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  • Good luck to you. Just make sure you have the proper passports, i.d., or whatever you need. Did you make hotel reservations yet?

    The appt. will be fairly long if she is getting a brace. They have plenty of cafeterias there, but you may also want to bring along some snacks to keep with you. All the reading material there is in French, so feel free to bring along any of your own. You may want to bring her a pair of shorts and a sports bra. Sometimes that is something easy to wear while they check her.

    I'm sure others will think of other things. My husband drops us off at the door and then goes to park. There's a Wendy's right up the street from the hospital that we sometimes drive thru.

    Any x-rays that you have, you can bring.
    Melissa
    From Bucks County, Pa., USA

    Mom to Matthew,19, Jessica, 17, and Nicole, 14
    Nicole had surgery with Dr. Dormans on 9/12/07 at Children's Hospital of Phila. She is fused T-2 - L-3

    Comment


    • Originally posted by alabama mom
      Hi guys. I haven't posted in a while. I am still terrible at this.
      I am taking my daughter to Montreal April 10th. I am excited and scared at the same time. I hope everything goes well.
      I tried to get her to Shriner's Erie, but they wouldn't brace her yet. I sent her xrays, and they said that they don't brace until 25 degrees (she is at 17 degrees now). But, I know that the Canadian doctors want to brace before then, so that's where I am going.
      Does anyone have any tips for us, going to Sainte Justine, and seeing Dr. Rivard or Colliard? I would appreciate any help. Thanks.


      Good for you !!!! I wouldn't take the wait and watch approach if it were my own daughter. There is a Ronald McDonald house near Ste Justine, I wonder if clinic appointments are sufficient to stay there I would call them and find out! There is also an online hotel reservation link which is really handy....the only thing is they charge your credit card in advance in order to get the special rates. The Omni hotel looks *very* nice and it's a five star hotel. If you book in advance you can get a really good deal.


      http://www.orbitz.com/App/ViewHotelSearch?z=3481&r=8t


      *****
      Last edited by Celia; 03-30-2007, 11:42 AM.

      Canadian eh
      Daughter, Deirdre born Oct 2000. Diagnosed with 60 degree curve at the age of 19 months. Serial casting by Dr. Hedden at Sick Kid's Hospital. Currently being treated by Dr. Rivard and Dr. Coillard in Montreal with the Spinecor brace and curve is holding at "2" degrees. Next appointment 2008

      Comment


      • I wouldn't wait either. I didn't know about Spinecor when Rachel's curve was 18/17. Her curve progressed 20 degrees in one year, 14 of those in less than 6 months. She didn't get the Spinecor until she was at 38 degrees thoracic.
        I will always wonder if she could have been cured if she was addressed at age 7 and 18/17, rather than age 10 at 38/27. As it is, she is corrected to 22/20 in Spinecor and has grown 3 or 4 inches without progression and I am grateful for that.
        Best of luck!
        Hugs!
        Cheryl
        God has used scoliosis to strengthen and mold us. He's good all the time!On this forum these larger curves have not held forever in Spinecor,with an initial positive response followed by deterioration. With deterioration, change treatment.The first year she gained 4 or 5 inches and was stable at around 20/20 in brace, followed by rapid progression the next year.She is now 51/40 (Jan2008)out of brace (40/30 in Spinecor) and started at 38/27 out of brace(Jan2006.) Now in Cheneau.

        Comment


        • Good luck with your trip. Do remember to bring a check since you can't pay for the Spinecor with a credit card. The other costs (x-rays, visit) can be charged though.
          From Massachusetts, USA
          7-yr.-old daughter in Spinecor 9/06-10/07
          Vertebral stapling surgery done 10/07 at Shriners in Philadelphia

          Comment


          • Spinecor question

            My six year old daughter just received her Spinecor brace on Saturday. She's not loving it, but she definitely did not want the "hard" brace, so she's being a real trooper. She has a 30 degree right thoracic curve, that went down to 18 in brace. We saw Dr. Pappas in Chicago, who spent a lot of time with us and answered all our questions. My daughter was very comfortable with him.

            We are having some areas of rubbing under one arm, and the other shoulder/neck is getting sore as well. We are wearing the bodysuit, trying to keep that pulled under the brace.

            Are there any suggestions on making this better, or is it something that just takes time (bands getting softer, her skin adjusting)? I wish we could go back to see him before the one month appointment to make sure I'm doing it right! From the pictures it looks like everything is positioned correctly.

            Sorry for rambling... we feel this is so much better than the hard brace would be, but it's still a huge adjustment (toilet, clothing, the brace cutting in, etc.). Hopefully time will make everything better, and we pray it works for us!

            Thanks to everyone who shares on this forum. Your experiences have helped us these past 2 months, and if it weren't for you, we never would have known about Spinecor.

