Spine Surgery......in three days!?

Question

Does anyone know anything about a tethered spinal cord? and the surgery to fix it. Im getting it in three days and i would like some more info on it. Like whats it like after surgery with the recovery time and all? please only help if you have knowlegde of this..

My doctor didnt tell me much...

Answer 1

Your doctor should be explaining this to you!  S/he will have a much better idea of what is going on with you as far as the recovery time and such--they are the one with the knowledge about your specific case.  It really isn't possible to just guess at what your recovery might be like.

Basically, as you probably know, the problem with tethered cord is that the spinal cord is supposed to be relatively free within the spinal column.  Sometimes there are tissue attachments that 'tether' the cord to the bones, which causes the cord to stretch.  That's what causes any symptoms you might be having.  There are different forms of tethered cord and different severities, so I can't tell you how extensive yours is.  

If you are having symptoms, you should talk to your doctor or surgeon about the likelihood of their being helped by surgery.  There is often some improvement, but the surgery can't undo damage if it is already done, so you should be clear on what you can expect or hope for.  The main purpose of the surgery is to prevent any further damage from occurring.

Please do talk to your doctor and ask them to be more specific and more complete about what you should expect.

Best of luck!  I hope everything goes well and that you have a quick recovery.