My Zebra Medical Journey: 1 Week To Go...

Monday, June 1, 2009

1 Week To Go...

I have one week till my surgery. As the days pass, I try to fill them with fun activities and hang out with friends to keep my mind off the surgery, but it has been hard. I am getting more and more nervous as the days go by, but I am hoping the nerves are just getting the best of me and it is not going to be that bad.

I have plenty of sweat pants and t-shirts to lounge around in and soo many dvd's! My boyfriend, Andrew, bought me some awesome sweats and a stuffed puppy named Gunner.

I am taking Gunner with me to the hospital...he is soft and cuddly. The sweats are so comfortable and cute too! At least I have comfy clothes and plenty of things to do after surgery, but I am scared for what is to come. The unknown can be terrifying and I hope everything goes well!

2 comments:

BrickJune 1, 2009 at 10:19 AM
How exciting...after this week you will be able to open a new door to your journey. I think the last week is both slow and fast, but with way too much time to think. Enjoy these days and know that you are not alone in your journey, but this is your experience.
Good luck
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denaJune 3, 2009 at 11:02 AM
Hey Girl,
Getting down to the wire......this time next week you will already be a couple of days into recovery:) I bet you are just ready to have it done so you can get up and at em. You wont be down long I just know it. Take care....I will talk to you soon. Love you, Aunt Dena
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My Medical Team

Dr. Wyatt Horsley - Internist (IU Health)

Dr. Joshua Wellington - Physical Medicine/Rehab. & Pain Management Specialist (IU Health)

Dr. Alexia Torke - Palliative Care (IU Health)

Dr. Ravi Misra - Infectious Disease (IU Health)

Dr. Robert Nelson - Immunologst (IU Health)

Dr. Makram Hajj - Cardiologist (IU Health)

Dr. Michael Millis - Hip Preservation Surgeon (Children's Hospital of Boston)

Dr. Presley Swann - Hip Preservation Surgeon (Methodist Sports Medicine)

Dr. Joel Wells - Hip Preservation Surgeon (UTSW)

Dr. Brian Dierckman - Hip Preservation & Shoulder Surgeon (Elite Sports Medicine)

Dr. Todd Bertrand - Hip Surgeon (Franciscan)

Dr. Michael DiDonna - Hand Surgeon (IU Health)

Dr. Matt Horn - Chiropractor (Premier Family Chiropractic)

Noah Campbell - PT (Team Rehabilitation)

Surgeries

1. Lt. knee Lateral Release (May 2003)

2. Bilateral periosteal stripping, deep & superficial compartment releases (Porter - 26 Dec. 2006)

3. Bilateral anterior & lateral compartment releases, superficial peroneal nerve release (Porter- 18 Dec. 2007)

4. Rt. hip PAO, arthroscopy, labral debridement & ligament repair (Scheid & Maiers - 8 June 2009)

5. Lt. hip arthroscopy, iliopsoas release & labral debridement

(Maiers - 11 Feb. 2010)

6. Rt. hip arthroscopy, femoral osteochondroplasty, ilipsoas release & labral repair (Maiers- 10 Aug. 2010)

7. Rt. hip hardware removal, scar revision (Millis- 11 Jan. 2011)

8. Rt. varus femoral rotational osteotomy (Millis - 20 June 2011)

9. Rt. trochanteric transfer osteotomy and femoral blade-plate removal (Millis - 6 April 2012)

10. Lt. shoulder arthroscopy, capsulorraphy (5+ sutures), closed rotator interval, repairs (Dierckman - 17 Jan 2013)

11. Rt. trochanter/femoral hardware removal & debridement (Dierckman - 2 July 2013)

12. Rt. hip/femur infection IND (Dierckman - 14 July 2013)

13. Lt. hip arthroscopy w/anterior & posterior labral repairs, CAM & Pincer Resection, endocscopic IT band release, open capsulorraphy (Dierckman - 26 Nov 2013)

14. Lt. hip superficial infection IND (Dierckman - 21 Dec 2013)

15. Rt. shoulder arthroscopy, labral repair & capsulorraphy (~4-5 sutures), repairs (Dierckman - 31 Dec 2013)

16. Rt. hip arthroscopy, labral repair, Pincer resection, femoroplasty, capsulorraphy, gluteus medius repair, open femoral trochanteric revision (Domb - 8 Aug 2014)

