Update: as already stated I am still upset I had extra pain and to waste days recovering from correction surgery that could have been used for lengthening. People that had surgery before me have passed me and lengthened more.
I recovered from the surgery mostly, but my incisions are still healing. I had the same bowel irritation from aenesthesthia for a few days where I would have to go number two 4-5 times a day. I started lengthening again, and I don’t have any pain from lengthening so far that is more than 2/10 except this wicked knee pain in my right knee. If my knee is bent and I move it a certain direction / put pressure on my heel I get a terrible 8/10 pain spike. It feels like my knee is on fire, It’s only on my right knee, ice packs and anti-inflammatory Diclofenac topical cream helps alot with symptoms but doesn’t prevent it from being triggered by simply sitting up/down for example. I have to carefully do everything. I also have a rubbing/grating noise when bending knees (crepitus) I’ve heard from others that it goes away after fixator removal, but it is definitely going to be a long road still, I have only crossed the halfway mark and it only keeps getting tougher and tougher. Being back home definitely does feel way way way better, but I am still at one of my top 3 lowest points I have ever been, mentally & emotionally. Being back home is the equivalent of having commissary and cigarettes in prison. It’s a big plus but still prison with these leg cuffs at the end of the day.
I have been slacking on physio since I have been home, I have been copying the exercises with my nephews but they are nowhere like a real physical therapist. I use stretching bands from Amazon and have been doing physio and stretching religiously for at least an hour every day. Stretching hard hurts at first but relieves a lot of lengthening pain so it’s a great trade off. Especially when doing some before and some after you lengthen. I’m scheduling a physical therapist this week to come
I highly regret not having the stretching bands from beginning, they would have helped a ton. They are a must have
LON Femur 7.5cm with halil buldu may 13th, 2021 God-Willing
Quote from: Activatedxx on June 29, 2021, 01:20:58 AMUpdate: as already stated I am still upset I had extra pain and to waste days recovering from correction surgery that could have been used for lengthening. People that had surgery before me have passed me and lengthened more.
I recovered from the surgery mostly, but my incisions are still healing. I had the same bowel irritation from aenesthesthia for a few days where I would have to go number two 4-5 times a day. I started lengthening again, and I don’t have any pain from lengthening so far that is more than 2/10 except this wicked knee pain in my right knee. If my knee is bent and I move it a certain direction / put pressure on my heel I get a terrible 8/10 pain spike. It feels like my knee is on fire, It’s only on my right knee, ice packs and anti-inflammatory Diclofenac topical cream helps alot with symptoms but doesn’t prevent it from being triggered by simply sitting up/down for example. I have to carefully do everything. I also have a rubbing/grating noise when bending knees (crepitus) I’ve heard from others that it goes away after fixator removal, but it is definitely going to be a long road still, I have only crossed the halfway mark and it only keeps getting tougher and tougher. Being back home definitely does feel way way way better, but I am still at one of my top 3 lowest points I have ever been, mentally & emotionally. Being back home is the equivalent of having commissary and cigarettes in prison. It’s a big plus but still prison with these leg cuffs at the end of the day.
I have been slacking on physio since I have been home, I have been copying the exercises with my nephews but they are nowhere like a real physical therapist. I use stretching bands from Amazon and have been doing physio and stretching religiously for at least an hour every day. Stretching hard hurts at first but relieves a lot of lengthening pain so it’s a great trade off. Especially when doing some before and some after you lengthen. I’m scheduling a physical therapist this week to come
I highly regret not having the stretching bands from beginning, they would have helped a ton. They are a must have
Thank you for all your info/advice. Regarding your noise from bending knees - yes, I also heard from patients who has done lengthening surgery say that it goes away after fixator removal if not before.
Quote from: Bob on May 14, 2021, 08:08:57 PMIs IT band release always necessary in femur lengthening?
Just jumping in here to answer this. Yes, IT band release is deemed as necessary for lengthening over 3 cm. and since almost every patient lengthens over this limit, all LL doctors perform IT band release by default
Quote from: LON-next on June 30, 2021, 05:47:43 PMJust jumping in here to answer this. Yes, IT band release is deemed as necessary for lengthening over 3 cm. and since almost every patient lengthens over this limit, all LL doctors perform IT band release by default
Thanks for the info. Does IT band release have any negative consequences?
https://regenexx.com/blog/iliotibial-band-itb-release-surgery/
Well, IT band release has as much negative consequences as anything else related to limb lengthening surgery i.e. its not ideal to alter a part of your body, but it’s not severely detrimental to the point of causing a disability or long term pain or discomfort.
With IT band release ordinary people won’t notice the difference post the lengthening and recover phase. But if you’re an athlete or have athletic aspirations, that’s when you will notice a difference in your performance.
