I wasn't going to post anything about this but since my wife and son have already put it all over social media, I suppose that it won't hurt. My son Max is affected with a fairly serious back condition called scoliosis. We've been watching his back X-rays for several years now, and according to the back specialists it had gotten to a point this year where a surgical repair was necessary, in order for him to avoid a lifetime of back pain. Max just graduated from high school and will be starting college in the fall, so we decided now was the time to have the surgery.
The surgery was on Monday and went well, thankfully, but I have to admit to being shocked and awed by the X-rays taken afterwards. Here's a "before" X-ray of Max's back:
And here's a couple "after" shots:
Holy crap! FYI those 18 screws are 45-50 millimeters long (50 millimeters is 2 inches), and 6 millimeters in diameter (about a quarter inch). The two stainless steel rods are 12 inches in length. Max now has two scars on his back over a foot long. He was almost 6'2" when he went in, but we expect him to be 6'3" to 6'4" when he comes out.
He's in a lot of pain right now of course, but his prognosis is good, and we expect him to be coming home from the hospital on Friday. He should be mostly back to normal in 6 weeks, and fully recovered in 3 months. My wife, who is a physician, is staying with him at the hospital 24/7 and watching the other doctors and nurses like a hawk LOL!
Just thought you guys might like to see some REAL serious hardware. Also, I believe I have now one-upped Bill Conley's skiing accident X-ray
