Today my little girlie had a checkup for her scoliosis. Earlier in the week we got an xray; today we took it to the orthopaedist for review and commentary. He said she is doing fine; the curve has decreased a tiny bit since she got the brace. That doesn't change anything; she will still need the brace till she finishes growing. That's probably another 3 or 4 years. But we knew that from the start; a scoliosis brace doesn't straighten the spine, it just keeps the curve from getting worse as the child grows.
I won't lie and pretend I didn't have a tiny bit of hope that he'd tell us that the curve was so greatly improved she could give up the brace. But I didn't expect it. We will see him again in 6 months to be sure the brace is still fitting properly, but she won't get another xray for a year.
The brace has become almost a non-issue for us now. She wears it almost all day, except when she is doing something active - soccer, gymnastics, trampoline, bike riding, going to the gym. She sleeps in it every night. The doctor approved her leaving it off during the day while she was at Girl Scout camp last summer, but she dutifully put it on at bedtime. It wasn't a big deal; in fact, she was able to reassure one camper who was anticipating wearing a brace soon herself. That was a great experience for her and I hope she has that opportunity again!
For anyone who doesn't know what I'm talking about, and wants to, here are a few places to get our scoliosis story:
Happy Birthday! You have scoliosis.
The brace.
Self-pity. Or not.
Showing posts with label scoliosis. Show all posts
Showing posts with label scoliosis. Show all posts
Friday, September 24, 2010
Sunday, February 14, 2010
The brace
Last Monday my girlie got her back brace for scoliosis. It's already become a fact of our everyday lives and not such a big deal. So far.
The brace is a plastic, foam, and velcro strap contraption, as my mom might have said, called a "Boston brace" for the company that makes it. She will wear it for 4 years or so, till her growth stops. Actually she'll wear several as we expect her to grow. The orthotist said we should be able to go 9 months to a year before needing a new one.
The fitting appointment was long and tedious. The orthotist put the brace on, did some measuring and marking, then took it off and away to cut some off. That happened two or three times. Once it fit properly he added the pads that will push on the spine. There is no real expectation that the spine will straighten; the object is to keep the curve from increasing. I suppose it's s possible that it will improve; I've heard stories of improvement but so far there is no medical reason to expect it.
The sound of the saw, and the smell of the glue was a little disconcerting. But soon it was all done and she was encased; I was instructed in how to strap her in (with marks on the velcro to show me when it's tight enough). Off we went, with instructions to get an x-ray in 1 month to be sure everything is pressing where it should be. This is a contradiction to the orthopaedist's instruction to have it in 6 months. I hate that: I want my healthcare professionals to be in agreement. And it make sense to me to check within 1 month rather than 6. We'll see what the doctor says in a few weeks. And the insurance company!
But for now we're working on getting adjusted. I was told that the first night of sleeping would be bad. Horrible. Impossible. But it was fine; she slept well. She is up to 21 hours a day in the brace; the recommendation is 23 hours with the admission that most kids get about 16. Obviously, the more the better.
Because we've had some bad weather and have been staying home, today was the first day she wore the brace around nonfamily members. Her good friend at church already knew about it so that was easy. So far no one has bumped her and noticed her hard shell, but she is prepped with what to say when that happens. Oh, all her current clothing fits fine over it. It's a lot slimmer than we expected it to be.
The worst part so far is also the hardest to describe on the internet. (One must be aware of possible google searches.) The special t-shirt to wear under the brace looks hot and uncomfortable and costs $40. Since it has to be changed at least twice a day, and laundered after each wearing... that's a considerable cost. We don't want to be cheap about this, of course. But it's hard to drop a couple hundred bucks on that type of garment. We're trying other off-the-shelf shirts but so far everything is inadequate, and all my research tells me that this is a common and unsolvable dilemma. There is no perfect solution. Hot, humid summers might be really hard.
She noticed something funny while wearing some slim jeans and looking at her back in the mirror. I don't want to publish the word she gave it but if you have any Playmobil figures around, go get one and bend it forward at the waist (which is, I guess, the only place you can bend a Playmobil figure) and look at it from behind. That approximates the look. Hilarity ensues whenever one of us notices it.
Which is the proper response, I guess: hilarity. Laughter. Making the best of it. It could be a lot worse.
The brace is a plastic, foam, and velcro strap contraption, as my mom might have said, called a "Boston brace" for the company that makes it. She will wear it for 4 years or so, till her growth stops. Actually she'll wear several as we expect her to grow. The orthotist said we should be able to go 9 months to a year before needing a new one.
The fitting appointment was long and tedious. The orthotist put the brace on, did some measuring and marking, then took it off and away to cut some off. That happened two or three times. Once it fit properly he added the pads that will push on the spine. There is no real expectation that the spine will straighten; the object is to keep the curve from increasing. I suppose it's s possible that it will improve; I've heard stories of improvement but so far there is no medical reason to expect it.
