Depressing Doctor Visit
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Tagged brad : Brad update
I've put off posting this for a week, but I guess it's not going to get any better.
Brad visited the thoracic surgeon on 9/13/05 and the orthopedic surgeon on 9/14/05. The thoracic surgeon didn't have much to say. One thing that stood out in Brad's mind is that Dr. Koury believes that if a rod is placed in Brad's back, he'll never ride a motorcycle again.
The orthopedic surgeon told Rhonda that he didn't believe the brace would correct Brad's curvature of the spine. He thinks only surgery will correct Brad's extreme curvature. Since they normally go in from the front and snip some ligaments, he's concerned about the bar across Brad's chest. When Rhonda asked how he would deal with that, he said Dr. Koury would have to assist. Dr. Barrett did say that it would be good for Brad to wear the brace and correct himself somewhat, but realistically, his curvature is in the 80's...it's not likely to be corrected by wearing a brace. However, the straighter he is at surgery time, the easier the surgery. Dr. Barrett didn't agree with Dr. Koury that Brad wouldn't be able to ride a motorcyle after recovery.
Right now, Brad isn't trying to wear the brace. I don't really blame him...when he had the chest surgery, the doctors said that he could get the brace in 3 months, which would be October 20th. He only got the brace early because they didn't know what else to do to help his pinched nerves and severe additional curvatures of the spine. Right now, the pinched nerves have subsided, but the brace is just too painful.
His schoolwork isn't terrible and is about like it was before the health problems. He's caught up on his tests.
Last Sunday, he and I threw the football a little bit. He was really worried about catching it in his chest. Before the surgery, he could throw it about as far as I could. This Sunday, we were about 20 feet apart. We also played a little basketball and he learned to appreciate the bounce pass...much less threatening to his chest.