Scoliosis Surgery
Do you view scoliosis surgery where the spine is fused as: [179 votes total]

A safe and successful treatment with only few sideeffects (32) 18%
The lesser evil (21) 12%
A treatment to be avoided until absolutely necessary due to sideeffects (126) 70%


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Posted By: Clayton Stitzel

Posted On: Mar 3
Views: 368
www.clear-institute.com

By the way, this information, plus A WHOLE lot more is available FREE on www.clear-institute.com or by clicking on the banner at the top right hand corner of the home page.

We are honestly here to help scoliosis patients and we are openly willing to share any and all available information with anyone in the world to help further the search for better treatment of scoliosis. The children of the world with scoliosis deserve better than bracing and surgery.

Clayton


Posted By: Clayton Stitzel

Posted On: Mar 3
Views: 370
Scoliosis surgery: The untold truth

Hello Oskar, Cheryl, and Heather,

I am not critizing your treatment choice and I am very happy to here that each of you have had a positive experience with your scoliosis surgery so far. Unfortunately, the majority of scoliosis patients whom elect to under go surgery aren't so lucky and don't fair well in the long run. Read the studies and make the judgement call for yourself. I have included all of the references, so you can get a full copy of each study if you are so inclined. Let's face it. If bracing and surgery were good, effective treatments for scoliosis, I would spend my time on treating lower back pain and headaches. Much easier conditions to treat. Much easier.

Scoliosis Surgery: the Untold Truth

Every year in the United States, roughly 20,000 Harrington rod implantation surgeries are
performed on patients with scoliosis, at an average cost of $120,000 per operation2. One-third of
all spinal surgeries are performed on scoliosis patients.
Every year, about 8,000 people who underwent this surgery in their youth for the
correction of their scoliosis are legally defined as permanently disabled for the rest of their lives8.
Even worse, follow-up x-rays performed upon these individuals reveal that, an average of 22
years after the surgery was performed, their scoliosis has returned to pre-operative levels3. The
Harrington rods inserted into their spines will either bend, break loose from the wires, or worse,
break completely in two, necessitating further surgical intervention and removal of the rod.
Once the rod is removed, corrosion (rust) is found on two out of every three4.
After the operation is performed, the average patient suffers a 25% reduction in their
spinal ranges of motion5. Non-fused adult scoliosis patients do not have this same impairment.
This flatly contradicts the claim that having a steel rod fused to your spine will not affect your
mobility, physical activities, or quality of life.
These facts are never shared with the patient prior to the surgery. Parents do not choose
the Harrington rod implantation procedure because it is the best choice for their son or daughter,
but rather because they are misled into believing that it is the only choice. However, many
studies suggest that the side effects of the surgery are worse than the side effects of the scoliosis
itself. Consider the titles & conclusions of the following studies:

Treating Scoliosis in Young Unneeded
Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), Stuart Weinstein, MD, University of
Iowa, 2003.
“Many with curvature of spine go on to lead normal lives. Many adolescents diagnosed
with spine curvatures can skip braces, surgery or other treatment without developing debilitating
physical impairments, a 50 year study suggests.”

Long-term results of quality of life in patients with idiopathic scoliosis after Harrington
instrumentation and their relevance for expert evidence
Gotze C, Slomka A, Gotze HG, Potzl W, Liljenqvist U, Steinbeck J.
Z Orthop Ihre Grenzgeb 2002 Sep-Oct;140(5):492-8
“CONCLUSION: Forty percent of operated treated patients with idiopathic scoliosis
were legally defined as severely handicapped persons 16.7 years after the surgery.”

Medical Complications in scoliosis surgery
Curr Opin Pediatr 2001 Feb;13(1):36-41
“[Complications] include the syndrome of inappropriate antidiuretic hormone,
pancreatitis, superior mesentaric artery syndrome, ileus, pnemothorax, hemothorax, chylothorax
and fat embolism. Urinary tract infections, wound infection and hardware failure are not
addressed.” [They were not addressed because happened so often!]

Results of Surgical Treatment of Adults with Idiopathic Scoliosis
J Bone Joint Surg AM 1987 Jun;69(5) :667-75 Sponseller, Nachemson et al,
“Frequency of pain was not reduced… pulmonary function did not change… 40% had
minor complications, 20% had major complications, and… there was 1 death [out of 45
patients]. In view of the high rate of complications, the limited gains to be derived from spinal
fusion should be assessed and clearly explained to the patient.”

Corrosion of spinal implants retrieved from patients with scoliosis
Akazawa T, Minami S, Takahashi K, Kotani T, Hanawa T, Moriya H.
Department of Orthopedic Surgery, Graduate School of Medicine, Chiba University, 1-8-1
Inohana, Chiba, 260-8670, Japan. J Orthop Sci. 2005;10(2):200-5.��
“Corrosion was seen on many of the rod junctions (66.2%) after long-term implantation.”
Scoliosis curve correction, thoracic volume changes, and thoracic diameters in scoliotic
patients after anterior and posterior instrumentation

Int Orthop 2001;25(2):66-0
“The correlation between the change in Cobb angle and the thoracic volume change was
poor for both groups.” [e.g., whether fused in the front or back of the spine, surgery will not
improve cardiopulmonary function.]

