Re: Re: Boston Brace vs. Rigo-Cheneau?

[Guest guest]

Ami,

My son wears a brace which I was told is a mix between the Boston and Cheneau type. I'll try to attach some pictures so you can see it. I find that the names seem to be interchangeable. (The pictures were taken the first day he got the brace...he doesn't look so uncomfortable now.)

He started out wearing a Providence brace at bedtime only. Over the course of 8 months his curves progressed from 28 to 36 and from 16 to 26. This brace was recommended by our local ortho and was made from a computer scan. After we saw the progression of the curves with this brace, our local ortho referred us elsewhere to consider casting.

We ended up at Shriners in Chicago. Our Dr. said is too old for casting (which I now know others doctors have casted older kids than ) and recommended the Boston/Cheneau brace to be worn 23 hours a day. He was molded with plaster on the table they use for casting and a brace made from that. He's been wearing this brace for 4 months now. We just had a follow-up visit last week and Dr. said everything looks good. No x-rays were taken, so I can't tell you if there was progression or correction, but my husband and I both think he looks better. (He grew 3 inches in 4 months!)

tolerates the brace pretty well. The biggest issue is that he gets hot and sweaty. We change his undershirt every morning and again before bed. Also, it's a pain finding pants that fit up over the brace and stay up. We tried putting them on underneath, but he thinks he has to take the brace off to use the bathroom at school, so the pants go on over top now! Looking at this, I'd say there's not much to complain about. Sure there were struggles when he first got it...I refused to put his shoes on for him and he quickly found a way to do it on his own...just little things like that. I'm sure you likely had similar experiences with the cast.

Since was never casted, I can't make any comparisons to that end. I don't have any proof to tell you that his brace is working yet either, although I know he has grown, and it doesn't appear to have progressed. I can tell you that after watching them make braces using both the computer model and plaster mold, I think the plaster mold is better. It's a much more accurate fit. I feel that there's much more room for error with the computer model. That's my personal opinion though.

His first brace was $2000 and the next was $2500. Not sure if the molding method had anything to do with it that.

This is lots of rambling information...not sure if any of it is helpful. If you have any specific questions, feel free to email me.

Best of luck to you,

- (6 years old)

From: luckyvtmama <amibeautinet@...>infantile scoliosis treatment Sent: Sunday, February 19, 2012 12:41 AMSubject: Re: Boston Brace vs. Rigo-Cheneau?

Forgot to mention our plans are to brace in the summer and cast in the winter, if all goes well with the brace, if not, back to casting full-time! >> Our doctor wants us to start bracing Abigail at the end of April..I'm not sure why, I think perhaps to give her rib cage room to grow as it looks smaller in portion to the rest of her body? Abigail has held steadily at around 38 degrees and gets down to 12* in cast and her rotation is slowly improving. We are scared to death to move into a brace and see progression. > > Looking for good/bad experiences with a Boston Brace, as this is the one her ortho wants to put her into. We are also thinking about going with a Rigo-Cheneau but we would

have to pay $4,000 out of pocket every year as our insurance won't cover it. Would like to hear others experiences before committing to it. Also I have heard from a fellow mom they use a computer model to make the brace? Is this prefered over molding? > > Any other good options? > > Thank you so much! > > -Ami > > Abigail- almost 5 years old : ) "S" curve treated at boston childrens>

2 of 2 Photo(s)

IMG_1724.JPG