77 No Bone Growth
On the 3-month anniversary of my accident, my orthopedic surgeon examined my leg again, and there were still no indications of major bone growth taking place.
He suggested that this was perhaps because of the method of how the bones were set in Peru, that is using an external fixator. Though lined up very well and skillfully fixed in place with the various metal pins and screws, perhaps it had had the undesirable effect of tricking my body chemistry.
In other words, my body may have now been wrongly concluding that all was in order, my bones were in place and didn’t need healing, and since the bones have already been fixed there was therefore no need to create more bone tissue!
The doctor decided to counsel with a colleague, a trauma surgeon who has had experience* with this type of metal apparatus, so it was arranged for him to examine me and then they could determine the best course of action at this point.
One of the options was removing the external apparatus that was screwed into my shinbone, and replacing it with a metal brace inside my leg. And then putting a walking cast over the leg, allowing me to put weight on my leg and thus naturally stimulate bone growth.
This, in effect, is the method that the doctors in Peru chose not to do.
All things considered, I wasn’t too excited about having to undergo more surgery, so I clung to the hope that there would be other options.
( *The method used to "bolt my leg together" is not so commonly used in the States.)
He suggested that this was perhaps because of the method of how the bones were set in Peru, that is using an external fixator. Though lined up very well and skillfully fixed in place with the various metal pins and screws, perhaps it had had the undesirable effect of tricking my body chemistry.
In other words, my body may have now been wrongly concluding that all was in order, my bones were in place and didn’t need healing, and since the bones have already been fixed there was therefore no need to create more bone tissue!
The doctor decided to counsel with a colleague, a trauma surgeon who has had experience* with this type of metal apparatus, so it was arranged for him to examine me and then they could determine the best course of action at this point.
One of the options was removing the external apparatus that was screwed into my shinbone, and replacing it with a metal brace inside my leg. And then putting a walking cast over the leg, allowing me to put weight on my leg and thus naturally stimulate bone growth.
This, in effect, is the method that the doctors in Peru chose not to do.
All things considered, I wasn’t too excited about having to undergo more surgery, so I clung to the hope that there would be other options.
( *The method used to "bolt my leg together" is not so commonly used in the States.)
Labels: broken leg; bone growth; orthopedic surgeon; external fixator
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