Even though I always feel very nervous every time we go for a check up, this one was pretty uneventful. We know the drill by now. Show up, sit in the waiting room for a bit, go back and get an x-ray (it is an unspoken agreement now that Brice always takes her because he's stronger to hold her legs in place, and I just hate seeing her cry). Then go back to the waiting room for a bit. Get called in to the exam room and wait some more. Resident comes in and asks a bunch of questions that should be in the chart. Wait some more. Doctor comes in and tries to get out the door in as little time as possible.
In all seriousness, this appointment went well. Apparently Mackenzie's hip is still developing, but the angles aren't quite where they'd like them to be. She will continue to wear the brace when she sleeps - naps and at night - and we go back again in 3-4 months for another x-ray and check-up. The resident this time was quite informative and explained things really well to us. However at this point I feel like we almost know as much as them with all the research we have done.
She completely freaks out whenever anyone tries to touch her. When the resident was trying to examine her she arched her back and was crying so hard and trying to get away. When the doctor came in he told Brice to just hold her on his lap, but she still cried and tried to get away. It was kind of cute when she covered her eyes with her hands like that would make him go away.
Because things are continuing to improve we will just continue to wait and see. The brace wearing is just to help hold her hips in the optimal position for growth. If, and it's a big if, her hip isn't where they want it to be by the time she is about 4 or 5 then we will be looking at surgery. The doctor still thinks that is not likely.
As far as the walking, not much of an update. She will take the odd unassisted step here and there but generally just drops down to her knees to crawl. She likes to kind of crawl/shuffle sitting up on her knees which is pretty funny to watch. She is an expert at cruising around with her walking toy. I'll try to get a video one of these days. She can steer it and everything and will often times grab it and steer it around to walk to where she is trying to go.
Wednesday, December 19, 2012
Saturday, December 8, 2012
We have Steps!
Mackenzie has started taking her first steps! She has been cruising around with her walking toy and all along the furniture, but she took her first solo steps on Thursday evening. She is very wobbly and only takes a couple at a time before dropping back down and crawling the rest of the way. We are so excited and proud.
We go for another check up with the Orthopedic surgeon on December 18th so we will keep you all posted on how that goes. She is still wearing her brace at night and for naps.
We go for another check up with the Orthopedic surgeon on December 18th so we will keep you all posted on how that goes. She is still wearing her brace at night and for naps.
Thursday, November 1, 2012
Look at Me Go!
I'm a little late getting this up on the blog, but I took this video last Friday night. Just 10 days after she got out of having to wear the brace full time. She just got up and started doing it all on her own. First time up she did an entire lap around our kitchen island without stopping. We didn't even show her how to use the toy to push. We are so proud! She is also walking all over holding onto furniture and moving between pieces of furniture.
Sunday, October 21, 2012
What a Change a Week Can Make
It didn't take Mackenzie long to adjust to life without the brace.
The first day without her brace while she is awake she was already pulling up and standing against everything. This wasn't a huge surprise as she was doing the same thing before while wearing the brace.
Imagine our surprise when just three full days later she was climbing up full flights of stairs! She will shuffle along furniture, take a few steps if holding our hands, stands all-the-time and has discovered how to get into all of our cupboards and drawers.
Brice took her to her follow up physio appointment on Thursday and they discharged her. They said she was already meeting all the milestones a kid her age should be and there wasn't really a whole lot they could do for her. They gave us a few exercises to work on her with. One is to have her shuffle towards the left along the furniture. She much prefers moving to the right. Her left hip was the one effected. We also were giving some exercises to help transition her from walking supported to moving between furniture to hopefully walking on her own soon.
The first day without her brace while she is awake she was already pulling up and standing against everything. This wasn't a huge surprise as she was doing the same thing before while wearing the brace.
Imagine our surprise when just three full days later she was climbing up full flights of stairs! She will shuffle along furniture, take a few steps if holding our hands, stands all-the-time and has discovered how to get into all of our cupboards and drawers.
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| Wearing "real" jeans like a big girl, no need for clothing to be practical for under a brace :) |
Brice took her to her follow up physio appointment on Thursday and they discharged her. They said she was already meeting all the milestones a kid her age should be and there wasn't really a whole lot they could do for her. They gave us a few exercises to work on her with. One is to have her shuffle towards the left along the furniture. She much prefers moving to the right. Her left hip was the one effected. We also were giving some exercises to help transition her from walking supported to moving between furniture to hopefully walking on her own soon.
Tuesday, October 16, 2012
6 Week Post Spica: Follow up Appointment
I was dreading this appointment as it seems like every time we go to our Orthopedic Surgeon we seem to get "bad" news.
That was not the case this time!
Mackenzie only needs to wear her brace now for naps and night time and she can start working on learning to walk.
I think our surgeon has learned that when it's us he is going to have to explain things very well and wait to answer all of our questions. He did a much better time this time explaining the rationale behind this next step and giving us an opportunity to ask a few questions. He still did open the door and begin walking out while he was still talking to us, but we are making progress.
He said that her hip is developing but the Acetabular Index is still a bit shallow. There is no definitive research about whether or not the brace helps but we both agree that it can't hurt for her to wear it while she's sleeping.
We go back again in 8 weeks for a follow up to see if her hip has continued to develop.
That was not the case this time!
Mackenzie only needs to wear her brace now for naps and night time and she can start working on learning to walk.
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| Hello World! |
He said that her hip is developing but the Acetabular Index is still a bit shallow. There is no definitive research about whether or not the brace helps but we both agree that it can't hurt for her to wear it while she's sleeping.
We go back again in 8 weeks for a follow up to see if her hip has continued to develop.
