Steel City

So remember when I blogged about something being wrong with Bryant’s steel rod that was put in his spinal column 10 years ago?  Well he went to the orthopedic surgeon that did the work back in 1998 and found out something … interesting.  The way the original surgery worked was they made an incision that runs from just below his left shoulder blade to just above the front of his left hip.  He used to tell the rookies on the swim team who had never seen his scar that he got bitten by a shark.  Anyway, he had two curves in his spine and they had to be corrected.  The surgeon went in and removed 5 disks from his spinal column, inserted a steel rod and attached it with 5 bolts and screws.  The idea was that Bryant’s spine was so curved that it could be straightened out by this procedure.  It was no fun.  I played hours and hours of blackjack with him as he recovered because he couldn’t sit up, but he could flip cards.  He sat inside for days.  And today Bryant found out that, in not so many words, it’s quite likely the surgeon made a mistake 10 years ago.  MADE A MISTAKE.  That’s right, an orthopedic surgeon MADE A MISTAKE when he was putting steel in my brother’s spinal column.  Remember how I said he removed 5 disks?  For each disk the surgeon removed there was a bolt and a screw to attach it to the steel rod that would straighten out Bryant’s spine.  If you’re counting, that would be … 1, 2, 3, 4, … 5 attachments to the rod.  Look at this picture.  Can you count the bolts?  1 … 2 … 3 … 4 … oh wait number 5 looks different!  In what my brother described as, “He didn’t say it, but I’m pretty sure he meant to say he f****** up,” (forgive the colorful language – my brother was pretty upset) we found out today that the surgeon FORGOT TO ATTACH THE FIFTH BOLT.  That’s right – there’s a bolt in my little brother’s spinal column that is just sort of out there.  It isn’t doing anything.  It’s not attached to the spinal rod, and the vertebral column has now fused.  Bryant isn’t sure what they’re going to do next, but apparently a CT scan is in order.  We’ll just have to see I guess.