Medical Update [11-10-05]: The Cast Comes Off
Today, my wife had her cast removed. She has been counting down the hours and minutes to this day...literally! If you don't know what I'm talking about, read this, this and this first if you want to be up to speed.
For the past two weeks since surgery, she has had this immovable cast which has a water bladder inside covering the incision area. Attached to the water bladder are two hoses leading to a small cooler full of ice and, essentially, a fountain pump. This is a great invention. The ice water in the cooler was pumped through the bladder, keeping her arm numb, thereby reducing swelling and (the all-important part) minimizing pain.
At first, it was a little shocking when the cast came off today because her arm still looked sort of...well...crooked. As it turns out, that was swelling that will go down, though that was at first of little consolation to my wife who feared she looked like a...and I quote...freak. For those who would like to see this photo, click here. I lovingly call it Karenstein.
After assuring her she didn't, indeed, look like a freak (the Karenstein reference notwithstanding), the shock wore off and rationality returned. Next came the stitches. For a post-stitch removal gander, take a look here (and this photo shows how much trouble we would be in if we had to rely on my wife to thumb a ride). She has now been fitted with a removable cast, giving her much-needed relief and an easier go of it in the shower.
We would like to again thank all of you who have remembered us through this ordeal and sent such nice messages of encouragement. It will be a long road to complete recovery with a great deal of physical therapy to begin in several weeks after the bones completely heal, but we're on that road.
Oh, yeah. I promised you that if I could get a copy of it, I would post a picture that was taken during surgery. Well, I don't have it...but I will. The doctor is going to send a copy to us and I will scan it and post it up. But be fore-warned...it's not pretty...but it is cool.
To be continued...
For the past two weeks since surgery, she has had this immovable cast which has a water bladder inside covering the incision area. Attached to the water bladder are two hoses leading to a small cooler full of ice and, essentially, a fountain pump. This is a great invention. The ice water in the cooler was pumped through the bladder, keeping her arm numb, thereby reducing swelling and (the all-important part) minimizing pain.At first, it was a little shocking when the cast came off today because her arm still looked sort of...well...crooked. As it turns out, that was swelling that will go down, though that was at first of little consolation to my wife who feared she looked like a...and I quote...freak. For those who would like to see this photo, click here. I lovingly call it Karenstein.
After assuring her she didn't, indeed, look like a freak (the Karenstein reference notwithstanding), the shock wore off and rationality returned. Next came the stitches. For a post-stitch removal gander, take a look here (and this photo shows how much trouble we would be in if we had to rely on my wife to thumb a ride). She has now been fitted with a removable cast, giving her much-needed relief and an easier go of it in the shower.
We would like to again thank all of you who have remembered us through this ordeal and sent such nice messages of encouragement. It will be a long road to complete recovery with a great deal of physical therapy to begin in several weeks after the bones completely heal, but we're on that road.
Oh, yeah. I promised you that if I could get a copy of it, I would post a picture that was taken during surgery. Well, I don't have it...but I will. The doctor is going to send a copy to us and I will scan it and post it up. But be fore-warned...it's not pretty...but it is cool.
To be continued...
Labels: David C. Price
posted by DAVID C. PRICE at 11/10/2005 07:45:00 PM
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2 Comments:
David:
Judging from the "Karenstein" remarks, I have a feeling that a renowned blogger will be used as a punching bag for her "therapy".
Fortunately, I married a great sport.
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