Monday, October 8, 2012
Physio
A post from Brice
I took Mackenzie to her first physio appointment. While I had yet to experience this, it was no sooner than we went in the room with the physio that Mackenzie was crying and trying to get away from the lady. This is despite the lady not touching nor being overly close to her. Mackenzie seems to know when we are at a "health center" and its for her. So the physio sat back as Mackenzie and I played to try and get her to calm down. Mackenzie still wanted none of it. The physio left the room for awhile and Mackenzie continually checked the door and looked around the room to make sure she was gone for good. When the physio returned, Mackenzie had settled down and was playing. However, she frequently glanced over her shoulder to keep an eye on the lady and refused to crawl about as she usually would, instead choosing to sit and keep her back towards the physio and facing me.
As we played the physio asked what it was we were looking for her to help with. It turns out the lady that gets the referral, books the appointment, and then actually does the physio are all different people. Thus, the physio was not sure what we needed. After explaining Mackenzie's story up to then and how the Dr. didn't want anyone touching her, she decided she would just watch Mackenzie and how she got around in her brace. With a little coaxing we got Mackenzie to crawl and stand. The physio was impressed with what she was capable of doing in her brace and commented that because she was doing all that she could already (crawl, sit, stand) in her brace, there was nothing she could help with at this point anyway. So we booked an appointment to follow shortly after we visit the Dr. again for our 6 week post-spica checkup. The physio requested a prescription from the Dr. that specifies the limitations (weight, movement, etc.), if any, for Mackenzie so she knows what she can and cannot do with her.
I took Mackenzie to her first physio appointment. While I had yet to experience this, it was no sooner than we went in the room with the physio that Mackenzie was crying and trying to get away from the lady. This is despite the lady not touching nor being overly close to her. Mackenzie seems to know when we are at a "health center" and its for her. So the physio sat back as Mackenzie and I played to try and get her to calm down. Mackenzie still wanted none of it. The physio left the room for awhile and Mackenzie continually checked the door and looked around the room to make sure she was gone for good. When the physio returned, Mackenzie had settled down and was playing. However, she frequently glanced over her shoulder to keep an eye on the lady and refused to crawl about as she usually would, instead choosing to sit and keep her back towards the physio and facing me.
As we played the physio asked what it was we were looking for her to help with. It turns out the lady that gets the referral, books the appointment, and then actually does the physio are all different people. Thus, the physio was not sure what we needed. After explaining Mackenzie's story up to then and how the Dr. didn't want anyone touching her, she decided she would just watch Mackenzie and how she got around in her brace. With a little coaxing we got Mackenzie to crawl and stand. The physio was impressed with what she was capable of doing in her brace and commented that because she was doing all that she could already (crawl, sit, stand) in her brace, there was nothing she could help with at this point anyway. So we booked an appointment to follow shortly after we visit the Dr. again for our 6 week post-spica checkup. The physio requested a prescription from the Dr. that specifies the limitations (weight, movement, etc.), if any, for Mackenzie so she knows what she can and cannot do with her.
Wednesday, October 3, 2012
The New Brace
We finally have in our possession, a hip abduction brace for Mackenzie.
Nevermind the fact that we go back to Edmonton in 2 weeks and are hoping that we will be down to her only needing to wear the brace while she sleeps.
It is still a little bulkier than I was hoping for. It has hard plastic around the back part and then foam pieces that wrap around her legs. Around her waist is just a piece of velcro. It is definitely more breathable and she isn't completely soaked underneath when she wakes up in the morning. It is definitely a lot more of a process to get her in and out of this one though.
The price, I think, is what shocked me the most. Our diaper splint cost us $9.50, which was covered by our health insurance. This one cost over $300, for not even that much more material! All but $91 is covered by a government program. I'm not really sure what is is exactly because the Orthotic place filled out and sent away all the paperwork for us. They also were able to direct bill the remaining cost to our health insurance, which was nice to not to have to deal with that hassle.
She can sit in this brace without it pushing into her stomach, however there is a hard plastic "bar" between her legs under her bum that she almost has to "balance" on. She doesn't seem to pull herself into a standing position as much in this one - probably because it is more secure and doesn't allow her as much movement as the diaper splint. She also seems to be a bit slower with the crawling in this new one.
I dont think you would ever find a brace that would be perfect, because perfect would be your child not needing a brace. It is nice to have the two options though depending on what we are doing in the day.
Nevermind the fact that we go back to Edmonton in 2 weeks and are hoping that we will be down to her only needing to wear the brace while she sleeps.
It is still a little bulkier than I was hoping for. It has hard plastic around the back part and then foam pieces that wrap around her legs. Around her waist is just a piece of velcro. It is definitely more breathable and she isn't completely soaked underneath when she wakes up in the morning. It is definitely a lot more of a process to get her in and out of this one though.
The price, I think, is what shocked me the most. Our diaper splint cost us $9.50, which was covered by our health insurance. This one cost over $300, for not even that much more material! All but $91 is covered by a government program. I'm not really sure what is is exactly because the Orthotic place filled out and sent away all the paperwork for us. They also were able to direct bill the remaining cost to our health insurance, which was nice to not to have to deal with that hassle.
She can sit in this brace without it pushing into her stomach, however there is a hard plastic "bar" between her legs under her bum that she almost has to "balance" on. She doesn't seem to pull herself into a standing position as much in this one - probably because it is more secure and doesn't allow her as much movement as the diaper splint. She also seems to be a bit slower with the crawling in this new one.
I dont think you would ever find a brace that would be perfect, because perfect would be your child not needing a brace. It is nice to have the two options though depending on what we are doing in the day.
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