Another Wound Care Appointment

    This morning we had another follow up with the wound care doctor to check the bedsore on Amaya's heel.  While we waited in the hospital lobby for the appointment Lidie said, "I wish Amaya still had therapy. I miss it there. It was fun. And there were lots of toys for me to play with." This lobby wasn't fun at all. We were in the waiting room to the hospital and they had to be quiet for quite a while. Both girls got bored after a bit, but still managed to behave. I was very happy and proud. Even though we were the first scheduled appointment of the day we waited over an hour to see the doctor. 

    While we waited I wondered, and hoped if this would be the last time we have to see the wound doctor. Her heel has been healing nicely, and doesn't bother her at all. I was optimistic and hopeful. When we went back the nurse looked at Amaya first. She commented that it looked good and was glad that it wasn't hurting Amaya anymore. When the doctor looked at it he said it looked good, and could tell that the fat was growing back in. He pushed in on it and could feel it regenerating and healing. He said that it is continuing to heal, but that this is a slow process. He measured it and said it was at 2.3 cm. It use to be over 3 cm in each direction, so it is shrinking. He was happy to see that it wasn't hurting her or causing her discomfort when she walked.
     He said he wants to see her again in six months and asked that we continue to keep taping it daily  and wearing the foam at night. Amaya was hoping she wouldn't have to anymore. But since its helping we're going to continue with it. The doctor said its not necessary for her to wear the boot during the day anymore. He also said that we want to avoid letting her run barefooted. He said that, that could cause internal bleeding in the area and would make it worse. I asked how long he thought it would take for it to completely heal. "How old is she?" He asked. I said, "seven in a half." Then he replied with, "probably not until she's ten or twelve." I smiled, said "wow." But in my head I was thinking and saying all kinds of crazy things.
    I can't believe that it will take another three to five years for this to heal! It has already been fourteen months since she first got it. And its been at least five months since we've been treating it. This is completely frustrating, disappointing and annoying. I still can't believe that what took minutes to get will take years to heal. Wow. It's crazy. So my advice to you is this, don't get a bedsore. Especially in a place that's hard to heal from. Like a heel where you're constantly putting pressure on. It sounds pretty simple, but its true. The best thing when it comes to bed sores is to not get one in the first place. And for all you PFFD parents whose children will be getting a fixator please watch out for any potential bedsores. Amaya got hers in less than an hour. Her knee was propped up with a pillow to help keep it bent. All the weight of her leg and fixator were resting on her heel and she quickly developed the bedsore. Hopefully you can learn from our situation and can avoid any potential bedsores for your little ones.
     I asked how long she needed to keep taping the heel and wearing the boot at night and he said that we should do it until we come back in six months.  He said our other alternative would be surgery, but she would have to be off her feet for awhile if we did that. I told him that the plastic surgeon suggested we wait until she was older and see if it bothered her then. The wound doctor said that we'd have to weight the options, her mobility, her activity level and see how it continues to heal. He said that he would rather wait until she's older before he recommends surgery too. I was glad to hear that. And honestly, I'd rather avoid that. I'm hopeful and optimistic it will continue to heal. I just wish it didn't have to take another three to five years for that. Ugh.

   

Waiting for the doctor to come in Amaya showed me her new smile. She's lost two teeth this week!

On the way out Lidie and Amaya grabbed more "doctor masks" to play doctor at home. Lidie tried hers on right away. Amaya reminded me today that her dream is still to be an orthopedic surgeon when she grows up.

Here's what Amaya's heel looked like when she first had the bedsore. It looked like a painful bruise. And it was super tight from the liquid that built up inside of it.

Here's what Amaya's heel looks like today. You can barely see a difference. But you can feel it when you touch it. Its like there's a piece of her heel missing there.