            Linda
            ------------------------------------------

            Six year old daughter: right thoracic 31 degree 02/07; Spinecor 03/31/07 = 18 degree; 05/02/07 = 22 degrees; 07/15/07 = 6 degrees!!!!!

            Twelve year old daughter: right thoracic 39 degree, Riser 2 07/07; Spinecor 08/20/07 = 30 degrees

            Comment


            • Linda,

              congratulations on your decision. I wish you a lot of success with the Spinecor. Nicole also get irritated where the bodysuit doesn't cover. We have tried moleskin on the bands. But she has had this irritation since the beginning. So not sure how long it will take to heal. She also has a little irritation under the arm. I am sure others can give you some advice. Everything takes a while to get used to. But when you consider the alternative I think we can all agree that it is worth it. Hang in there.
              Melissa
              From Bucks County, Pa., USA

              Mom to Matthew,19, Jessica, 17, and Nicole, 14
              Nicole had surgery with Dr. Dormans on 9/12/07 at Children's Hospital of Phila. She is fused T-2 - L-3

              Comment


              • Alabama mom
                Are you driving? Birth certificates are accepted at the US/Canada border until 2008 then passports are needed. Passports are needed now by air. We stay in Plattsburg NY at the Comfort Inn the night before our Appointments. They have an indoor waterslide and a little resteraunt there too.

                Rush hour is a issue depending on the time of appt give yourself some x tra time also parking is time consuming.

                The appts are so busy that I try to remember-- get receipts for insurance co. & they will put your daughters x rays on disk (good Idea!!) Please let us know how it goes. We are all anxious to hear!!

                Linda

                My daughter has been in brace sine 8/06 and just started getting a little skin irritation under the arm pit and on her waist. I make sure we take the brace off for the split 2 hours everyday and let her skin breath. There are days that she will not take it off at all. We changed that. I also strap a pany liner over the irriated spots between the bodysuit and the band. I am sure once my daughter catches on to what a panty liner is she will put an end to that. I also find that the bands get bunched up as they get worn washing the brace seems to straighten them out. I now wash the brace every 5 days instead of 7. I will see if that helps. Congrats on your daughters correction. I don't think you would get that with a hard brace.
                from CT, USA
                6 year old daughter diagnosed 7/06 33* T9

                Spinecor 8/06 - 8/2012
                8/06 11* 3/07 5*-8/07 8*-2/08 3*
                10/08 1* 4/09 Still holding @ 1*
                10/09 11* OOB 4/10 Negative 6*
                10/2011 Neg.11* IB 11yrs old 0 rotation
                4/2012 12* OOB 0 rotation
                8/2012 18* OOB for 2 weeks. TSLO night time
                2/2013 8* OOB 3 days TSLO nightime
                3/2014 8* Out of Brace permanently

                Comment


                • Thanks for all of the replies, advice, and good wishes....Matjesnic, Celia, Cherylplinder, and Gallathea. I will keep it all in mind. If I have one left, that is.
                  And good luck to Summerfun4. My daughter will be getting the spinecor soon as well, and I am expecting that we will be going through some of the same things. I hope this works out well for all of our kids.
                  I will be keeping up with this message board, as I feel that I will be needing alot more help and advice. It is really good to know that there are other people out there that know what you are going through, and that can offer advice through it.

                  Comment


                  • Originally posted by christine2
                    Alabama mom
                    Are you driving? Birth certificates are accepted at the US/Canada border until 2008 then passports are needed. Passports are needed now by air. We stay in Plattsburg NY at the Comfort Inn the night before our Appointments. They have an indoor waterslide and a little resteraunt there too.

                    Rush hour is a issue depending on the time of appt give yourself some x tra time also parking is time consuming.

                    The appts are so busy that I try to remember-- get receipts for insurance co. & they will put your daughters x rays on disk (good Idea!!) Please let us know how it goes. We are all anxious to hear!!

                    Linda

                    My daughter has been in brace sine 8/06 and just started getting a little skin irritation under the arm pit and on her waist. I make sure we take the brace off for the split 2 hours everyday and let her skin breath. There are days that she will not take it off at all. We changed that. I also strap a pany liner over the irriated spots between the bodysuit and the band. I am sure once my daughter catches on to what a panty liner is she will put an end to that. I also find that the bands get bunched up as they get worn washing the brace seems to straighten them out. I now wash the brace every 5 days instead of 7. I will see if that helps. Congrats on your daughters correction. I don't think you would get that with a hard brace.

                    Thank you for the reply, and the information. So, are you saying that we will need to have our birth certificates with us at the border if we are driving in? Even the kids? We have three daughters....17 years, 14 years, and 9 years old. I wasn't really expecting that. I guess i will need to get them out. I have never been out of the USA, as you can probably tell.
                    Thanks again for everything.

