6 major side effects of scoliosis surgeries

Posted by abby smiths on October 10th, 2018

The problem of scoliosis has become much bigger than ever. It is estimated that around 4.5% people of the general population are diagnosed with this condition. If we talk about the United States, in particular, in a nation that has an approximate population of 300 million, there are well over 13 million people who are reported to have scoliosis of some kind and around 500 people are diagnosed every day. This means that around 1,73,000 people are getting this condition each year. Clearly, this is a very serious issue and the stats are worrisome.

As per studies, people who are suffering from the problem of scoliosis usually have a 14-year reduction in their average life expectancy. If somehow, we are able to treat these conditions completely, it would add around 168 million years of productivity and health to our society. Now coming to the various methods available to treat scoliosis, surgeries are often said to be a “good” solution to the problem, but this is not true. See, how badly someone is affected with scoliosis majorly depends on the degree of curvature of a patient’s spine. Higher the degree of curvature, more serious is the problem. For the mild cases, surgeries are not necessary. The condition can be effectively treated with alternative methods as well. Moreover, surgeries have various side-effects.

Scoliosis surgery side effects:

Infection - Surgeries can lead to various infections. Antibiotics are usually given to the patients before, during, and after the operations to lessen the risks.

Pain at graft site- There are some patients that have experienced persistent pain at the bone graft site after surgeries.

Pseudarthrosis - For scoliosis patients who smoke a lot, it is not very surprising to develop the problem of pseudarthrosis after operations. This happens when there is not enough bone formation. Pseudarthrosis can cause pain and even rod breakage. You might also require a second surgery, so that a solid fusion can be obtained.

Blood clots - Surgeries can result in the formation of blood clots in the legs. The problem becomes dangerous if these clots break off and move to the lungs.

Nerve damage - Although these complications are very rare,it is possible that there is a nerve damage or blood vessel injury during your operation.
 
Lung complications - Unhealthy teenagers can also experience problems with lung function after scoliosis surgeries.

Why go for surgeries when you can get rid of your problem with non-invasive methods? Go for an alternative scoliosis treatment!

Author’s Bio: The author is an avid blogger. This article is about scoliosis side effects.