A second surgery Date

February 14th I recived a text from my husband informing me of the second time we have to hand our daughter over to the Ortho Doctor who needs to fix her left hip. For this hip it is better to be broken then not. March 27, 2012 she will once again be stilled...but only for a short while since she is my daughter!

Chapter Two

I am not good at waiting.  But Hip Dysplasia is teaching me to wait...however I am finding other places to put my frustration with waiting.  Together with another Hip Mom Gina, we have decided to put our energys (not sure if that is a word) into helping spread hip awareness!  We have picked a day and are encouraging everyone to use June 30th as a day to do something/anything that raises money for the International Hip Dysplasia Institute http://www.hipdysplaia.org/.  Check out our facebook page if you are curious! We would love your help!!  http://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/One-Hip-World/335411113159784

Chapter Two

Wednesday February 8, 2012 found us back in the Ortho waiting room at our Children's Hospital.  It had been almost two months since we had seen our Doctor last.  Abby did very well with the x-rays and in the waiting room.  I am not too sure why they give appointments when they are never on schedual!  Finally it was our turn.  Abby waddled down the hall and into the room very independently.  She has become very proud of her Independence these days!

An intern was the first person to come into our room.  He asked then same questions and did the same hip exam and stated to us that he measured her hip angle at about a 38ish bilaterally.  I was floored! Abby was right (as she has been saying lately that her hips are healed!) If you could have seen my heart you would have been laughing!  It was doing back flips and everything! Then the Doctor came in.  Plesant as always and happy with the progress that had happened with the right hip.  However her left hip was not changing and as he put it "the worst of the two."  Doh! You just put and arrow threw my dancing heart...and it's not in the good way that cupid does.  So with a little more discussion Paul signed the consent for Abby's second Hip Surgery.  This time a Left Pelvic Osteotomy.  We are currently waiting on her O.R date and time.

Salter (Innominate) Osteotomy

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"The Salter osteotomy is often performed when the socket doesn’t sit on top of the ball at the top of the thigh bone (femoral head). The pelvic bone is cut and the entire socket is rotated into a better position on top of the femoral head after the hip is reduced into the socket.
Bones in young children can bend for this to happen and then they remodel after the socket is stable. This does not interfere with the size of the pelvis later in life. In these cases, the socket is round and may even be smaller than the femoral head, but the socket hasn’t developed properly and needs to be shifted so it can support the hip better.
This type of abnormal shape of the socket may be more common when the hip has never been in the socket and hasn’t rubbed on the edge of the socket." (taken from hipdysplasia.org)

Feb 8, 2012 (7 months since her bilateral open reduction surgery)

When we got home I discussed with Abby directly what was going to happen.  This time she is older and remembers what it was like to be in the spica cast for when I told her that her left hip needed a little more help to heal properly and that she would be casted again she put her little head down and covered it with her small arms whining, "no spikie cast mommy, nooooo."  It doesn't get easier the second time.  It's harder since everyone knows what's going to happen.  It's like the first time you get a needle.  You see it coming, but your not too sure what to expect.  Then you  have the needle and now understand the pain and the next time you see one coming it begins to almost hurt before enters your skin.  So true is the knowledge of whats to come.  But at the same time you also realise what has happened since the first surgery.  How her gait is much improved and she is trying to run and jump!  This means that yes it is going to suck again for a while, but then it will  be even better after!! That is what I am looking forward too and what I am constantly telling Abby!