17. Spinal Cord Neurostimulator Implant (Wellington - 21 Oct 2014)

18. Rt. shoulder arthoscopy, capsulorraphy (6+ anchors), labral repair (Dierckman - 20 Nov 2014)

19. Spinal Cord Neurostimulator pocket revision (Wellington - 20 Jan 2015)

20. Emergency Surgery for Spinal Cord Explant for Infection IND (Wellington - 21 Jan 2015)

21. Spinal Cord Neurostimulator Re-Implant (Wellington - 4 March 2015)

22. Lt. shoulder arthroscopy, capsulorraphy, labral repair (Badman - 29 Sept. 2015)

23. Lt. hip open surgical dislocation, labral reconstruction w/allograft, femoral osteochondroplasty, acetabuloplasty & LPAO (Swann - 8 Dec. 2015)

24. Lt. hip wound closure IND (Swann - 4 Jan. 2016)

25. Venous Access port (TIVAD) placement (Halum - 26 April 2016)

26. Rt. Total Hip Total Arthroplasty (Swann - 22 Nov. 2016)

27. Rt. Hip post-THA infection IND (Swann - 13 Jan. 2017)

28. Venous Access port explant (Halum - 18 April 2017)

29. Rt. THA Explant Spacer placement for infection (Swann - 21 April 2017)

30. Rt. THA Spacer explant, femoral osteotomy (Ongwijitwat- 29 June 2017)

31. Rt. Hip, Femur surgical bone biopsy & hip aspiration (Ongwijitwat - 25 April 2018)

32. Lt. Hip Hardware removal (Ongwijitwat - 29 May 2018)

33. Rt. Carpal tunnel release & De Quervain’s release (DiDonna - (5 Feb 2019)

34. Lt. Carpal tunnel release & De Quervain’s release (DiDonna - 28 March 2019)

35. Rt. Hip hardware removal & abx spacer implant (Swann - 26 Aug 2019)

36. Rt. Hip spacer explant, IND, bone resection (Swann - 14 Oct 2019)

37. Rt. Hip IND, bone resection - emergency (Bertrand - 25 March 2020)

38. Venous Access port (TIVAD) placement (Halum - 20 May 2020)

39. Venous Access port explant (Pyko - 28 May 2020)

40. Rt Hip IND, bone resection, complex closure (Wells - 12 June 2020)

41. Lt Hip endoscopic IT Band release, bursectomy (Dierckman - 3 March 2021)

42. Lt. Hip PAO hardware removal (Bertrand - 4 Nov. 2021)

EDS, Hip Dysplasia and Other Basics...

EDS: Ehlers Danlos Syndrome (EDS) is a group of inherited connective tissue disorders. There are 6 subtypes. I have Classical - Type 1. Classical EDS affects 2 to 5 in 100,000. Connective tissues are made up of proteins that support skin, bones, blood vessels, and other organs. They make up about 80% of the human body. Classical EDS patients have significant skin involvement, abnormal and poor wound healing, abnormal scarring, wounds and skin that tear open and the skin is soft and velvety to the touch. Patients can also present with an unusually large range of joint movement. The loose joints are unstable and prone to dislocation, chronic pain, and early-onset arthritis. There is no cure and treatment plans are individualized.

There are secondary conditions that are caused by EDS like dysautonomia which effects the autonomic nervous system. In my case I have severe burning nerve pain and a harder ability to control my BP, etc. Raynaud's syndrome is another disorder that branches off EDS that makes you very sensitive to hot and cold temperatures and effects circulation.

Hip Dysplasia: is a congenital condition in which the ball and socket joint don't fit together the way they should. In my case, the socket is too shallow, which causes uneven pressure on the joint, a premature breakdown of cartilage and early osteoarthritis.

PAO Surgery: A periacetabular osteotomy is a surgery in which the hip socket or acetabulum is cut at 3 different spots, so that the acetabulum can be repositioned for better alighnment. By re-positioning the acetabulum you are able to reach the coverage that is needed. Once the acetabulum has been shifted to its new position titanium pins and screws will be used to fixate the fractures until they heal.

FO: A Femoral Derotational Osteotomy is a surgery in which the femur is cut through the bone or a wedge is cut out so that the femur can be rotated into the correctly aligned position. Then they will use either a blade-plate or a titanium rod and screws to fixate the femur in its new position until the fracture heals.

CRPS: Complex Regional Pain Syndrome CRPS is a chronic and progressive (nerve) pain disorder. CRPS is marked by intense burning or aching pain. Patients may also experience swelling, skin discoloration, altered temperature, abnormal sweating, and hypersensitivity in the affected area. The cause is unknown although most cases occur after trauma to the body (surgery, fractures, etc) and there is no cure. It can spread to other parts of the body. Treatment focuses on relieving the pain. There are 2 classifications for CRPS which are: CRPS Type-1 which was known as RSD or Reflex Sympathetic Dystrophy and CRPS Type-2 which was known as Causalgia or sympathetically mediated pain. Both Types have the same symptoms, but in Type-2 there is a known damaged nerve.

It is believed to be connected to EDS