;.;

[Elisa]

April 19th. still the second surgery date.

Dr. K. has flown to Europe for a spine conference so I talked to his assistant about the possibility of bumping Elias’ surgery up if he isn’t getting any more correction with the weight traction and he said no.

Even when the x-rays show he’s still at the same degree, the reason they leave the traction on until surgery is b/c they want all the soft tissue surrounding the spine to stay stretched as well as heal as this makes putting in the metalwork easier as well as he will get a better correction. So I guess we are not coming home early and will stick to the plan of surgery on April 19th. Makes sense. He will be getting another x-ray later on today.

He got a much better sleep last night. My nose isn’t quite so runny but I plan to head over to OHSU in a while to pick up some antihistamines anyway b/c I’m still sneezing.

He’s up to 35lbs this morning… 5lbs to go!

Awww, such a cute lil kitty in that pics. I miss mine so much and I've asked my daughter to take some pics of them but she still hasn't. ;.;

[jrnyc]

i was in hospital years ago for foot surgery...
came home with the worst raging fever/bronchitis ever...crawled across the street to neighbor doctor for some kind of meds...he said you are almost guaranteed to pick up something in a hospital...that was at least 25 years ago..seems things haven't changed much in that department!

jess

[Elisa]

Interestin x-ray discussion this morning.

So Elias had his second x-ray taken yesterday (six days after his first one that was done after his spinal release and six days in halo/weight traction.) He was in a total upright/sitting position in his chair for the second one and he was semi/reclined in his bed for the first one. I knew that in the sitting x-ray where gravity plays a factor, that the curve would measure a bit differently than the one taken while stretched out some on his bed.

Just spoke to the doctors that made the morning rounds and this is what they said:

First x-ray after the spinal release/traction in a semi-reclined position actually measured closer to 55 degrees as opposed to 60 degrees which is great b/c it means that his spine is now quite flexible and he should end up with a very good correction when the traction is completed and the metalwork is put in place during his second surgery.

Second x-ray while sitting upright in his chair measured close to 70 degrees which is expected b/c of the gravity issue.

This next part really floors me. The x-ray that was taken while he was lying down in the OR (where they have labeled all his vertebrae) didn't really come with a measurement, we were just using the 110 degree number from two months ago when we came down here for our first consultation with Dr. K. It's very possible that his curve was actually more than that as he had lost an entire inch off his height in those two months that we were waiting for the surgery dates and I could tell that his back was looking terrible and he was starting to put both hands on his hips just to keep upright.

I'm sitting here wondering just how far and how furiously his scoliosis would have gone if we were still waiting around in BC for the Children's Hospital to call. My God, I shudder to even think about that. We're yet to get our first call to set up an appointment with them.

[ddb]

Following along your thread and all I can think is how wonderful the results are so far. Sounds like your son is getting super care there!! That is some correction already!!


Continued best wishes to you both!

Dee

[jrnyc]

well, thank goodness for Shriners!!
thank goodness you got him in there!
try to concentrate on that...
plenty of time for the anger after he is all fixed up and set with a strong straight spine for life!
by then, you will have documented proof of what he needed, and how badly he needed it!

best wishes for continued positive results!

jess

[Elisa]

Jess, I am trying to do exactly that: concentrate on getting Elias well. Sometimes though my anger pushes through all of this when I think of what 'could' have happened. I mean it's bad enough already what we're dealing with with him but to think that we might still be sitting back in BC watching him turn into a cripple before our eyes and feeling so helpless sets off terrible anxiety within which turns to rage. It's hard to keep everything level and in control when I look at that x-ray taken only two weeks ago and realize he was lying down... what on earth would he have looked like if one had been taken of him sitting up!? Glad to be here now that is for sure but still... I want to make someone pay for putting him/us through the hell we endured before we got here.

The new wing of the hospital is supposed to be finished and the dedication is this Sunday so I'm planning on taking lots of pics. It's a family area (not sure exactly what's there) with parent rooms as well as an area with large flat screen TVs and a pool table. I'm very curious to see what it all looks like finished b/c they sure are working furiously at it to get it all done by April 10th.