If you want to know even more, pm me, don’t like spamming people’s thread
I wrote this over the course of the week so it might have wrong past/present tenses
Good news & bad news
my health insurance I purchased when I got back scheduled me virtually on zoom to see a doctor who referred me to an orthopedic doctor. I should have been able to see one a while ago but this was the earliest available, and the other in-network doctors were even later appointments ( I only paid a very small amount to see a doctor that my insurance picks, I have blue cross blue shield ). It’s stupid but I cannot see an orthopedic doctor directly, I have to be referred to one by a regular doctor for them to cover it ( they cover 70-80% of orthopedic and X-rays etc )
I went to the ER July 6 to get a free X-ray, I lied and said I bumped my left fixator hard and felt pain and they took an X-ray. I should have said I hit both sitting down or something because they refused to take an X-ray of my right since there wasn’t technically a problem with it. I was reminded of America’s crappy healthcare system, as I waited for 2 hours to see the doctor Then another 2 hours seeing them and getting the X-ray and discharged.
It was very weird seeing the doctor and the radiologist specifically. She seemed to guess why I had them on when she saw the fixators and the length of the bone gap. She poked questions constantly like “so why do you have fixators on” and stuff like that. I said it was to correct a deformity but they knew it was BS lol but they didn’t say so, they just kept asking me what deformity, I said very bowed femurs and I was kind of dodging/BSing them. Me personally, I don’t care for peoples opinion especially ones I will not see again so what does it matter.
I could have waited to get an X-ray or paid for one but I really wanted to see the X-ray of my left femur it’s been a while since the correction.
Plus I thought they were going to X-ray both legs, which would have been 350-450$ out of pocket. If I knew they were only going to do left I would have just done it myself. They said it looked fine and no problems at the ER. This is a picture of it taken 6 days ago, they didn’t measure the bone gap.
I should be or very close to 5cm in X-ray
https://imgur.com/gallery/Pi95pXF
However there was a problem they didn’t point out which was really stupid of them. I didn’t see the X-ray copy until a few days ago and freaked out because the side view of my femur shows bone split. I literally freaked out However after seeing the orthopedic doctor today she said it is fine and will heal normally back to straight on it’s own, as did doctor buldu. I’m guessing it fractured from correction surgery, I don’t know.
My nerves skyrocketed but calmed down now after the doctor I saw today said it’ll be fine. However it is a problem when I take my fixator off I am not 100% sure it will be able to support my weight at the top end.
It’s always one thing after another in my case.
https://imgur.com/gallery/DAd8bqm
my terrible knee pain went away a week ago, after resting/icing/and most important staying off any strenuous activity on my right leg. I think what caused it was I would flip to my stomach or back, on the right side only. it never hurt to put body weight on the fixator but it caused the knee pain for sure from putting tension/weight on the fixator. The oral medicine voltaren/diclofenic sodium does not work good, but the cream version is amazing for the knee pain, it’s prescription only but my grandmother gave me hers, she doesn’t use it.
Mentally I am at a 8/10 pain level at times. I have major anxiety, it feels like I am holding my breath even when I am breathing. Especially at night.I haven’t had a comfortable sleep in months. I hate life at the moment, but am grateful it is not worse. I would give 1000$ to have just a week of good night sleep on my side. I am more comfortable here back in the states for sure, but being crippled with no comfort 24/7 due to these fixators has F’d my mind. If I don’t take a Xanax sometimes I feel like I am going to burst. The other night I punched my metal bed frame and cut my hand a little while sitting in bed.
Life sucks, but at least it’s not worse thankfully. I should be taking my fixators off end of this month however it seems like forever away and I am not even sure if I will be able to take off the left side yet.
2 of my pinsites got infected a few days ago and have been hurting terribly, my bottom left and my top right. I started antibiotics today, I can’t straight my right leg because it hurts so much at hip area, the muscle by pinsite is painfully swollen/inflamed. Hopefully will clear up in few days with antibiotics
Quote from: Activatedxx on July 12, 2021, 11:04:37 PMI wrote this over the course of the week so it might have wrong past/present tenses
Good news & bad news
my health insurance I purchased when I got back scheduled me virtually on zoom to see a doctor who referred me to an orthopedic doctor. I should have been able to see one a while ago but this was the earliest available, and the other in-network doctors were even later appointments ( I only paid a very small amount to see a doctor that my insurance picks, I have blue cross blue shield ). It’s stupid but I cannot see an orthopedic doctor directly, I have to be referred to one by a regular doctor for them to cover it ( they cover 70-80% of orthopedic and X-rays etc )
I went to the ER July 6 to get a free X-ray, I lied and said I bumped my left fixator hard and felt pain and they took an X-ray. I should have said I hit both sitting down or something because they refused to take an X-ray of my right since there wasn’t technically a problem with it. I was reminded of America’s crappy healthcare system, as I waited for 2 hours to see the doctor Then another 2 hours seeing them and getting the X-ray and discharged.