The sound of the saw, and the smell of the glue was a little disconcerting. But soon it was all done and she was encased; I was instructed in how to strap her in (with marks on the velcro to show me when it's tight enough). Off we went, with instructions to get an x-ray in 1 month to be sure everything is pressing where it should be. This is a contradiction to the orthopaedist's instruction to have it in 6 months. I hate that: I want my healthcare professionals to be in agreement. And it make sense to me to check within 1 month rather than 6. We'll see what the doctor says in a few weeks. And the insurance company!
But for now we're working on getting adjusted. I was told that the first night of sleeping would be bad. Horrible. Impossible. But it was fine; she slept well. She is up to 21 hours a day in the brace; the recommendation is 23 hours with the admission that most kids get about 16. Obviously, the more the better.
Because we've had some bad weather and have been staying home, today was the first day she wore the brace around nonfamily members. Her good friend at church already knew about it so that was easy. So far no one has bumped her and noticed her hard shell, but she is prepped with what to say when that happens. Oh, all her current clothing fits fine over it. It's a lot slimmer than we expected it to be.
The worst part so far is also the hardest to describe on the internet. (One must be aware of possible google searches.) The special t-shirt to wear under the brace looks hot and uncomfortable and costs $40. Since it has to be changed at least twice a day, and laundered after each wearing... that's a considerable cost. We don't want to be cheap about this, of course. But it's hard to drop a couple hundred bucks on that type of garment. We're trying other off-the-shelf shirts but so far everything is inadequate, and all my research tells me that this is a common and unsolvable dilemma. There is no perfect solution. Hot, humid summers might be really hard.
She noticed something funny while wearing some slim jeans and looking at her back in the mirror. I don't want to publish the word she gave it but if you have any Playmobil figures around, go get one and bend it forward at the waist (which is, I guess, the only place you can bend a Playmobil figure) and look at it from behind. That approximates the look. Hilarity ensues whenever one of us notices it.
Which is the proper response, I guess: hilarity. Laughter. Making the best of it. It could be a lot worse.
Sunday, January 10, 2010
Happy Birthday! You have scoliosis.
My little girly turned 11 a few days ago. The day before her birthday, she got an unwelcome gift: a prescription for a back brace.
At her last physical checkup, the doctor did a scoliosis check, and suggested we go in for a back x-ray as she seemed a little crooked. The doctor seemed pretty nonchalant about it, and it took me a while to get around to getting it done. But the report made me sit up and take notice, and we quickly made an appointment to see an orthopedist.
Scoliosis is a curvature of the spine, measured in degrees. My girl has an S-shaped curve of 30 degrees. At 25 degrees, a brace is indicated for treatment. (At 40 or 45 degrees, surgery is usually indicated. Below 25 degrees, just observation for progression.) She will likely need the brace for about 4 years, or till she stops growing. The brace will not correct the curve, but should keep it from progressing; that's the plan, at least.
If one is going to have a curved spine, I guess the S-curve is preferable to a C-curve. She doesn't look out of balance. She looks perfect!
Tomorrow we will go and get her fitted for her brace. We're told that it will be plastic, hard and uncomfortable. Hot in the summertime. She is supposed to wear it 23 hours per day, but the doctor said most kids don't wear the brace to school, so, realistically, 16 hours is usual. Since she can wear hers to school, it shouldn't be too hard for her to get close to 23 hours most days. She can go to the gym, and continue in the gymnastics class she just started. We'll probably have a flurry of sewing new clothes to fit!
As physical problems go, this is pretty minor. It's not life-threatening. It's probably not a life-long chronic problem. And she is a pretty strong girl. I think she'll have some difficult days, and then she'll toughen up and do fine.
At her last physical checkup, the doctor did a scoliosis check, and suggested we go in for a back x-ray as she seemed a little crooked. The doctor seemed pretty nonchalant about it, and it took me a while to get around to getting it done. But the report made me sit up and take notice, and we quickly made an appointment to see an orthopedist.
Scoliosis is a curvature of the spine, measured in degrees. My girl has an S-shaped curve of 30 degrees. At 25 degrees, a brace is indicated for treatment. (At 40 or 45 degrees, surgery is usually indicated. Below 25 degrees, just observation for progression.) She will likely need the brace for about 4 years, or till she stops growing. The brace will not correct the curve, but should keep it from progressing; that's the plan, at least.
If one is going to have a curved spine, I guess the S-curve is preferable to a C-curve. She doesn't look out of balance. She looks perfect!
Tomorrow we will go and get her fitted for her brace. We're told that it will be plastic, hard and uncomfortable. Hot in the summertime. She is supposed to wear it 23 hours per day, but the doctor said most kids don't wear the brace to school, so, realistically, 16 hours is usual. Since she can wear hers to school, it shouldn't be too hard for her to get close to 23 hours most days. She can go to the gym, and continue in the gymnastics class she just started. We'll probably have a flurry of sewing new clothes to fit!
As physical problems go, this is pretty minor. It's not life-threatening. It's probably not a life-long chronic problem. And she is a pretty strong girl. I think she'll have some difficult days, and then she'll toughen up and do fine.
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