UNICORN - Dr. Guichet Internal Femurs 8cm - Summer 2016

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Quote from: notatroll on August 22, 2018, 07:16:39 PMYou're strong. I'm confident you'll be fine at the end. Cloudy calluses are a very good sign.

I also get random knee pains more in the range of 7/10. When I'm in pain I limp. My local doctor said I will get premature arthritis. Some people in forum told me this pain is related to retrograde approach. What do you think?

I think knee pains are so hard to diagnose.  It also depends if you did Tibia where it's more invasive to the knees. 

In my case, during my 3rd surgery in Milan, Guichet broke his nail inside me and had to hammer it out through my left knee, and ever since I suffered chronic knee pains.

So 14 months later, when NHS operated on me, they found a sac of liquid due to some kind of tissue abbrasion that was probably mangled when my nail got jammed out so barbarically.  Once the sac got drained and my IT band released, my knee pain completely vanished.

However, I have other Guichet classmates who are now telling me they feel early onset of arthritis.  I can't comment because I seriously have no idea and as you all know well, there is not sufficient research out there to document long term side effects of this surgery.

One thing for sure is, it is very INVASIVE irregardless of which doctor is operating on you because suddenly, your entire body has to deal with longer bones.  Hence, the proportion of cms you lengthen compared to your starting height does make a HUGE difference. 

And I don't mean aesthetics but rather how much strain you put your body under.  Coz remember, you need to grow bones, heal the post surgery shock your body endures, have soft tissues lengthen, overcome inevitable muscle atrophy and then, learn to walk like a normal person again.

I sincerely believe anyone can reach any height as long as they go slow (or fast) enough that their calluses are bridged at all times and they ensure their soft tissues can stretch at the same pace.  Then honestly, this surgery can be feasible, achievable and successful to all.

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Quote from: Unicorn888 on August 23, 2018, 11:43:33 AMI think knee pains are so hard to diagnose.  It also depends if you did Tibia where it's more invasive to the knees. 

In my case, during my 3rd surgery in Milan, Guichet broke his nail inside me and had to hammer it out through my left knee, and ever since I suffered chronic knee pains.

So 14 months later, when NHS operated on me, they found a sac of liquid due to some kind of tissue abbrasion that was probably mangled when my nail got jammed out so barbarically.  Once the sac got drained and my IT band released, my knee pain completely vanished.

However, I have other Guichet classmates who are now telling me they feel early onset of arthritis.  I can't comment because I seriously have no idea and as you all know well, there is not sufficient research out there to document long term side effects of this surgery.

One thing for sure is, it is very INVASIVE irregardless of which doctor is operating on you because suddenly, your entire body has to deal with longer bones.  Hence, the proportion of cms you lengthen compared to your starting height does make a HUGE difference. 

And I don't mean aesthetics but rather how much strain you put your body under.  Coz remember, you need to grow bones, heal the post surgery shock your body endures, have soft tissues lengthen, overcome inevitable muscle atrophy and then, learn to walk like a normal person again.

I sincerely believe anyone can reach any height as long as they go slow (or fast) enough that their calluses are bridged at all times and they ensure their soft tissues can stretch at the same pace.  Then honestly, this surgery can be feasible, achievable and successful to all.

Oh sh*t...I had no idea he broke his nail inside you and had to hammer it out through your knee. Holy f*ck...Unicorn, I'm sorry...I don't know what to say.

I met some Guichet patients who were doing 8cm and up. I met one guy who did 9.5cm in one surgery...I actually don't remember his proportions looking bad. But the more I hear about this, the more I'm glad I stopped around 7cm. My body was definitely telling me it was time to stop, and I'm glad I listened to it.

I also will say from experience that clicking rods are terrible for bone callous formation and soft tissue recovery. I very narrowly avoided needed a bone graft on my left leg. Consider myself very lucky.

With Precice 3 (or whatever it's called) coming out, all other rods (Fitbone, G-Nail, etc.) are entirely obsolete. No reason to go to any of those surgeons, unless it's a matter of convenience (you're local) or cost.

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Thank you for your answer Unicorn. It means a lot you find time to answer. Thanks and cheers

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Quote from: YellowSpike on August 23, 2018, 03:31:01 PMOh sh*t...I had no idea he broke his nail inside you and had to hammer it out through your knee. Holy f*ck...Unicorn, I'm sorry...I don't know what to say.

I met some Guichet patients who were doing 8cm and up. I met one guy who did 9.5cm in one surgery...I actually don't remember his proportions looking bad. But the more I hear about this, the more I'm glad I stopped around 7cm. My body was definitely telling me it was time to stop, and I'm glad I listened to it.

I also will say from experience that clicking rods are terrible for bone callous formation and soft tissue recovery. I very narrowly avoided needed a bone graft on my left leg. Consider myself very lucky.

With Precice 3 (or whatever it's called) coming out, all other rods (Fitbone, G-Nail, etc.) are entirely obsolete. No reason to go to any of those surgeons, unless it's a matter of convenience (you're local) or cost.

Hi Yellowspike,

I agree fully with the launch of NuVasive's STRYDE weight bearing IM nail, it means no more agonizing/traumatizing twisting of the legs 15x a day, potential non-union (since nail doesn't stop or reverse), valgus on one side because both nails only twist in one direction etc.

