Monday, February 1, 2010

Broken Leg - Again


Wow! Where to start? Lizzie has just been doing fabulous! She has new cute glasses, a new hot pink wheelchair, and a very smart mind that runs nonstop. She loves to laugh, she is learning her colors, and her favorite phrase is, "No! I do it! Hand off!" She loves Elmo, Barney, and Boz. She freely hands out hugs and "pat pats." We feel so blessed.

Okay, the broken leg part. I took Lizzie into the ER late Saturday night for a few concerns with a fever, pain in her left ear, and some apparent irritation with her trach and g-button. I figured I could be up all night with a miserable child, or I could be up all night with a miserable child and a staff of doctors and nurses that could do something about it. They asked me to strip her down to her diaper for the doctor to give her a comprehensive exam. As I was taking her pajama bottoms off I noticed that her left thigh was swollen. It wasn't huge, but I think that the way she was sitting in my lap as I was undressing her gave me the perfect view. Everything with her exam came back clear and within normal range, except for the leg x-ray.

This is the second time her leg has been broken. The first time was right around her first birthday. It was the same leg, and very near the same location (just above the knee). The doctor said that she does not have brittle bone disease (we already knew this to be true from her first incident), but that the bone there in her left leg was really thin, maybe as another secondary condition of her Spina Bifida. I'm just wondering how many "secondary conditions" a child can have. We are up to like number ten or eleven. The doctor said that there is no telling how it happened. Anything really could have caused it. They temporarily splinnted it until we can get to Scottish Rite to get the big cast on.

The "big cast" is called a half spika. It's basically like a half body cast with her right leg free. It goes up above the waist so you can't bend in the middle. Our appointment is set for 8:45 AM in the morning. So we are spending the day prepping and preparing for the appointment. We have to re-think transporting her, her clothing, and seating issues. It's a lot, and looks different now that she is two-and-a-half versus 12 months old.

She is not in very much pain but is easily agitated. Please keep her in your prayers for the next six weeks!
(The picture is of Lizzie with her temporary cast.)


4 comments:

Cassie said...

So sorry about Lizzie's leg, I'm always worried that Caleb will do something like that. She looks as cute as can be!

Bev said...

I'm so sorry! Please let us know if there's anyway we can help.

She's such a cutie. We'll pray for her comfort and healing.

Anonymous said...

So sorry to hear about Lizzie's leg!
Please let us know if we can do anything at all to help out...
:)

Carley said...

Good talking to you this morning! I'm sorry I'm just know seeing this post but glad the outcome is much better. See you tonight (and tomorrow) with dinner!