So the procedure yesterday was partially successful. Kirby's left hip stayed in socket and has great blood flow, while the right hip fell out during casting. We won't know for about three weeks if the left hip will stay permanently, but we are hoping! They didn't have to cut any bones so she is home and recovering instead of hanging in the hospital. If the left legs stays, we will then try again with the right leg in about 6 weeks.
We are a funny looking group now with a sweet girl that has two hot pink legs cast wide open. She has a harness to ride in the car and it's quite difficult. We have a wagon for moving around the house and a beanbag to sit it. I promise to post pictures soon of these various mini-adventures.
Thank you for all the love yesterday as we went through the craziness!
Kirby
Our precious daughter, Kirby, we are going to get!
Thursday, February 6, 2014
Tuesday, February 4, 2014
Prayers Please!
We are about to embark on another part of this journey and I am not too excited about it. Kirby is having surgery on her left hip tomorrow because it is out of socket. Her right hip also has the same issue and it will be repaired in June when I am finished with this school year.
A little background on Kirby: she was diagnosed with Manus Valga when she was a baby which means "club hands". Many people have heard of club feet and it is the same except for hands. When we received all of her medical reports, the only diagnosis listed was with her hands. She completed 2 years of physical therapy to correct the problem and it is as good as it will get. We've had her evaluated here and we will go back for a follow up in August, but things look great on that front. The diagnosis was incorrect (she actually has radioulnar stenotosis meaning the bones in the forearm are fused at the top) but the effect is the same and therefore so is the treatment.
When we met her on Gotcha Day, the orphanage director gave us a baby book of Kirby. We have some neat pictures that will be treasured forever. The interesting thing is that in one picture, she has braces on her legs and in another, she is using a walker to walk. There is also one pictured captioned, "My first steps on my own." All of these things make me think that they knew there were concerns about her legs, but none of them were shared with us.
In the deepest part of my heart, I'm so thankful that they didn't know or tell because it would have kept her from being matched with us. We were on the list for 1 need and her hands and legs together would have been 2 needs. And I can promise you she is as much a McIver as I am and belongs in our family so God knew what he was doing when keeping the secret.
Warning: I'm going to get scientific and descriptive about surgery! This leads us to tomorrow. The doctor will cut out 2-3cm of her thigh bone and then rejoin the two parts with a plate and screw. Her socket is shallow so they will then carve some of the bone out to make room for her thigh bone to sit in the right place. Finally, they need to open her hips because they are too closed to hold the bone so they will break it and then wedge the piece from her thigh bone in there to keep it open.
After surgery, she will be in a spica cast for 8 weeks. This is a double-leg cast with a metal bar in between to hold everything in place. It also goes up and around her waist so she will be uncomfortable for a while. And remember we get to do it all again in June:)
So please pray and send lots of positive love our direction Wednesday. We appreciate every last bit of support and love each of you tremendously!
A little background on Kirby: she was diagnosed with Manus Valga when she was a baby which means "club hands". Many people have heard of club feet and it is the same except for hands. When we received all of her medical reports, the only diagnosis listed was with her hands. She completed 2 years of physical therapy to correct the problem and it is as good as it will get. We've had her evaluated here and we will go back for a follow up in August, but things look great on that front. The diagnosis was incorrect (she actually has radioulnar stenotosis meaning the bones in the forearm are fused at the top) but the effect is the same and therefore so is the treatment.
When we met her on Gotcha Day, the orphanage director gave us a baby book of Kirby. We have some neat pictures that will be treasured forever. The interesting thing is that in one picture, she has braces on her legs and in another, she is using a walker to walk. There is also one pictured captioned, "My first steps on my own." All of these things make me think that they knew there were concerns about her legs, but none of them were shared with us.
In the deepest part of my heart, I'm so thankful that they didn't know or tell because it would have kept her from being matched with us. We were on the list for 1 need and her hands and legs together would have been 2 needs. And I can promise you she is as much a McIver as I am and belongs in our family so God knew what he was doing when keeping the secret.
Warning: I'm going to get scientific and descriptive about surgery! This leads us to tomorrow. The doctor will cut out 2-3cm of her thigh bone and then rejoin the two parts with a plate and screw. Her socket is shallow so they will then carve some of the bone out to make room for her thigh bone to sit in the right place. Finally, they need to open her hips because they are too closed to hold the bone so they will break it and then wedge the piece from her thigh bone in there to keep it open.
After surgery, she will be in a spica cast for 8 weeks. This is a double-leg cast with a metal bar in between to hold everything in place. It also goes up and around her waist so she will be uncomfortable for a while. And remember we get to do it all again in June:)
So please pray and send lots of positive love our direction Wednesday. We appreciate every last bit of support and love each of you tremendously!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)