                    Comment


                    • Yes you needed stamped, not copies (birth certificates) for everyone in the car. Starting 1/2008 you will need passports. Going thru the border is easy as long as you have proper ID.
                      from CT, USA
                      6 year old daughter diagnosed 7/06 33* T9

                      Spinecor 8/06 - 8/2012
                      8/06 11* 3/07 5*-8/07 8*-2/08 3*
                      10/08 1* 4/09 Still holding @ 1*
                      10/09 11* OOB 4/10 Negative 6*
                      10/2011 Neg.11* IB 11yrs old 0 rotation
                      4/2012 12* OOB 0 rotation
                      8/2012 18* OOB for 2 weeks. TSLO night time
                      2/2013 8* OOB 3 days TSLO nightime
                      3/2014 8* Out of Brace permanently

                      Comment


                      • Linda,

                        The elastic bands will soften over time - it shouldn't take too long for that to happen. Initially everything does seem overwhelming in particular the bathroom ritual but in a few days everything will be second nature. Does your daughter have the bodysuit? What we do is hook the pieces to the thigh bands when she goes to the bathroom, that way nothing gets soiled.


                        *

                        Canadian eh
                        Daughter, Deirdre born Oct 2000. Diagnosed with 60 degree curve at the age of 19 months. Serial casting by Dr. Hedden at Sick Kid's Hospital. Currently being treated by Dr. Rivard and Dr. Coillard in Montreal with the Spinecor brace and curve is holding at "2" degrees. Next appointment 2008

                        Comment


                        • Has anyone on this forum ever gone to Dr. Duetchman in New York? We took our 15 year old daughter to him in January and we have another appt. April 10th. We are anxious to see what has been happening with her curve these last three months. She had a 22 degree curve so we are hoping that it has improved. According to her xray in January she still has quite a bit of growing to do so her curve may worsen anyway. I am just curious about if anyone has gone to Dr. D. before. He seems very available if we ever have problems. We have emailed several times and he always gets right back to us.

                          Comment


                          • We used to go to Dr. D. You can read my old posts if you want.
                            Melissa
                            From Bucks County, Pa., USA

                            Mom to Matthew,19, Jessica, 17, and Nicole, 14
                            Nicole had surgery with Dr. Dormans on 9/12/07 at Children's Hospital of Phila. She is fused T-2 - L-3

                            Comment


                            • Thanks to everyone who replied! You are an awesome support group!

                              Yesterday felt very overwhelming. We had the brace on, then had 3 small trips to the washroom which required taking everything off (BM's). The snaps on the crotch straps are very difficult to get back on; my hands are cramping from trying to fasten them. It's taking a toll on my daughter as well, because every bathroom visit turns into 10 minutes of re-bracing and adjusting. I'm sure it's just because we're still so new to it.

                              I don't see how we're going to get it to where she could wear this at school and do the snaps herself, unless these snaps really loosen up over time. At this point we're taking it off for school, since she's in afternoon kindergarten and they're only there for 2.5 hours.

                              For those of you with young girls, do they go to the washroom by themselves? Can they handle the snaps, velcros, etc? I'm hoping it's just a learning phase!

                              Sorry--- it's just been an emotional few days! I know the TLSO brace would have been worse, and my daughter definitely doesn't want to go that route. This just seems more difficult than we had thought it would be. My daughter slept well in it last night, so that led to a great morning. She actually told me she had a better night, so hopefully we're moving in the right direction!

                              Thanks again to everyone for listening. I know things could be so much worse than they are, but for us it's such a rollercoaster.

                              Linda
                              ------------------------------------------

                              Six year old daughter: right thoracic 31 degree 02/07; Spinecor 03/31/07 = 18 degree; 05/02/07 = 22 degrees; 07/15/07 = 6 degrees!!!!!

                              Twelve year old daughter: right thoracic 39 degree, Riser 2 07/07; Spinecor 08/20/07 = 30 degrees

                              Comment


                              • Linda,

                                I am really sorry it has been so stressful. I am sure that Celia and Christine can give you tips because they also have little girls. Nicole was in 6th grade when she got hers, so there were no problems with the bathroom. I don't think those snaps should be so difficult to do. You really don't want to be taking the entire brace off a few times a day. That is what is so stressful. Nicole takes the brace off once a day for her break, that is it. I am sure one of the other Moms can send you a private message and discuss in details some ways that you can improve the situation. It shouldn't have to be this hard. Good luck.
                                Melissa
                                From Bucks County, Pa., USA

                                Mom to Matthew,19, Jessica, 17, and Nicole, 14
                                Nicole had surgery with Dr. Dormans on 9/12/07 at Children's Hospital of Phila. She is fused T-2 - L-3

                                Comment

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