I'm going to start posting in here more, because recently people are asking me what's going on with the medical what not.
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I got my back brace for the scoliosis and hopefully it'll do enough that i don't need the surgery, because I hate surgery. It seems alot of people on this site don't know what scoliosis is, and they don't know what the surgery is; so here's some help.
Scoliosis:A lateral curvature of the spine, usually having no known cause and occurring most commonly in preteen and adolescent girls.
Idiopathic: Of unknown cause, as a disease.
The surgery: A metal rod is basically inserted down your spine
Info: How long is an actual surgery?
Scoliosis surgeries are complex, and there are many steps to each operation. The operation in children takes from two to three hours. In adults it takes a little longer, from about four to six hours.
Are two surgeries ever needed?
Adults do sometimes need more than procedure. That is they need some kind of procedure done from the front and from the back at the same time. Sometimes this can be done in a single combination operation, but other times it is best to separate the process into two procedures.
What happens after surgery?
What happens after the operation itself is done is a phase where technology and treatment options have now changed dramatically for the better .
After a routine scoliosis surgery patients are admitted to the intensive care unit where there is focused nursing care. It really is very comforting for both the patient and the family to know that there's one nurse who is completely attentive to their needs. One of the things that we do emphasize is the appropriate management of pain. For pain we put a catheter, up against the spinal cord and we pump narcotic directly onto the cord. We treat the pain right where it exists and don't have to make the patient so sleepy that they can't follow requests or commands.
The day after surgery some patients may actually sit in a chair and take one or two steps. By the third day they'll stand and walk, and by the fourth day will often be walking in the halls. After discharge, which is routinely on the fifth day, patients from out of town (and many from in town) are sent to the rehab hospital to spend another week regaining their abilities to do all of the activities of daily living.
After surgery, some patients need a brace. Modern braces are light thermo-plastic so they're easily put on and taken off by the patient. You don't have to sleep in them. You don't have to bathe in them. And you wear them for about three months. It's a far cry from the casts that individuals were put in years ago.
How long does recovery take?
If you talk to our patients, what you will hear is that there are milestones of improvement. There is the first week leading up to discharge from the hospital. And when a person can walk again and is eating regular food and putting on and taking off their brace, they really feel that they've made a great step forward.
Probably the second big milestone is discharge from rehab, and that's typically about two to two-and-a-half weeks total time from surgery.
The next big independence is driving. Some patients start to drive as soon as a month.
After that the milestones become harder to define. And yet, there comes a moment when a patient returns to me and says, "You know, the pain medication you have me on is really too strong and I really don't need it." That's a wonderful milestone to hear as a physician.
Three months seems to be when many people really regain control of their own lives. Many people go back to work about five weeks after surgery in a light-duty capacity. But there continue to be longer-term gains, and so we follow patients for years and review them at six-month or yearly intervals.
Does that help?
I know it's alot of random whatnot, but if you really wanted to know then go ahead and look, if you didn't then don't.
c:
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