Hello Martie, I had Scoliosis surgery (T2 to L2) along with a Harrington implant in 1977.

Everything has been fine with that section of my back, but over the years, I started experiencing pain below my spinal fusion. The initial pain was due to a Bulging Disc in the early 90's that was managed with physical therapy for years. In 2022, I started experiencing a different type of pain, and consulted with the Orthopedic Chair at the local university medical school. L2 - S1 had a multitude of problems, including DDD, spinal stenosis, lateral listhesis spondylolosthesis, flat back, Bertolotti's, Tarlov cysts (asymptomatic), et cetera.

I went through the conservative management spectrum--physical therapy, and nerve block injections to potentially identify nerves for ablation. Unfortunately, with the complexity of my back, the specialist was not able to find the source of my pain.

I sought a second opinion from a top tier hospital and went through the same routine.

Next --Surgery was recommended. Unfortunately, the Ortho Chair no longer did cases like mine. He recommended a younger doc that had limited years of experience.

After I expressed a concern, I was referred to another surgeon with more experience. The surgeon planned to remove all my existing hardware and replace it with new hardware, while correcting the issues in my lower back. As my prior rod and fusion were fine, I was reluctant to have my hardware removed.

This led Dr. Jeremy Fogelson at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN.

Dr. Fogelson planned to leave my existing hardware in my back, correcting my problems and fusing my back from my T10 to pelvis. Additionally, due to the arthritis in my Sacroilliac (SI)Joints, it was recommended for me to have my SI joints fused.

I had my SI joint fusions with Dr. William Cross on day one ( 2 hours max) and the spinal surgery with Dr Foegelson on Day 2. ( 11 hours)

Fast forward--that was exactly 8 months ago. My chronic pain is gone. I do occasionally get sore when I sit for too long. I am so happy I had the surgery. I still need to ice periodically. I am walking 2 miles a day, and doing strengthening exercises.
I had some right leg numbness and tingling in my calf and foot before my surgery and that still remains. I have been advised, by several doctors, that nerve recovery can take 1 1/2 to 2 years--and it may never go away. ( I should not have waited so long to have the surgery--but I had/have Osteoporosis and was on teriparatide to strengthen my bones before and after surgery.)

I highly recommend Dr. Fogelson as he focuses on Scoliosis and complex cases.

Best wishes!
Nadine