Yikes!

[Guest guest]

Hi ,

I do, indeed, have the Harrington/luque rods/wires which were put in in

January, 1992. I can give you the reason for the surgery, but not necessarily

for

the particular corrective system!

I have the surgery notes, but still am unable to access " Database " . I have

no problem just typing them in, though. I could literally fax you the notes

and let you decipher them. But, you have only a few days left? I am studying

these notes to see if I can answer your question (which is my question, as

well).

I shall return.

Carole M. (the elder)

[Guest guest]

Hello again, ,

I am not as educated as, perhaps, I should be regarding my scoliosis surgery.

That could possibly be because I was in such a wretched state just prior to

my surgery in 1992. The pain I was in at that point is just too hard to

describe. Having someone understand " where I was coming from " meant more to me

than I can actually say!

Anyway, the op notes state, " on new films, she has a right T6-12 99 degree

curve and a left T12-L4 89 degree curve. She is taken to the operating room for

fusion for stabilization of the curves. (more writing) Dissection was

carried out over the transverse processes of all lumbar vertebra and over T5-12.

The L5 was anticipated to be incorporated into the fusion because of a 1 cm left

lateral subluxation of L4-5. There was degenerative change in the apices of

the curve. There was degenerative change throughout the lumbar facets. The

caudad spinous process of L5 and T6 were taken down. ......The ligamentum

flavum was cleared, incised and excised and a small laminotomy made on the right

side of L4-5 and on the left side of T6-7. These were prepared for hooks and

then Harrington outrigger distractor was laced in order to initially distract

the spine. Once this was on and distracted manually, the interspinous spaces

were taken down with rongeurs and ligamentum flavum cleared, incised and excised

and small laminotomies made in the midline from T7-8 to L4-5. Then 18 gauge

sublaminar double Lucae wires were passed under the laminae and there were

two double wires passed under each of the laminae and single paired wires passed

under L5 and under T6..............................Decortication was then

carried out throughout with osteotomy of the facets with a Kapner gauge and

decortication with a Hall drill and dental bur over transverse processes of T6

though L5 on both sides. ...................The sublaminar wires were wrapped

around the Harrington rod and returned down with a jet wire tightner. A Luque

rod was then curved so as to give lumbar lordosis and thoracic kyphosis and was

placed so that the L went under the spinous process of L5. The second set of

sublaminar wires were used to tie down the Luque rod with a jet wire

tightner. " Then it mentions that the fascia was closed with interrupted figure

of

eight #1 Vicryl suture and in the iliac crest, the fascia was closed with

interrupted figure of eight. "

The Title was " T6-L5 Wired Harrington/Luque Rod Fusion with Left Iliac Crest

Graft " .

So, , I have probably sent useless (and too much) information, but I

am hoping that someone smarter than I can deciper it all for me.

Sincerely,

Carole M. the older

[Guest guest]

Oh, my! I left out the fact that Lipson, M.D., was the surgeon. He

is no longer in practice due to illness. He is about the age of Dr. Rand.

Carole

[Guest guest]

Carole...

My understanding is that Harrington rods are still considered the best

implants in certain very specific situations by some medical professionals.

I'm not positive about this, but I think these doctors use them in some

cases of kyphosis.

Regards,

On 2/17/04 12:12 PM, " poetryperson " <poetryperson@...> wrote:

> Carole, you wrote:

>

>> ,

> Don't forget that mine were put in in 1992 in Boston.

>

> Carole M.

>

>

> Good grief, I HAD forgotten this.

>

> Can you remind me who did that surgery?

>

> What was the rationale for using that kind of instrumentation, if you

> know?

>

>

[Guest guest]

Hi ,

It is Dr. Rand that I would see, and I have seen him before. It could be a

while, since I am having hand surgery before too long. However, as I write

this I realize that there is nothing to stop me from getting a " follow-up "

appointment with him. When I last saw him, I didn't know of these groups, etc.

Yes, I certainly will ask about the Harrington/Luque rods.

When we were at New England Baptist seeing the hand surgeon, Dr.

Terrano, my husband asked him something which I didn't really hear. However, I

did hear Dr. Terrano say, " Oh, no! We don't go around taking out Luque rods " .

He called them " lukey " rods.

