If you are reading this,
then it is likely that you, or a loved one, are faced with
a difficult decision. On one hand,
it is possible that your medical physician
is telling you that the only
option, depending on the severity
of the scoliosis, is either
bracing or surgery. These options are to avoid
scoliosis from progressing and, in younger patients,
to reverse the scoliosis and bring down the curve to ‘normal’.
On the other hand, you
have browsed the web and found sites like ours, and would
prefer, if you could only have some confirmation of success,
to go with a non-surgical approach
to scoliosis correction. There is a natural
alternative scoliosis treatment.
Having studied scoliosis
for almost 30 years and, as importantly, having had
an orthopedist tell my wife and me that "surgery is the
only solution to your daughter’s severe scoliosis",
I feel I am in a uniquely qualified position to rationally
discuss these options. Having raised my family on chiropractic
care as well as various alternative treatments for different
health considerations, my observations are the following:
First options should
always be the least invasive, not the most invasive
to the body.
The body, and it
is so in the case of scoliosis, does want to correct
this serious disorder, but it needs the proper mechanical
force vectors and proprioceptive re-education with which
to do it.
Consider
the following medical reference
with regard to scoliosis surgery: Curr Opin Pediatr
2001 Feb;13(1):36-41 "[Complications] include the syndrome
of inappropriate antidiuretic hormone, Pancreatitis, superior
mesenteric artery syndrome, ileus, pneumothorax, hemothorax,
chylothorax and fat embolism. Urinary tract infections,
wound infection and hardware failure are not addressed."[They were not addressed because they happened so often!]
(i.e. hardware failures).
Surgery is oftentimes
considered a success, but that is only insofar as it
is completed successfully at the end of the surgery
without the patient having significant complications
during the procedure. It does not
avoid future problems. Unfortunately,
these problems arise frequently.
Consider another medical
reference to scoliosis surgery: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."
The surgeon will
not give you these statistics. References to his success
rate are only referencing the surgical procedure itself
and its resulting reduction (at most 50%) of the original
Cobb Angle.
However, consider the
following medical reference: 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.]
It is wise to do your
homework.The first decision to be made is whether or not to have
surgery. Once that is made, it will thereafter
allow you to take the next step. If surgery is your choice,
then it will lead you to inquire about who, what, and where.
Long term effects? Try to talk to persons who have had
surgery over 10-25 years ago, not two years ago. The
initial failures of surgery are not usually apparent till
adulthood.
If you pursue a
non-surgical approach, then it is important to visit
the clinic that you have an interest in, no matter how
far away it might be. Talk to others being treated
or request that the clinic ask some prior patients to
contact you via email or by telephone to corroborate
the successes of the clinic.
Finally, make a
choice; it is crucial to have complete faith
in the final decision. Of course, always be willing
to ask questions. The proper choice can mean the difference
between a normal healthy life for you or a loved one
or a debilitating future.
Remember,
the least invasive
approach should always be tried first; you
can always obtain surgery as a last resort. Do not let
doctors scare you into rushing to the operating table due
to being told that ‘it may become much worse so we need
to operate right away’. There is almost always enough of
a window of opportunity to make a rational choice.
Sincerely, Dr. Daniel
S. Hersh
Video Of Surgery Patient
"Thoracic hypokyphosis with increasing
axial rotational instability is claimed to be a primary
factor for the initiation of Idiopathic Scoliosis."
1
1) Sagittal configuration of the spine
in girls with idiopathic scoliosis: progressing rather than
initiating factor. Rigo M, Quera-Salvá G, Villagers M. Elena
Salvá Spinal Deformities Rehabilitation Institute, Vía Augusta
185, 08021 Barcelona, Spain. Stud Health Technol Inform.
2006;123:90-4
This is further magnified by Winter, who also seems to indicate
that the Harrington Rods add to the problem.
“The idiopathic cases usually exhibit a flattening of the
sagittal curves, which had further deteriorated when the
Harrington technique was used." 3
3) Sagittal plane correction in idiopathic
scoliosis. de Jonge T, Dubousset JF, Illés T.
University of Pécs, Faculty of Medicine, Department of Orthopedic
Surgery, Pécs, Hungary. Spine. 2002 Apr 1;27(7):761.
Adolescent Idiopathic Scoliosis(AIS) - an indication for surgery? A systematic
review of the literature.
Weiss HR. Disabil Rehabil. 2008;30(10):799-807.
RESULTS: No controlled
study, not in the short, mid or long term, searched within
the review, has been found to reveal evidence to support
the hypothesis that the effects of surgery as a treatment
option for AIS is superior to natural history.
Titanium Rods Rejected in Scoliosis Surgery...More
Common Than You Think
"I had a
surgery in the spine due a severe
scoliosis, the first intervention was in 1998, they
put in a plate of titanium in my spine to correct it
and by the year of 2000 I had a rejection with small
fistulas I mean small injuries in the spine.
Is there a
remedy to my problem? As they have
tried to remove the plate of titanium and it's been
impossible due it's inlaid in the spine bone.
Will I have to
remain with this for all my life or there’s any way
out?"
Attentively, Cristiana B.
CONCLUSIONS:No evidence has been found in terms
of prospective controlled studies to support surgical intervention
from the medical point of view. In the light of the
unknown long-term effects of surgery and
in concluding on the lack of evidence already found that
surgery might change the signs and symptoms of scoliosis,
a randomized controlled trial is long overdue. Until such
a time that such evidence exists, there can be no medical indication for surgery.
The indications for surgery are limited for cosmetic
reasons in severe cases and only if the patient
and the family agree with this.
What would you like to have known about scoliosis?Share your story or concerns with OPRAH
as we campaign to get Scoliosis featured on her show. To
participate, log on to:
Oprah Scoliosis Campaign
Telephone: 860-499-0433
or 860-727-8820
Postal address: 105 Hungerford
St., Hartford, CT 06106