Radiologic findings and curve progression 22 years after treatment for AIS
Spine 2001 Mar 1;26(5):516-25
“Initial average loss of spinal correction post-surgery is 3.2 degrees in the first year and
6.5 after two years with continued loss of 1.0 degrees per year throughout life.” [So, if a 50
degree Cobb angle is corrected by surgery to 25 degrees, it will return to its pre-operative
condition of 50 degrees after roughly twenty years.]

Prospective Evaluation of Trunk Range of Motion in AIS Undergoing Spinal Fusion
Spine 2002 Jun 15;27 (12) :1346-54 Engsberg et al, Wash U, St. Louis, MO
“Whereas range of motion was reduced in the fused regions of the spine, it was also
reduced in un-fused regions [emphasis added]. The lack of compensatory increase at un-fused
regions contradicts current theory.”
Health-related quality of life in patients with AIS; a matched follow-up at least 20 years
after treatment with brace (BT) or surgery (ST)
European Spine Journal 2001; Aug; 10(4): 278-88
“49% of surgically-treated patients admitted limitation of social activities due to their
back.”

Paul Harrington, known for inventing the surgery that implants metal rods in scoliotic
spines, stated in 1963 that, "metal does not cure the disease of scoliosis, which is a condition
involving much more than the spinal column.”

Out of the scientific journal Pediatric Rehabilitation comes perhaps the most truthful and
compelling study ever published on scoliosis surgery:
Impact of Spine Surgery on Signs and Symptoms of Spinal Deformity
Pediatr Rehabil. 2006 Oct-Dec;9(4):318-39
Hawes, M.
University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ 85721, USA.
“Pediatric scoliosis is associated with signs and symptoms including reduced
pulmonary function, increased pain and impaired quality of life, all of which worsen
during adulthood, even then the curvature remains stable. Spinal fusion has been used as
a treatment for nearly 100 years. In 1941, the American Orthopedic Association reported
that for 70% of patients treated surgically, outcome was fair or poor: an average 65%
curvature correction was reduced to 27% at greater than two year follow-up and the torso
deformity was unchanged or worse. Outcome was worse in children treated surgically
before age 10, despite earlier intervention. Today, a reduced magnitude of curvature
obtained by spinal fusion in adolescence can be maintained for decades. However,
successful surgery still does not eliminate spinal curvature and it introduces irreversible
complications whose long-term impact is poorly understood. For most patients there is
little or no improvement in pulmonary function. Some report improved pain after
surgery, some report no improvement, and some report increased pain. The rib deformity
is eliminated only by rib resection, which can dramatically reduce respiratory function
even in healthy adolescents. Outcome for pulmonary function and deformity is worse for
patients treated surgically before the age of 10 years, despite earlier intervention.
Research to develop effective non-surgical methods to prevent progression of mild,
reversible spinal curvatures into complex, irreversible deformities, is long overdue.”
These x-rays show Harrington rods that bent and broke while still inside the patient’s
body. Many surgeons will refuse to operate on this condition, leaving the patient with few
options to alleviate their pain & suffering.

Research & References
1.) Idiopathic Scoliosis: long-term follow-up & prognosis in untreated patients
J Bone Joint Surg Am 1981 Jun;63(5):702-12
2.) The estimated cost of school scoliosis screening
Spine 2000 Sep 15;25(18):2387-91 Yawn & Yawn
3.) Radiologic findings and curve progression 22 years after treatment for AIS
Spine 2001 Mar 1;26(5):516-25
4.) Corrosion of spinal implants retrieved from patients with scoliosis
J Orthop Sci 2005;10(2):200-5
5.) The Effect of Scoliosis Fusion Surgery on Spinal Ranges of Motion: a Comparison of
Fused & Nonfused Patients with Idiopathic Scoliosis
Spine 2006;31(3):309-314
6.) The etiology of Adolescent Idiopathic Scoliosis
Am J Orthop 2002 Jul;31(7):387-95
7.) Adolescent Idiopathic Scoliosis: the effect of brace treatment on the incidence of
surgery
Spine 2001 Jan 1;26(1):42-7
8.) Long-term results of quality of life in patients with idiopathic scoliosis after Harrington
instrumentation and their relevance for expert evidence
Z Orthop Ihre Grenzgeb 2002 Sep-Oct;140(5):492-8
9.) The Search for Idiopathic Scoliosis Genes
Spine 2006;31(6):679-81
10.) The Ste-Justine Adolescent Idiopathic Scoliosis Cohort Study
Spine 1994 Jul 15;19(14):1573-81
11.) Long-term follow-up of patients with untreated scoliosis: a study of mortality, causes of
death, and symptoms
Spine 1992 Sep 17;(9):1091-6
12.) Back pain and disability after Harrington rod fusion to the lumbar spine for scoliosis
Spine 1992 Aug 17;(8 Suppl):S249-53
13.) Results of surgical treatment of adults with idiopathic scoliosis
J Bone Joint Surg Am 1987 Jun;69(5):667-75
14.) Thoracic Scoliosis and restricted neck motion: a new syndrome?
Eur Spine J 1998;7:155-57


Posted By: cheryl

Posted On: Mar 3
Views: 375
typo!

caledonian shouldnt have a capital at the start, sorry!


 
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