3/29/24- Here we are again! Wyatt had a spinal fusion revision on Friday. He was in the OR for 8 hours while two surgeons reconstructed his back by cutting bone and rebuilding it, adding a third rod, replacing the hooks for screws, adding more screws, and fusing to C7 (this is very much a simple description because I don’t understand everything). It was a very complicated surgery with remarkable results! The surgeons were extremely happy. See the before and after x rays below to see the difference. Also, new for this surgery was the use of a machine that recycled the blood he lost and was put back into him during surgery and a wound vac placed on his back after surgery. The night of surgery and now the second day has been significantly better for Wyatt than this last spinal fusion.
Why did we need a revision? Since halo traction in May and spinal fusion in June, Wyatt encountered many complications and recovery has been tough and painful. First he required two shunt revisions in June and August because of tubing that was disconnected from a traction x ray (we think) and then a pysdeo-cyst
that formed in his abdomen from scar tissue. As a result, in August the shunt was rerouted from a VP to a VA. All this caused about an extra two and half weeks in the hospital this past summer.
This past summer Wyatt was doing PT and OT three times a week and not recovering as he should have. He relied on a walker and wheelchair most of the summer and loosing weight. This required a g-tube placed in November. During the November hospital stay, I requested an orthopedic consult because I noticed a “rod” or a bone protruding out of Wyatt’s right shoulder and progressively getting worse. A CT scan confirmed a rod unhooked, several screws loose, and kyphosis in the neck.
We had a second opinion at Shriners in Philly, a small hospital that specializes in orthopedics and scoliosis. They concurred with Hopkins.
As much as we would have like to wait for the summer for Wyatt to have this surgery, the risk of the rod puncturing through the skin was too much. The surgery needed to be done as soon as possible. Wyatt regained the weight he lost and was healthy and stable so we decided spring break would be best for this surgery. He will be in the hospital for a week and about 3 weeks at home recovering. So far, it has been uneventful and boring which is the way we like it!
June 2023 VS March 2024
June 2023
OG Back
Walking Post Surgery for the first time
5 Days Post Surgery
Managing pain but is able to have short walks
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