Phoenix.. Rising !! External Tibias with TSF Frames @ Dr. Dhawan, New Delhi

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I thought you could not do 1mm/day with tibia, only with femur, is it possible to do this with tibia because of TSF?

how does the doctor feel about leaving for consolidation, is he okay with that, and you can send him x-ray etc.

Edit Post

I thought you could not do 1mm/day with tibia, only with femur, is it possible to do this with tibia because of TSF?

how does the doctor feel about leaving for consolidation, is he okay with that, and you can send him x-ray etc.

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Quote from: just_me on May 30, 2015, 03:37:25 PMIMO your tibia and femur shown in your pre-surgery X-ray has a good shape to get two straight legs after you finish your bowleg correction. I believe you wrote that you will complete your bowleg correction next week. So I think you will have two straight legs next week - Good luck.   

Thanks just_me, I have completed straightening my legs today. They look straight to me, but we can only be sure after taking the X-Rays in a couple of days.

Quote from: microman on May 30, 2015, 10:50:04 PMI thought you could not do 1mm/day with tibia, only with femur, is it possible to do this with tibia because of TSF?

how does the doctor feel about leaving for consolidation, is he okay with that, and you can send him x-ray etc.

We can do 1mm with Tibia, irrespective of which frame we use. The limit per day depends on the individual lengthening capability. Soft tissues react in different ways for different people, few people get pain at 1mm, but I did not really get any problem due to it. And it was not my choice, Dr. Dhawan gave the schedule with 1mm lengthening per day as a standard. He might have reduced the limit if I complained of pain, but I didn't.

I am planning to stay here throughout consolidation, so did not ask him, but I am sure he will approve a request to stay away during consolidation. Will cross check with him in the next visit.

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Quote from: just_me on May 30, 2015, 03:37:25 PMIMO your tibia and femur shown in your pre-surgery X-ray has a good shape to get two straight legs after you finish your bowleg correction. I believe you wrote that you will complete your bowleg correction next week. So I think you will have two straight legs next week - Good luck.   

Thanks just_me, I have completed straightening my legs today. They look straight to me, but we can only be sure after taking the X-Rays in a couple of days.

Quote from: microman on May 30, 2015, 10:50:04 PMI thought you could not do 1mm/day with tibia, only with femur, is it possible to do this with tibia because of TSF?

how does the doctor feel about leaving for consolidation, is he okay with that, and you can send him x-ray etc.

We can do 1mm with Tibia, irrespective of which frame we use. The limit per day depends on the individual lengthening capability. Soft tissues react in different ways for different people, few people get pain at 1mm, but I did not really get any problem due to it. And it was not my choice, Dr. Dhawan gave the schedule with 1mm lengthening per day as a standard. He might have reduced the limit if I complained of pain, but I didn't.

I am planning to stay here throughout consolidation, so did not ask him, but I am sure he will approve a request to stay away during consolidation. Will cross check with him in the next visit.

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That's great you're not having any pain. I tried alternating between .75 mm and 1 mm daily and the pain was unbearable for me on the 1 mm days.

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*I'm coming to delhi end of June/July for a consult! 2 July just booked flights.

I speak perfect English must stop rushing my typing. Would you recommend Dr. Dhawan? How would you rate your treatment? 

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I went to the hospital today for consultation and for taking new set of X-Rays. Dr. Dhawan was present during the whole time to supervise if the X-Rays were taken properly. Legs look straight in the X-Rays, but there is a slight misalignment. Dr. Dhawan took the X-Rays to re-calculate the leg angle and length, and he will give me a new lengthening schedule for 3 cm more in a couple of days. I will decide when to stop lengthening after I reach 5 cm total lengthening. Most probably I might go a few mm above 5 cm.

I also took X-Ray of the left ankle to determine if there is any issue, as I have pain from a few weeks. There seems to be no problem with the ankle, and the pain most probably is due to nerves pressing against the bone due to realignment of bone angle; Not a big problem. Also the pain is mostly subsided, and I can feel pain only during physiotherapy and during weight bearing. Ankle stiffness is a lot better than it was a week back, but still not perfect.

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Quote from: upandaway on June 01, 2015, 08:47:31 PM*I'm coming to delhi end of June/July for a consult! 2 July just booked flights.

