There are no further fractures, however, so that was good. It was the first time my husband had seen them. Obviously he was surprised by what he saw.
The doctor said how her hip was still vulnerable and beginning to fall outside the socket. It was not in the best position and he thought maybe a brace or crutches would be needed and he’d speak with the consultant. The consultant examined Emma’s ROM and was still concerned about the contracture. He decided she no longer needed the three doses of Nurofen (Ibuprofen) but to give one dose after the evening meal. He felt the Ibuprofen may possibly be masking any problems.
He is still against broomstick plasters and other forms of bracing and how awful they are for a child. He explained his experience comes from studying in the US, Europe and UK and would not offer Emma much benefit as the important things were a good diet, keeping mobile, exercising – swimming, not running or jumping basically allowing the body to remould. He also explained the need to keep the synovial fluid in good health, as this was important to keep the cartilage healthy. However, if she should suddenly be in a lot of pain to rush her back in – I’m guessing here he means if her hip displaces!The next x-rays will be six weeks. He also mentioned home traction – we realised he hadn’t remembered anything about Emma and that she had been in traction. He decided if Emma could put up with it, to put her in traction every night. Emma is not happy about that! We decided we will give her some time off now and again.
We are still unsure to what stage she is at or to what category she is in. The registrar suggested 50% involvment and grade 2 but we are not sure if he was referring to a particular grading system or the stage she was at. Unfortunately the NHS doesn't give you much time. We still have a long road ahead of us, so it maybe too early to tell in any case.