I will let you know what happens. It could be a little while, though.

Sincerely,

Carole M.

P.S. Do you hear from ?

[Guest guest]

Hi Carole...

I can't remember if you mentioned it previously... who was your surgeon?

--

[Guest guest]

LInda,

Some people talk about having only one rod and it being a Harrington. Would

it make a big difference if I have two (Harrington and Luque)?

Thank you for your comments. I appreciate your sharing your extensive

knowledge!

Carole M.

[Guest guest]

Hi Carole...

Never mind. I see that you mentioned him in a subsequent email. When you

see Dr. Rand, or whatever surgeon you see, I'd be grateful if you'd ask them

to comment on the fact that your surgeon used Harrington implants.

Regards,

[Guest guest]

Hi Carole...

Having Luque implants is different and newer than just plain Harrington

distraction implants, but I think it was still considered old technology by

the time you had your surgery.

I can't remember.. did you end up with flatback despite the fact that your

rods were bent?

How is " lukey " pronounced? I think you probably already know this, but

Luque is pronoused loo-key.

I heard from about a month ago. He's been approving the posts, so I

know he's around and will post when he's ready.

Regards,

On 2/18/04 12:45 PM, " scolioly2@... " <scolioly2@...> wrote:

> Hi ,

>

> It is Dr. Rand that I would see, and I have seen him before. It could be a

> while, since I am having hand surgery before too long. However, as I write

> this I realize that there is nothing to stop me from getting a " follow-up "

> appointment with him. When I last saw him, I didn't know of these groups,

> etc.

> Yes, I certainly will ask about the Harrington/Luque rods.

>

> When we were at New England Baptist seeing the hand surgeon, Dr.

> Terrano, my husband asked him something which I didn't really hear. However,

> I

> did hear Dr. Terrano say, " Oh, no! We don't go around taking out Luque rods " .

> He called them " lukey " rods.

>

> I will let you know what happens. It could be a little while, though.

>

> Sincerely,

>

> Carole M.

>

> P.S. Do you hear from ?

>

[Guest guest]

Hi ,

Even after all this time, I guess I hadn't actually heard the pronunciation

of Luque quite the right way until I heard it from my hand doctor, and from

you. I've heard all sorts of explanations, and they were no help at all.

I'm thinking of calling for an appointment sooner rather than later

(regardless of my hands) and, I assure you, I will ask about the use of the

Harrington

rod.

Yes, I do believe I have flatback, although I didn't know it's name last time

I saw Dr. Rand. The fact that he told me that he might, eventually removed

ribs, etc., makes me think that I do have it. That would be coupled with the

fact that, even with a cane, I definitely bend far forward.

, I am, as always, happy that you took the time to write me! I

definitely do not have the knowledge of my scoliosis that I should have, and

have

learned so much on these sites! Thank you again!

Carole M.

[Guest guest]

The doctor that put my Luque rods in pronounced it the way

does ( " loo key " ). Dr. Page studied the technique with Dr. Luque so

he should know :-)

> Hi ,

>

> Even after all this time, I guess I hadn't actually heard the

pronunciation

> of Luque quite the right way until I heard it from my hand doctor,

and from

> you. I've heard all sorts of explanations, and they were no help

at all.

[Guest guest]

I've been reading about bowel cleansing and parasite cleanses on and

off for about a year. I'd sort of planned to do a mild cleanse this

summer, until today, when much to my horror I spotted what were

unmistakably two small worms when I used the washroom. I'm in panic

mode now. I bought a tincture called Para-Cleanse (the company name

seems to be " Nutra Research Int'l " ). The instructions are to take 8

drops under the tongue 2-3 times daily. It doesn't say whether it

should be taken on an empty stomach or not.

Has anyone on the list had experience with this - or a similar -

product? How long should I continue this kind of cleansing

regimine? A month? Three months?

I am really wary about starting this, though now it's obvious I have

to. I'm anxious about what I'm going to see coming out (if I may be

so blunt)! Another thing that is making me very uneasy is that over

the past few months, I've had several dreams about worms and

parasites in the body. The most recent dream was this week. Talk

about the subconscious giving me a heads-up!

Yikes... (

Would appreciate feedback and advice. Thanks,

-Dee-