As most of you might be aware, I broke my arm last November, but in case you’ve not heard let me give a quick recap:
Nov. 6: tripped on broken pavement in Los Angeles
Nov. 7: saw my Dr. in OC, discovered it was broken and in need of surgery.
Nov 10: had surgery to repair break to neck of radius near elbow with a plate and screws
Here are the two posts I made regarding the fall and an update:
That really wasn't part of the plan...
Originally I thought I’d busted my ulna, but in fact it was my radius. I snapped it at the neck and compacted the head of the radius back onto the rest of the bone. A ‘T’ shaped plate and 4 screws were placed in to hold it properly within the elbow and so the break could heal.
I wore a splint for 2 weeks after the surgery. Once it was removed I was sent off to physical therapy for 3 more weeks. I went in for a check up with the surgeon in mid Dec. only to discover what we hoped would not happen. The bone wasn’t healing.
At first look over my X-rays the surgeon was visibly unhappy. He decided for good measure to take a second set of X-rays. Unfortunately, the news from this set seemed worse than the first.
Because of the nature of the two bones in the lower arm (ulna and radius) they rotate over each other as you rotate your arm palm up to palm down. This motion was too much for the plate and twisted it and began to pull out the single screw on the lower part of the ‘T’ shaped plate from the longer part of my bone. At the same time the lower part of the bone slipped out of position by rotating on the single screw. So now the plate and pulled screw rub under the muscle and tendons in my arm. It actually feels really gross and entirely unnatural. So any chance I get I make someone put their hand on my arm and I rotate it. It’s sick, but I love seeing their reaction. :P
I’m not entirely sure what the rules are regarding bones and the way they heal, but because it was less than 6 weeks since my original surgery my surgeon, Dr. D., wanted to wait, in hopes that with a splint back on the inability to rotate my arm would then allow the bone to heal. A second surgery was definitely going to happen, but when and what for was up in the air.
In the best case scenario the bone would heal and a second surgery would be done to remove the damaged plate and screws which were originally intended to be permanent.
In the worst case scenario the plate and screws would be removed, pins would be put in place as well as cadaver bone tissue (Yay, zombie elbow!). This meant I would then have to be in a cast for several months and when all was done I would have limited mobility and range of motion. (boo!)
zombie elbow...
Last Friday, Jan 16, the splint was removed. (Yay!) This past Monday I went in for a CT scan. I brought the CD home to check out the images. Honestly I couldn’t make heads or tails of it. 136 images of... bleah??? It looked cool to just hold the arrow key down and watch it rotate through all the images like an animation, but it looked more like a Rorschach test to me.
Today I went to see Dr. D. The CD the hospital gave me with the CT scan was not what he asked for. I guess they didn’t burn to the CD some different type of images that he requested so he said he would go to the hospital tomorrow or Friday to see it for himself. However, he did speak at length with the Dr. who did the scan and was told there was more bone scar tissue, but that the bone is not connecting.
This was bad.
So we discussed my options. My hope was that the bone would just heal already and the plate and screws would be removed, end of story. Now the pins have been moved up as the best case scenario.
Best case: remove plate and screws, place in several pins, add almost-dead guy tissue, cast for months, have physical therapy for several weeks, then have a 3rd surgery to remove pins. At this point we’re talking 5-8 months of having to deal with this.
Worst case: remove plate and screws, replace radius bone head with metal and hope the bone grows and heals. I wasn’t given any further information about length of healing time and what it all meant, but it didn’t sound remotely good.
Dr. D. thinks it’s possible that the plate is preventing the bone from connecting. That even if it’s just a millimeter too far it’s strong enough to keep the tissue from connecting and healing.
I did ask if he thought there might be another reason the bone wasn’t healing. I began to wonder if we should seek some other medical reason for my bone failing to heal properly. He said he felt there was not a medical reason, it was simply because the bone was not close enough to heal.
He asked me if I’d been in pain and reminded me to not take Advil, aspirin, or any of the other OTC pain meds because they are blood thinners and will prohibit the growth of bone. Yes, I’m in pain, but it’s something I can cope with, usually… provided someone doesn’t hit me, or grab my arm as they so often have done regardless of splint, sling or my simply being protective of it. So if you see me, do not touch my left arm or shoulder whatsoever. The Dr. did prescribe darvocet for pain management, but I haven’t taken any yet.
