Day 64
- March 11
"Those
who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar like eagles,
they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint." Isaiah
40:31
Late Thursday
afternoon we met with our third ortho specialist. He also holds a fellowship
in trauma care and is apparently THE trauma specialist in the Valley. He reviewed
all of her xray films and did a full evaluation of her injuries. If you remember
from the list in our email of 3/4/04 (Day 57), there are quite a few bone
breaks and fractures that need healing and re-knitting.
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Below is a quite lengthy description of her healing. If you'd prefer to skip
it, scroll down to the dotted line below and read this part later....
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The
right foot fractured metatarsals (2) have healed. They were visible only
in the early CAT scans and not on recent xrays. There is a compression fracture
in her little toe (a new find) but it is also healing.
-
The
left foot broken metatarsals (2) are slowly healing. She does not have any
discomfort at this time, otherwise he would repair them. The 5th (outermost)
metatarsal is pretty well crushed but shows some developing callous (new
bone) ( xrays). He
says that if it had been his call 2 months ago, he would have surgically
repaired these breaks then...too late now.
-
The
left lower leg looks similar to this
and has two pins to stabilize the lower part of the smaller bone (fibula)
and keep the "roof" of the ankle joint intact. Concern for proper
healing of this area was the reason for her prolonged non-weight-bearing
status on this foot. The doctor said that 50% of ortho doctors remove the
two titanium pins...but he doesn't have a problem leaving them in (similar
to this: http://www.ortho-u.net/image8/synd20.jpg).
The fracture in the fibula a couple inches above the pins looks to be healing
as well and is stable with no pain.
-
Her
left hand fracture is stable and is healing. He said he would have pinned
this originally, too. However, the pain and discomfort have subsided as
we've worked on it more specifically in therapy.
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The
pelvis fractures are healing well.
-
The
right acetabular (hip socket) repair looks "pretty" as the doctor
called it - very clean and neat. There is a plate and seven screws, all
of which appear to be fusing well to her pelvis/hip region. The post-surgical
numbness is wearing off and she is beginning to experience new (uncomfortable)
sensations, but it is a sign that healing is occurring and nerves are regenerating.
He does caution that later in life, due to the brut force of the impact
on this hip and the resulting severe cartilage damage, she will likely have
arthritis in this hip by age 35-40 and will likely need a hip replacement
by age 60. (Her actual right-hip xray and part of her lower spine: click
here )
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He
did also glance at her spine/lumbar repair and says it also looks as though
it is fusing well. We will follow-up with the neuro/spine guy tomorrow to
be sure. A model of the structure looks similar to http://www.coloradospineinstitute.com/graphic/xray/instrument/5_lumbar_tlif.jpg
but her twin titanium rods extend one position lower than the diagram
with a total of 8 screws (4 left and 4 right). Her hip and spine xrays,
combined, look like this
and this.
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The GREAT news is that the ortho doctor has cleared
Stephanie for weight-bearing - as tolerated - on both her left and right legs!!!
He has written a prescription for a walker and the rehab doctor will develop
a plan for out-patient physical therapy on Monday! Praise the Lord! Her back
brace will remain a critical element for at least another month to ensure
proper fusion and healing.
We are still trying to remain focused on patience,
faith, and purpose. It is so easy to fall into "what ifs" and "whys"
and "whens"...but they are so destructive to a positive frame of
mind and to proper healing. The Lord is merciful and He will see us through!
In His time, according to His plan, to fulfill His purpose.
Thank you for your continued prayers and support
-- you are a blessing.
Bill & Heather Adair
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