It was very weird seeing the doctor and the radiologist specifically. She seemed to guess why I had them on when she saw the fixators and the length of the bone gap. She poked questions constantly like “so why do you have fixators on” and stuff like that. I said it was to correct a deformity but they knew it was BS lol but they didn’t say so, they just kept asking me what deformity, I said very bowed femurs and I was kind of dodging/BSing them. Me personally, I don’t care for peoples opinion especially ones I will not see again so what does it matter.
I could have waited to get an X-ray or paid for one but I really wanted to see the X-ray of my left femur it’s been a while since the correction.
Plus I thought they were going to X-ray both legs, which would have been 350-450$ out of pocket. If I knew they were only going to do left I would have just done it myself. They said it looked fine and no problems at the ER. This is a picture of it taken 6 days ago, they didn’t measure the bone gap.
I should be or very close to 5cm in X-ray
https://imgur.com/gallery/Pi95pXF
However there was a problem they didn’t point out which was really stupid of them. I didn’t see the X-ray copy until a few days ago and freaked out because the side view of my femur shows bone split. I literally freaked out However after seeing the orthopedic doctor today she said it is fine and will heal normally back to straight on it’s own, as did doctor buldu. I’m guessing it fractured from correction surgery, I don’t know.
My nerves skyrocketed but calmed down now after the doctor I saw today said it’ll be fine. However it is a problem when I take my fixator off I am not 100% sure it will be able to support my weight at the top end.
It’s always one thing after another in my case.
https://imgur.com/gallery/DAd8bqm
my terrible knee pain went away a week ago, after resting/icing/and most important staying off any strenuous activity on my right leg. I think what caused it was I would flip to my stomach or back, on the right side only. it never hurt to put body weight on the fixator but it caused the knee pain for sure from putting tension/weight on the fixator. The oral medicine voltaren/diclofenic sodium does not work good, but the cream version is amazing for the knee pain, it’s prescription only but my grandmother gave me hers, she doesn’t use it.
Mentally I am at a 8/10 pain level at times. I have major anxiety, it feels like I am holding my breath even when I am breathing. Especially at night.I haven’t had a comfortable sleep in months. I hate life at the moment, but am grateful it is not worse. I would give 1000$ to have just a week of good night sleep on my side. I am more comfortable here back in the states for sure, but being crippled with no comfort 24/7 due to these fixators has F’d my mind. If I don’t take a Xanax sometimes I feel like I am going to burst. The other night I punched my metal bed frame and cut my hand a little while sitting in bed.
Life sucks, but at least it’s not worse thankfully. I should be taking my fixators off end of this month however it seems like forever away and I am not even sure if I will be able to take off the left side yet.
2 of my pinsites got infected a few days ago and have been hurting terribly, my bottom left and my top right. I started antibiotics today, I can’t straight my right leg because it hurts so much at hip area, the muscle by pinsite is painfully swollen/inflamed. Hopefully will clear up in few days with antibiotics
Your latest post made me sad though. Did you get better now ?
Quote from: willgettaller on July 13, 2021, 01:38:36 AMYour latest post made me sad though. Did you get better now ?
It doesn’t affect lengthening, but will affect locking the nail and will require extra healing. There’s a small chance it won’t support the nail being locked at the top, and at that point I don’t know what I will do. Possibly Either I won’t be able to weightbear on that leg for a little while longer after removalI think, or I will have to keep the fixator on until consolidation. I would choose not being able to weight bear on the leg, I don’t care I’m not keeping the fixator on. At this point I am so mentally fk’d from having it on, that it has cured my height neurosis because I don’t give a sh*t about anything other than getting back to normal, I am so depressed and have so much anxiety. I swear to god Sometimes I hit myself in the face because I can’t take it anymore, it’s been so long, I could quit early but then I will regret it even more that I went through all this and couldn’t finish strong in the last part. Even though the end is the shortest, you are drained. Just like that last few reps when you work out is harder than the first ten.
If it was on my lower legs it would not be anywhere as bad, but the femurs even with monorails is so fking tough it is worth every penny for precice in my opinion even if the recovery is much longer
Basically as long as I can weightbear when lock that nail that fracture is not a big deal and will heal straight and correctly on it’s own. I was relieved so much when I heard this, but a little overwhelmed again when I was told there’s a chance it can’t be locked or if it is locked I can’t weightbear on it
Also this is another opinion from parihar
https://imgur.com/gallery/c5O9Mo5
Hi bud, Wow you are going through a lot, aren't you? I'm really sorry you had to deal with this kind of complications. I belive if your journey was smoother, maybe the mental state you're in would have been better. I hope you overcome these obstacles successfully and regain your normal life. By the way, what did Dr. Buldu have to say about these complications?
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