He’s also decided to have me use a “bone growth stimulator”, sounds kinky, don’t it? Well, essentially I get to electrocute myself for 45 minutes a day. He doesn’t hold a lot of stock in the belief of this type of therapy, and honestly in this case, neither do I, but he also said it couldn’t hurt.
Funny thing, he said it was “a lot like going to church.” I don’t get a Christian vibe off of him by the way, he’s definitely more a man of science than faith, but I thought it was funny, understood how he meant it, and agreed with his reasoning.Sadly this won’t be too new to me. When I lost use of both of my hands for a year back in 2000… yeah, that was a fun time in my life, I went to an acupuncturist who would put anywhere from 20-90 needles in my hands, arms, shoulders, neck and back. She’d add little electrodes to several. I’d take them as high a setting as I could stand ‘em and lay there for 45 minutes, 3 times a week for 3 years. Wheeee! So fun.
Anyway, the plan as it stands is to wait another month. I’m supposed to wear my sling when I go out, and I’m not allowed to push use of my arm. It is possible to over use the arm and snap the plate. Apparently the plate is really intended to be a metal band-aid to hold the bone in place just long enough to heal.
I was already dreading a 2nd surgery. I was glad that with the first one I didn’t have too long to wait. It was my very first major surgery and I was scared to death, but I got through it ok. This time I’m not only looking at a 2nd, but also a 3rd and we have no dates set for any of it?!?! My life is on hold and I’m totally freaked out!
I guess I pulled The Hanged Man from the deck...
I was already dreading a 2nd surgery. I was glad that with the first one I didn’t have too long to wait. It was my very first major surgery and I was scared to death, but I got through it ok. This time I’m not only looking at a 2nd, but also a 3rd and we have no dates set for any of it?!?! My life is on hold and I’m totally freaked out!
I guess I pulled The Hanged Man from the deck...Although The Hanged Man would once most likely have been interpreted as a punishment, somewhere along the way it came to symbolize a change of perspective, new points of view and spiritual revelations – the card shows physical immobility and restrictions, but freedom and power of the mind. Other than that, the Hanged Man may signify a sense of being caught in between two opposites and a time of suspension, when you don’t really feel you have your two feet on the ground.
Now keep in mind, the very same day I went to my first physical therapy I was also laid off from my job. Though I’d been looking and had a few interviews, none of them panned out and I don’t know what to do now with not just 1, but 2 more surgeries to look forward to, plus having my left arm casted for months! This puts a major crimp in my ability to work. I keep hoping a 3rd, better option becomes available.
My logical brain says, “It is what it is and I’ll get through this like I always do.” My emotional side says, “Fuck this crazy shit! Why is this happening?!” I mean when you think about it, I've been walking around for over two months with a broken arm... and it will be AT LEAST another month before anything additional is done.
Life keeps marching forward, even when we aren’t sure or even ready to. I feel that everything in life teaches us some kind of lesson. I’ve been trying to figure out what the lesson here is, other than to “watch where I’m walking”. Heh… of course, what if that really is the fucking lesson here? Watch where you're walking... Frankly, I think it's more like the Hokey Pokey at this point.
That's what it's all about!
Now keep in mind, the very same day I went to my first physical therapy I was also laid off from my job. Though I’d been looking and had a few interviews, none of them panned out and I don’t know what to do now with not just 1, but 2 more surgeries to look forward to, plus having my left arm casted for months! This puts a major crimp in my ability to work. I keep hoping a 3rd, better option becomes available.
My logical brain says, “It is what it is and I’ll get through this like I always do.” My emotional side says, “Fuck this crazy shit! Why is this happening?!” I mean when you think about it, I've been walking around for over two months with a broken arm... and it will be AT LEAST another month before anything additional is done.
Life keeps marching forward, even when we aren’t sure or even ready to. I feel that everything in life teaches us some kind of lesson. I’ve been trying to figure out what the lesson here is, other than to “watch where I’m walking”. Heh… of course, what if that really is the fucking lesson here? Watch where you're walking... Frankly, I think it's more like the Hokey Pokey at this point.
That's what it's all about!
