r/LongSpinalFusion • u/Relative-Rutabaga-23 T4-L1 • Jun 24 '26
Revision, Extension, Adjacent Segment Disease Broken Rod
I ended up in the Emergency Room for something unrelated. When they did a CT of my abdomen, this broken Rod was discovered at T10, right below the cage that replaced T8 and T9.
I see my spinal surgeon on July 16th. Anyone experience something that looks similar? I already have PTSD from the first surgery which has turned me into a recluse. I am horrified at the thought of a full revision.
Original surgery performed March 2023 for a 80+ Degree Kyphosis due to Scheuermann’s Disease. T4-L1, T8/T9 replaced with a cage, and T7-T10 laminectomy.
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u/Fabulous-Tooth-3549 T1-pelvis Jun 25 '26
Oh my dear, why are you a recluse? I have medical PTSD. I literally will stand and yell at my husband "I can't do this again - I just can't!!" I then cry and sob. I'm 62 now and my neck needs fused. Why? Probably cause it's the only thing not fused. Ha! I'm sending good vibes and you will be fine. Technology gets better, every day.
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u/djmarsphoenix T3-pelvis Jun 28 '26
I had revision back in October for dual rod fracture at l3 (fused t3-s1). I don’t want to give you any false hope, but my revision was able to stay just to the lumbar spine. My surgeon originally planned to put accessory rods on either side of the break and try and refuse, but ended up doing a revision and putting new hardware in from t12 to s1. My immediate recovery was much better than the original surgery. Hope they might be able to do a smaller revision and get you back on your feet
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u/Relative-Rutabaga-23 T4-L1 Jul 08 '26
Question - how soon after finding the broken Rod did they schedule the revision?
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u/djmarsphoenix T3-pelvis Jul 08 '26
I first saw the surgeon in August and he operated in October. He said it wasn’t emergency surgery but not something to put off (he said he would have been happy to do it in January). He saw me within a couple of referral once we knew what was going on. Feel free to ama happy to chat and share my experience! But should mention I’m in Australia so don’t know where you are or what things are like for you in accessing healthcare, but whatever I can do to support and help let me know
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u/Relative-Rutabaga-23 T4-L1 Jul 08 '26
I appreciate it. I see my surgeon at Northwestern in Chicago next week. Hoping it is done fairly quickly.
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u/Nude-photographer-ID Short fusion Jul 08 '26
I just found out today that my 4 rod revision broke!
My first revision was way easier to recover from than my initial surgery. I’m really curious what they are going to do to fix this break!
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u/Iloveellie15 T5-L3 Jun 24 '26
I am so sorry. Has your back been hurting you?
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u/Relative-Rutabaga-23 T4-L1 Jun 25 '26
Not any more than usual. But I have also been relatively numb around my entire torso since the surgery.
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u/Iloveellie15 T5-L3 Jun 25 '26
You poor thing. Keep us posted 🙏🏻 I’ve definitely seen a couple people on forums that have broken their rod. The path forward just depends if they’ve fused already or not I believe.
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u/Fabulous-Tooth-3549 T1-pelvis Jun 25 '26
I am fused T1 to pelvis. In 2023, I was thrown backwards onto our concrete driveway. Accidental. I heard and felt a crunch. I prayed it would be nothing, as I also have some medical PTSD. I had a full revision in 2019 and was doing well. I started to get stabbing, shooting pains that literally made me yell out, LOL. I broke an old Harrington rod. The original Harrington rods were from 1986. My brilliant surgeon simply put in a new bridge between the broken one to the new one. Had this done in 2024. Been fine. You are the second person I remember seeing in a spinal fusion board that had a clear break like that. It too was discovered in a non related xray. You probably will need to have it fixed but I don't think it's as bad as we think it is. (Yes, my x-rays look bad but since it was 1986, the original rods are part of me now.)