Cody D. is a normal teen, just like you and me. He has his own band, in which he plays guitar, and goes to high school. Yet also like you and me, he used to have scoliosis and had surgery to correct it. The following is an interview I conducted with him in order for you to hear from another teen about the scoliosis corrective surgery.

Q: Where are you from?
A: Reading, Pennsylvania

Q: How old are you now?
A: 17

Q: How old were you when you had the surgery?
A: 16

Q: Did you have a C-curve or S-curve?
A: A C-curve

Q: How many degrees was your curve before the surgery?
A: About 53 degrees, I believe.

Q: Do you know the cause of your scoliosis?
A: Most of my mothers side of the family have some problems with scoliosis, my aunt had to have a brace and physical therapy (also performed by Dr. Pizzutillo).

Q: On what date did you have your surgery?
A: January 9th, 2003

Q: What made you choose that date?
A: It was after my school’s midterm exams and at the beginning of the third quarter, school was really my main concern in choosing the month.

Q: How much school did you miss?
A: About a month, but I had all my work sent home so I was able to make it up.

Q: How long was your hospital stay?
A: 3 and a half days, I was released a day early because I had recovered so well.

Q: How long was your recovery time?
A: I had surgery on a Thursday, was released on a Sunday, and by the time I got home I was able to walk around. I didn’t really get back to normal completely though for another 2 weeks, but by then my only problems were making sure not to lift anything too heavy.

Q: Were there any complications involving your surgery?
A: No.

Q: How are you doing now?
A: Very good, I have some pain in my right shoulder area but that is just because of muscle atrophy. I'm having physical therapy now to get those muscles back in shape and feeling good again.

Q: How has the surgery changed your life?
A: It has made my bowling game a lot better as I'm able to bowl straighter and more precise, but it overall didn't have a profound change on me other than letting me realize my pain threshold and not having me end up as a hunchback.

Q: Do you have any advice for teenagers with scoliosis who are having the surgery?
A: If you have a good doctor and he says you need the surgery, don't worry about it at all. There will obviously be some pain in the beginning and some restrictions for a bit, but the overall affect outweighs the initial frustration at not being able to do certain things for yourself [during recovery time].

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