Surgery For Thoracic And Lumbar Spine
(upper and lower back)
BRIAN F.
A 21 YEARS OLD MALE involved in motor vehicular accident that changed his life dramatically. It made him a new person, kind to his mother and father, from being rebellious from his parents and using drugs and went far from Chicago to California. For the first time in years he came closer to his father. His mother and stepmother never left his sight after the accident. The car rolled over. He had a broken spine in the middle back, thoracic spine at multiple levels, he had spinal cord injury and was on the verge of losing all his strength. He was intubated on a machine to ventilate him. Thank God he did not get completely paralyzed. He was unstable from all these injuries, bleeding from the lungs. He was placed on restricted bed rest and required to be taken for major surgery on the spine where his spine was decompressed, the sac was repaired and spine was held together with rods and screws at 8 spine levels. The incision was 10inch long, thoracic level T4 to T10 and fracture was unstable and called Chance fracture. He had brain concussion and some hemorrhages, lung contusion and seat belt injury. He recovered well and made remarkable recovery. He walked unassisted and went to rehab and then home. The surgery was in 2005. He continues to do well. His mother made a diary with photos of each step of his recovery as a testimonial to his miracle recovery.
Brian F. was severely injured in an automobile crash in March 2005. His mother, Cindy, tells his story.
“I think of Humpty Dumpty when I tell people what happened to Brian,” Cindy says. “Dr. Ghaly literally put him back together again. Dr. Ghaly picked up the pieces and took over Brian’s care after the accident.”
Brian was driving only a mile or so from his home when he lost control of his vehicle. He swerved, and struck a fire hydrant. There were no people around, so he spent some time before a nurse happened upon the scene of the accident and called 9-1-1. It was midnight on the dot when Cindy received a call from the chaplain at the hospital, informing her of the accident. “When I first saw Brian in the ER I couldn’t believe all the blood,” Cindy recalls. “Brian had a broken back, brain hemorrhage, and severe internal injuries. He was not stable enough to do surgery on the back, so he was placed in a coma for about a week. Then, when he was brought out of it, he was such a fighter that the doctors were afraid he’d become paralyzed unless they did the surgery to repair his back. Dr. Ghaly rebuilt his spine using cadaver bones and steel rods and screws.”
Dr. Ghaly says he lost Brian twice during surgery, but was able to bring him back. “Dr. Ghaly told us the angels were with him,” Cindy says. “It was pretty amazing. Dr. Ghaly had Brian up and moving within 24 hours of the surgery. In addition, Brian came back form his head trauma. His speech came back pretty fast, but it made no sense when he talked at first. Now he might be a little slow in his thinking, and has some short term memory loss, but if you didn’t know him before the accident, you’d probably never notice there’s anything wrong.”
Brian was in the hospital for a month. Because he had no health insurance, Cindy says the hospital stepped him down from critical care to lesser care units quickly. “He actually walked out of the hospital,” Cindy says. “He wore a cast for almost a year and did lots of rehabilitation, but he’s pretty much back to normal.”
Rehab was a real challenge, again because he did not have insurance. Brian did his rehab as an outpatient at several facilities. At first he went to rehab every day; then every other day; then even less often. He spent more than a year in rehab. “Brian had to learn how to get to rehab on buses,” Cindy says. “He was that determined to get back to his former life. We had to use several facilities because they only support those without insurance for so long.”
Every cloud has a silver lining, and Brian’s story also has one. Through his ordeal he got back together with his father, who he had not seen for many years. Today, he lives with his father on a small farm north of Chicago. “Brian can do handsprings today,” Cindy says. “He does work around the farm, drives a tractor, and works. There’s really little evidence of what he has gone through.”
Cindy credits Dr. Ghaly with the return of her son to normal life. “I think God sent him down here on earth to help people,” she says. “He’s just a miracle worker, an amazing man. I’d tell anyone facing the same thing to find Dr. Ghaly. I know each situation is different, and you do everything you can for your loved one, but never give up. I knew in my heart Brian would make it. I’ve had another year to love him and hug him. It may seem greedy, and I know God doesn’t put our children here for us, but it’s just part of being a mother to feel that way. I tell everyone: prayer and Dr. Ghaly-that’s what saved Brian!”
