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Johns Hopkins Medicine Suburban - “What Scoliosis?”

New Directions Spring 2017

“What Scoliosis?”

Date: March 21, 2017


Linda Brockbank and family
After spine surgery to treat her scoliosis, Linda Brockbank, back row center, can now enjoy spending time with her extended family, including six grandchildren.

Linda Brockbank spent a decade assuming that her back pain was just a downside of aging. As the pain worsened, the 68-year-old Fairfax, Virginia, resident tried physical therapy and spinal injections, but relief was only temporary. Then, during a bone density test 2 ½ years ago, Brockbank was told that her scoliosis made it impossible to read the test accurately. “What scoliosis?” she recalls asking.

Brockbank immediately consulted with an orthopaedic surgeon, who ordered an MRI. The scan showed degeneration of all of her lumbar vertebrae with scoliosis, a curvature of the spine. What followed was a series of visits to specialists and more injections, but pain relief remained elusive. Meanwhile, the pain had progressed to the point where Brockbank couldn’t walk or stand for more than ten minutes; she couldn’t even pick up her grandchildren. Fortunately, she eventually was referred to Dr. Joseph O’Brien.

“He looked at the MRI and immediately told me that he could fix my scoliosis with minimally invasive surgery,” she says.

“Ms. Brockbank had degenerative scoliosis with pinching of her nerves,” explains Dr. O’Brien. “A conventional open procedure would have involved a foot-long incision and a six-month recovery. We were able to perform a structural realignment and relieve the pressure on her nerves using a minimally invasive technique. It involved two separate procedures one week apart, each requiring a short stay at Suburban Hospital. During the first procedure we put a small tube through her side to access the spine and placed small cages in-between the bones. This realigns the bones and persuades them to grow in the right orientation. During the second procedure we put in small screws to hold the spine straight while it heals.”

“I wouldn’t be able to do these procedures without the excellent support I get at Suburban,” adds Dr. O’Brien. “In fact, the hospital is in the process of obtaining specialized equipment that will use spinal navigation to enhance our ability to treat these curves minimally invasively.”

“I’m thrilled beyond words with my recovery,” says Brockbank, who was off most of her pain medications just six weeks after her procedures. Within a few months, she had regained much of her mobility. “I can pick up my grandbabies again,” she exclaims.

FOR MORE INFORMATION | To learn more about orthopaedic spine surgery at Suburban Hospital, go to suburbanhospital.org/orthospine.