Scoliosis: Life, Support & Friends

Braces and Plaster Casts Orthotic management of spinal disorders dates back at least to the Middle Ages. Some of the concepts underlying those primitive devices, notably three-point forces, remain valid today. Fabrication materials have progressed from metal and leather to light weight thermoplastics allowing many new designs and a new level of comfort for the patient. Braces help control the curve as you or your child grows. These braces are sometimes prescribed post surgery, along with plaster jackets. I had a plaster cast for 7 months after my Harrington Rod surgery. They are designed to protect the back while the tiny bone ships used for grafting fuse to form a solid bone mass. Unfortunately for me my bone chips have not all formed a solid mass and I now have terrible problems with my donor site. There are many different braces in use today, however, they all present similar problems in finding clothing that is both comfortable and trendy! The Milwaukee Brace Developed by Drs Al Sc...

Scoliosis Journal recently reported the following article which talks about the long-term outcome after Boston brace treatment in adolescent idiopathic scoliosis. Authors: Johan Emil Lange, Harald Steen and Jens Ivar Brox Published: 26 August 2009 Background Few studies have evaluated long-term outcome after bracing using validated quality of life outcome. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the long-term outcome in adolescent idiopathic scoliosis (AIS) 12 years or more after treatment with Boston brace. Methods 109 (80 %) of 135 patients (7 men) with AIS treated with Boston brace at a mean of 19.2 (12-28) years previously responded to long-term follow-up examination. All patients (n = 109) answered a standardised questionnaire including demographics, work status, treatment, Global Back Disability Question, Oswestry Disability Index (ODI) (100-worst possible), General Function Score (GFS) (100 - worst possible), EuroQol (EQ-5D (1 - best possible), EQ-VAS (100 - best possible...

So now I am in my third boston brace. :( It hurts. The side that goes up is on the right, whereas it used to be on the left. It feels so different. It's made me really sick as well. I don't have holes in it yet, so it is really really hot. Last night, I lost my appetite and didn't eat dinner, then this morning, I went pale and felt really sick and weak. I went back to bed and closed my eyes. When I opened them again, I couldn't see anything! My parents were going to call the ambulance. Oh even though I TRY to stay positive, it's so hard. Bracing sucks. :( Here's a picture of my new brace (without holes) and my old brace.

Yeh, I sorta forgot about writing in to the blog after I got my new brace but I have finally remembered. My new brace isn't much different from my old brace, except it hurts a lot more!!! Now I remember why I used to not mind going swimming! Speaking of swimming, does anyone else here HATE going swimming for their back? Coz I have never been a swimmer and can't stand it! Anyway, so I went to the hospital on Thursday and got my new brace. It was obviously taller and made me stand uo even straighter than I had been standing before! The doctor took away Soapy, my old brace. So I went home and lied down (because I could hardly breathe!) and had to take the next day off school as well. I don't like my new brace much. I've called it Bossy the Boston Brace (yeh, I know, very original!) and it kills at times! It doesn't even have holes all over it yet. When I breathe in suddenly, air rushes out of somewhere and makes a huge wooshing sound. My old brace did NOT do that. Now ...

So, first of all... Confession. :) Well... I have been a member of this blog for a while now but haven't really gotten around to posting. Sorry! But for now... here's a little intro on me! Name (For this blog, anyway): Tiz Age: 13 Scoli type: Adolescent Idiopathic Scoliosis treatment: bracing for 10 months now, still ongoing :( Scoliosis curve before treatment: 31 degrees Scoliosis curve at last check-up: 20 degrees! (Both lumbar and thoracic, by the way) Brace type: Boston (could be much worse, I guess) Estimated time to continue bracing: 2 years, until I stop growing at least Next scoli appointment: 5th Feb, update will be posted hopefully, if I remember COOL scoli sites for teens: www.spinekids.com --> good place to post scoli story and excellent forums, mostly girls That's it for now! Thank you heaps, Simone and Judith, for letting me be a part of such a cool blog!