I speak perfect English must stop rushing my typing. Would you recommend Dr. Dhawan? How would you rate your treatment? 

Hi upandaway, Thats Great, it is not even a month from now.. When are you planning to have your surgery? and who else are you consulting in India?

Dr. Dhawan is a very good doctor, and I do not see any big problems yet in my case. He is very busy all the time, but will answer your calls any time of the day. I can recommend him for External tibia surgery with Hexapod / TSF . The hospital is also very big and has good facilities.

The only minor inconvenience I have is with the post-op consultations. The hospital is very big, with many buildings and there are lot of patients so where ever I go there is a big crowd. There is a waiting involved every where. Every consultation takes almost 2.5 hrs, where most of the time is consumed for x-rays. This is not even an issue for many, but I hate hundreds of people staring at my legs, and I hate waiting before the X-Ray room, as I feel like a disabled, helpless patient when I sit in that hospital wheel chair for that long.

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Well I am starting to lean towards Dr, Dhawan. He's on the ASAMI board and has a great rep. I want the surgery as soon as possible after first consult. How quickly can he perform sugery do you think? You say his busy--> Could you ask the Dr. for possible surgery dates for me? 

I will also see Dr Sangari, and Talwar if I can get hold of him. Not Dr, Sarin. Rather be short. Any other Dr. in Delhi you could recommend?

Im bringing my girlfriend for support and nursing. So rather avoid guesthouse type places and get an apartment. She's a great gal.

Is there no way to do check ups in the private clinic? That surely would be better? 

You ended up paying $15,000? Why was that? He quoted around $10000. Was it because of the TSFs? They worth the extra $$?   I have saved around £7,000 plus overdrafts, loans I can get around £10,000 for the trip...

Thanks for the diary + details ... truely inspiring me! Should be seeing you soon..

upupandaway

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Quote from: upandaway on June 06, 2015, 05:06:07 PMWell I am starting to lean towards Dr, Dhawan. He's on the ASAMI board and has a great rep. I want the surgery as soon as possible after first consult. How quickly can he perform sugery do you think? You say his busy--> Could you ask the Dr. for possible surgery dates for me? 

I will also see Dr Sangari, and Talwar if I can get hold of him. Not Dr, Sarin. Rather be short. Any other Dr. in Delhi you could recommend?

Im bringing my girlfriend for support and nursing. So rather avoid guesthouse type places and get an apartment. She's a great gal.

Is there no way to do check ups in the private clinic? That surely would be better? 

You ended up paying $15,000? Why was that? He quoted around $10000. Was it because of the TSFs? They worth the extra $$?   I have saved around £7,000 plus overdrafts, loans I can get around £10,000 for the trip...

Thanks for the diary + details ... truely inspiring me! Should be seeing you soon..

upupandaway

Dr. Dhawan took around 10 days in my case after I gave him confirmation. But it will really depend on how fast he can procure the frames, his schedule, availability, etc. You better check it directly with Dr Dhawan.

Once you are in Delhi, its not that difficult to get hold of Dr. Talwar. There is no one else in Delhi. I don't even prefer Dr. Sringari.

Getting apartments in delhi is not that difficult. But getting an apartment with a lift and other amenities near hospital is a bit tricky. You have to plan ahead.

You might do checkups in private clinic too. But when I asked him before my surgery, doctor asked me to stay near the hospital as he is mostly available here. But if you talk to him, it can be worked out.

Yes, the extra cost is due to the TSF frames. It is really your decision if you want to go with hexapod or TSF. I will not be able to judge which of them is better, as I never saw anyone with Hexapod before. But, TSF sure looks sturdy enough. Also, there are only 2 rings, so I feel comfortable.

I suggest you to talk about the finances properly with the doctor before committing to the surgery. You should be very careful while planning your finances. Plan your living expenses, physiotherapy costs, medicines etc.

Approx costs would be:

$17000 --  Approx Surgery (TSF) + First week expenses.
$700     -- per month living expenses
$2000   -- Approx total cost for Physiotherapy sessions, it will depend on number of sessions. Doctor insists on a lot of physio.
$1000   -- Approx cost for X-Rays and consultations for all your future visits.
$1000   -- Approx cost for medicines.