A 21 YEARS OLD MALE involved in motor vehicular accident that changed his life dramatically. It made him a new person, kind to his mother and father, from being rebellious from his parents and using drugs and went far from Chicago to California. For the first time in years he came closer to his father. His mother and stepmother never left his sight after the accident. The car rolled over. He had a broken spine in the middle back, thoracic spine at multiple levels, he had spinal cord injury and was on the verge of losing all his strength. He was intubated on a machine to ventilate him. Thank God he did not get completely paralyzed. He was unstable from all these injuries, bleeding from the lungs. He was placed on restricted bed rest and required to be taken for major surgery on the spine where his spine was decompressed, the sac was repaired and spine was held together with rods and screws at 8 spine levels. The incision was 10inch long, thoracic level T4 to T10 and fracture was unstable and called Chance fracture. He had brain concussion and some hemorrhages, lung contusion and seat belt injury. He recovered well and made remarkable recovery. He walked unassisted and went to rehab and then home. The surgery was in 2005. He continues to do well. His mother made a diary with photos of each step of his recovery as a testimonial to his miracle recovery.
Brian F. was severely injured in an automobile crash in March 2005. His mother, Cindy, tells his story.
“I think of Humpty Dumpty when I tell people what happened to Brian,” Cindy says. “Dr. Ghaly literally put him back together again. Dr. Ghaly picked up the pieces and took over Brian’s care after the accident.”
Brian was driving only a mile or so from his home when he lost control of his vehicle. He swerved, and struck a fire hydrant. There were no people around, so he spent some time before a nurse happened upon the scene of the accident and called 9-1-1. It was midnight on the dot when Cindy received a call from the chaplain at the hospital, informing her of the accident. “When I first saw Brian in the ER I couldn’t believe all the blood,” Cindy recalls. “Brian had a broken back, brain hemorrhage, and severe internal injuries. He was not stable enough to do surgery on the back, so he was placed in a coma for about a week. Then, when he was brought out of it, he was such a fighter that the doctors were afraid he’d become paralyzed unless they did the surgery to repair his back. Dr. Ghaly rebuilt his spine using cadaver bones and steel rods and screws.”
Dr. Ghaly says he lost Brian twice during surgery, but was able to bring him back. “Dr. Ghaly told us the angels were with him,” Cindy says. “It was pretty amazing. Dr. Ghaly had Brian up and moving within 24 hours of the surgery. In addition, Brian came back form his head trauma. His speech came back pretty fast, but it made no sense when he talked at first. Now he might be a little slow in his thinking, and has some short term memory loss, but if you didn’t know him before the accident, you’d probably never notice there’s anything wrong.”
Brian was in the hospital for a month. Because he had no health insurance, Cindy says the hospital stepped him down from critical care to lesser care units quickly. “He actually walked out of the hospital,” Cindy says. “He wore a cast for almost a year and did lots of rehabilitation, but he’s pretty much back to normal.”
Rehab was a real challenge, again because he did not have insurance. Brian did his rehab as an outpatient at several facilities. At first he went to rehab every day; then every other day; then even less often. He spent more than a year in rehab. “Brian had to learn how to get to rehab on buses,” Cindy says. “He was that determined to get back to his former life. We had to use several facilities because they only support those without insurance for so long.”
Every cloud has a silver lining, and Brian’s story also has one. Through his ordeal he got back together with his father, who he had not seen for many years. Today, he lives with his father on a small farm north of Chicago. “Brian can do handsprings today,” Cindy says. “He does work around the farm, drives a tractor, and works. There’s really little evidence of what he has gone through.”
Cindy credits Dr. Ghaly with the return of her son to normal life. “I think God sent him down here on earth to help people,” she says. “He’s just a miracle worker, an amazing man. I’d tell anyone facing the same thing to find Dr. Ghaly. I know each situation is different, and you do everything you can for your loved one, but never give up. I knew in my heart Brian would make it. I’ve had another year to love him and hug him. It may seem greedy, and I know God doesn’t put our children here for us, but it’s just part of being a mother to feel that way. I tell everyone: prayer and Dr. Ghaly-that’s what saved Brian!”