hi justin,
i'm glad to hear you've scheduled surgery. i know you've done as much research as possible and you'll be with a great surgeon whom you respect and trust. i truly hope all of your pain is removed and left in Germany w/that stupid osteophtye and i hope it never comes back... sianara! and sianara to all those nasty pain meds. i look forward to hearing about your success... you know everyone is going to want to talk to you since you'll be one of a few in the world with DSS behind Prodisc that speaks English!
you've been a big support to me off of this forum, which i'm grateful for, and of course you've also supported so many spine patients around the world for many years. i hope this surgery lets you get back to living the life of a "normal" almost 30 year old and helping more patients in your career.
be careful the next few weeks and i hope may 14 is here before you know it.
i also hope you can take the board exam before your surgery... get that HUGE stress off of your plate so you can focus on healing post-op.
take care,
Liz
ps... i have two guesses for the exciting news -- either would be wonderful!!!
let us know when you can.
2nd ps... when you have a chance will you please post the abstract from Dr. McAfee et al on rotational motion and deformity? it was in Spine in Sept 2006. i think it's one of the best articles at explaining why ADR alone can result in instability. thanks.