[Elisa]

My (only slightly) insane son has been singing the praises of anger recently. My theory, which I keep repeating to him, is that anger somehow binds you to the person you're angry at - makes you a kind of prisoner. But he very strongly disagrees. He's spent the last week having short blow-ups with other kids at school, and he's positively giddy. He feels likes he's throwing off chains. So, you know, who knows. I studied psychology and it still totally bewilders me.

I'm with your slightly insane son I'm afraid. I think it's fine to get angry as long as you are directing that anger in a positive way and that's exactly what I plan to do. I've just joined Amy's (another angry BC mom) 'cause' on facebook.

http://www.causes.com/causes/550419

[jrnyc]

hdugger, you are right about anger "binding" you to the one you are angry at

you know the old thing about forgiving people to set oneself free?
releasing the anger or bitterness so one can move on, etc etc...
it is very true...
all therapists talk about it....
BUT it is usually recommended after months or years of anger preventing a person from moving on in their life, when it has been causing the person trouble and keeping them from having a happy life

i am not suggesting forgiving the hospital that didn't see Elias when he needed to be seen! anger turned into positive action, especially when it involves a large corporation, is something else....
maybe you have a law suit against the hospital in Canada...i do not know...
it would probably be good to talk to a lawyer specializing in such cases...
medical people can be notoriously tough to sue, but certainly not impossible....
it is usually law suits against hospitals that took ACTION that harmed a patient that are the ones that succeed
you would need to prove that INACTION harmed your son...
my father tried to sue Kaiser over something similar, and lost...
but that is not to say you could not be successful
and bringing media attention to the case could help your cause...

good luck
jess

[Pooka1]

Will you PLEASE look at this??!?!??!

http://cuteoverload.com/2011/04/10/s...hould-i-gerhe/

[Singer]

Hahahaha.....what IS that creature?? That web site is seriously addicting.

[Pooka1]

My guess is that it is a bebeh lionhead bunneh.

http://www.google.com/search?ie=UTF-...onshaed+rabbit

[Elisa]

Ohhhh, that has to the cutest lil thing ever. It looks more like a kitten than a bunny b/c its head is so round and the ears are so small.

Nothing much happening and Elias is up to 49lbs. and should reach his goal this afternoon of 50lbs. and then surgery next Tuesday, then a few recovery days and then HOME!

Dr. K is still away overseas so it's been Dr. (you know who) doing the rounds every morning and yesterday I asked what type of rods "will you guys probably use in Elias" and he said "why do you care?" which I thought was very rude and I told him that "I am a curious person and have been reading about the different types and that I'm BORED so I want something to research" so he said "cobalt-chromium-molybdenum". Now was that so hard to tell me? Does he think I'm too stupid to understand so why bother? So arrogant. >_<

Edit: Linda, the book I read was: Scoliosis Surgery, The Definitive Patient's Reference by David K. Wolpert and I saw your comment and name on the back. Good book and I definitely recommend reading it for those who are contemplating surgery or like myself who has a family member having scoliosis surgery.

[boomergal]

What a ridiculous thing for that doctor to say. Your reply was really good. I hope he's ashamed of himself (and I hope your regular doctor is back soon).

boomergal
54 years old
T57, L43
surgery scheduled with Dr. Boachie 7/05/11

[Elisa]

What a ridiculous thing for that doctor to say. Your reply was really good. I hope he's ashamed of himself (and I hope your regular doctor is back soon).

boomergal
54 years old
T57, L43
surgery scheduled with Dr. Boachie 7/05/11

Yes, it was a totally ridiculous and totally inappropriate thing to say considering it is MY child that's having metal installed around his spine so of course I bloody well care and want to know what they plan to use. It was as though he was mystified that some dumb mom would even ask such a question and it was just a waste of his time to explain it to me b/c I wouldn't understand it anyway. Well, that's what Google is all about ya know!? I could tell the intern that was standing behind looked a bit embarrassed and today it was him that came by and not Dr. 'you know who' which was great b/c I had nothing to say/ask him anyway. There's always got to be one a-hole in every crowd. Always.

The x-ray didn't get done yesterday but apparently it will get done today some time.