Princess Eugenie shows spinal surgery scar in wedding dress to honour NHS
Written by News on 13/10/2018
Princess Eugenie chose a wedding dress that showed her scar from childhood spinal surgery as she paid tribute to NHS staff that cared for her.
The dress, designed by Peter Pilotto and Christopher De Vos, had a low back feature that was specifically requested by Eugenie to showcase the scar from her life-changing operation to correct scoliosis.
Eugenie was diagnosed with the condition when she was 12 and received treatment at the Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital to straighten her spine.
Describing her treatment, the princess said: “During my operation, which took eight hours, my surgeons inserted eight-inch titanium rods into each side of my spine and one-and-a-half inch screws at the top of my neck.
“After three days in intensive care, I spent a week on a ward and six days in a wheelchair, but I was walking again after that.”
Eugenie’s operation was performed by NHS surgeon Jan Lehovsky who was invited to attend her wedding to Jack Brooksbank, along with representatives from the Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital NHS Trust.
Ahead of the ceremony, Eugenie said showing her scar was “a lovely way to honour the people who looked after me”.
She told ITV’s This Morning: “I think you can change the way beauty is, and you can show people your scars and I think it’s really special to stand up for that.”
Scoliosis, which causes a person’s spine to twist and curve to the side, can affect people of any age but most often starts in children aged 10 to 15.
About three to four children in every 1,000 need treatment for the condition.
(c) Sky News 2018: Princess Eugenie shows spinal surgery scar in wedding dress to honour NHS
