dropped columns

When I do a "\d tablename", I see columns that I've dropped, in the form:
........pg.dropped.9........ | integer |
but a coworker does not see them. We are using different versions of
psql (I, 7.2.2, he, 7.3.2) but I don't know what version of the server
we're using (we both use the same server).

In any case, in light of what I read about records not being rewritten
immediately when a column is added, if those columns are still in the
data records, and if so, what can be done to get rid of them? I tried
an update that modified every record, and that didn't help either.

Thanks