I would say anyone who can afford STRYDE should definitely save up for it.  No one should suffer the way we did.  And even when manual Albizzia type nails are used, doctors usually wait 1 week post-op before starting to click/lengthen.  Hence, it allows the body to recover a bit from the invasive surgery instead of clicking ASAP right after the femurs are freshly broken, which causes our PTSD.

Guichet also accidentally pierced through my iliac crest during my 3rd surgery while extracting marrow to inject into my non-union right leg.  Hence, the DVT scare.  I've come to a point where I truly believe that there's bad luck and then, there's also incompetence/neglect/arrogance on the part of the doctors.

Someone reminded me again about MasterHY's diary on the old MakeMeTaller site from 2013 which is quite similar to mine where we were initially so enthusiastic and in complete adulation of our doctors to discover that the moment complications happen, we all get abandoned, dismissed and swept under the rug.

So yes, there is a bunch of us...  sort of hanging around haunting these doctors because of the way they handled complications.  And we won't stop until we're healed no matter how many years it takes.

-  Precice/Stryde Nails are FDA approved
-  Precice/Stryde Nails can stop and reverse (hence, practically no more risk of non-union and easier for soft tissue to stretch)
-  Precice/Stryde Nails come in antegrade and retrograde (hence, less/no more risk of valgus)
-  Precice/Stryde Nails do not require the hundreds of leg twisting/racheting to lengthen the nail
-  Precice/Stryde Nails are also smaller in diameter which might not OVER REAM the bone canal which can cause non-union
-  However, Precice/Stryde nails might become problematic if someone fuses too fast because if consolidation is more solid than the mechanism can lengthen, then you'd need to be content with your height or rebreak your bone again (all these complications can be avoided today with careful and frequent monitoring)

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Quote from: Unicorn888 on August 24, 2018, 08:48:25 PMI've come to a point where I truly believe that there's bad luck and then, there's also incompetence/neglect/arrogance on the part of the doctors.

Someone reminded me again about MasterHY's diary on the old MakeMeTaller site from 2013 which is quite similar to mine where we were initially so enthusiastic and in complete adulation of our doctors to discover that the moment complications happen, we all get abandoned, dismissed and swept under the rug.

So yes, there is a bunch of us...  sort of hanging around haunting these doctors because of the way they handled complications.  And we won't stop until we're healed no matter how many years it takes.

YES Ma'am

Betz, Guichet and Monegal should be deprived of their licenses to practice. Together we can

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Hi everyone,

I promised to try illustrate what happens to your body dynamics when your bones are longer than your soft tissues.  The kind of stuff that CLL doctors seem to brush off but depending on your flexibility, regaining normal walking gait and posture could take a very long time and affect your quality of life (besides muscle atrophy etc).

Hence, stretching and physiotherapy are especially important during the lengthening process to avoid stiff muscle contractures.  And LLers need to recognize WHEN TO STOP lengthening when their soft tissues are over extended because surgical releases might be required if your body cannot keep up with your taller self.  No one case is the same, hence, you need to own your process and keep a vigilant eye on how your body is adapting.

There's no magic solution, it's about what to look out for to stay safe during your LL process.

BEFORE (Wide Leg Phenomenon)



AFTER (Wide Leg Phenomenon)



BEFORE (Anterior Pelvic Tilt / Duckass Phenomenon)



AFTER (Anterior Pelvic Tilt / Duckass Phenomenon)

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Thanks for your diagrams. They explain very well what happens with femur LL. What about tibia? What kind of effect does tibial lengthening have?

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Quote from: patientprivacy on August 31, 2018, 09:34:55 PMThanks for your diagrams. They explain very well what happens with femur LL. What about tibia? What kind of effect does tibial lengthening have?

I don't know, sorry!   Coz I never did my tibs, so I have zero knowledge here

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Quote from: patientprivacy on August 31, 2018, 09:34:55 PMThanks for your diagrams. They explain very well what happens with femur LL. What about tibia? What kind of effect does tibial lengthening have?

Ballerina foot - knee bending - foot inversion. All because of tendons and muscles contraction.

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Hey guys,

I found something quite amazing for soft tissue stretching and muscle strengthening for femur LL.  NHS got me to try it and it looked sooooo basic, like it was invented in the stone age.  It probably helped homosapiens stand upright and walk straight!



But actually, it helped me soooo much in terms of stretching hamstrings and quads when I rocked forward and backwards, and then IT bands when I rock from side to side.  Coz imagine when you rock backwards, you're effectively stretching your hamstrings and when you rock forward, your glutes and hip flexors etc.

Also just standing still and balancing on the board, while holding lightly onto parallel bars.  This simple exercise activates glutes, abs etc. core muscles and you literally sweat buckets for such low impact movements.

The KEY is to be as SLOW as possible and not use momentum to swing yourself.  Anyway, just a suggestion and not to be attempted without the confines, security and even supervision of your physio and handle bars.  This is only for weight bearing nails/devices + good bone consolidation.

Just wanted to share this little CLL HACK     JUST DON'T FALL, PLEASE 

FORWARD & BACKWARD ROCKING
https://www.instagram.com/p/Bm0uhVnBBh3/?taken-by=unicorn_gets_taller

SIDE TO SIDE ROCKING
https://www.instagram.com/p/Bm0u56RBZXg/?taken-by=unicorn_gets_taller