Broken arm from a month ago

Hey All,

About a month ago, this mostly lurker, delurked to ask how to care for my
son's broken arm in a cast. All went well until he completely submerged his
arm in the bathtub three weeks into having the cast on..

At the hospital they removed the wet cast, took some x-rays, then the er doc
sent us home saying he didn't know much about this kind of fracture and
would get an orthopaedist to contact us.

This was a week ago Tuesday and DS has been playing without pain all week.

Yesterday, we saw the orthopaedic doc who showed me the x-rays taken when
they removed the cast. It, completely to my surprise, has gotten worse and
he wants to operate on it. You could have knocked me over with a feather. I
had assumed that since there was no pain and no obvious swelling and such
that everything was fine and we were seeing the orthopaedic doc just as a
follow up. Doctor said that even though there is no pain now, the chip on
his elbow is getting into his growth plate and could actually make his arm
grow crooked and cause many problems later on if left untreated. He also
said this is quite common and that because it doesn't hurt if often goes
untreated. I'm glad we discovered this when we did and that the ER doc knew
his limitations and sent us to a specialist instead of just saying that
everything looked fine and sent us home without another word.

As for the surgery part, neither DH nor I have ever had any kind of
operation ourselves and are not quite sure what to expect. Doctor just said
that we would need to do it in the next week and that he'd call us and I was
so surprised, I never go much details. What are some of the questions I
should ask? I might think that this would be a day surgery so I wonder if
we'd go home the same day. Do you think they'd let us stay with him until
he's put under? I think he'd freak out if they wheeled him away while he's
still awake and neither of us with him.

I feel bad for him because even though he knows they need to fix it and he
has to put another cast on him, he doesn't really understand what an
operation is. I hope my baby isn't too scared...or that his mommy isn't
either.

--
Shelley
mom to 2 boys (4 and 1)

"Shelley" wrote in message
...
I feel bad for him because even though he knows they need to fix it
and he has to put another cast on him, he doesn't really understand
what an operation is. I hope my baby isn't too scared...or that his
mommy isn't either.

Hi Shelley,

I don't have any real advice since I haven't been through this, but I
did want to say that I'm sorry your little guy has to go through this.
Hospitals deal a lot with scared kids, so I can't imagine that they
wouldn't let you stay with him until he was out, and be there when he
woke up. But then, as I said, I don't actually know anything. So
those are both excellent questions to ask.

Try to stay confident around him, because the more calm you are, the
more calm he is likely to be. Good luck to both of you.

Bizby

"Shelley" wrote in message
As for the surgery part, neither DH nor I have ever had any kind of
operation ourselves and are not quite sure what to expect. Doctor just
said
that we would need to do it in the next week and that he'd call us and I
was
so surprised, I never go much details. What are some of the questions I
should ask? I might think that this would be a day surgery so I wonder if
we'd go home the same day. Do you think they'd let us stay with him until
he's put under? I think he'd freak out if they wheeled him away while
he's
still awake and neither of us with him.

It should be an outpatient surgery and go home the same day. Most doctors
will let you stay with the child until they fall asleep. Whenever Allison
has to have surgery, we opt for the mask anesthesia so that way they can
start the IV after she has been put to sleep so there is no pain what so
ever. I have always stayed until she falls asleep, but you will have to
clear this with the doctor and anesthesiologist. If you do stay until he is
asleep, keep in mind that they get a little weird before they go to sleep.
It may be disturbing to you, so you have to decide if you are going to be
able to handle it. If you have any other questions, feel free to ask.
--
Sue (mom to three girls)

On Thu, 11 May 2006 11:18:52 GMT, "Shelley"
wrote:

As for the surgery part, neither DH nor I have ever had any kind of
operation ourselves and are not quite sure what to expect. Doctor just said
that we would need to do it in the next week and that he'd call us and I was
so surprised, I never go much details. What are some of the questions I
should ask? I might think that this would be a day surgery so I wonder if
we'd go home the same day. Do you think they'd let us stay with him until
he's put under? I think he'd freak out if they wheeled him away while he's
still awake and neither of us with him.

I feel bad for him because even though he knows they need to fix it and he
has to put another cast on him, he doesn't really understand what an
operation is. I hope my baby isn't too scared...or that his mommy isn't
either.

The unknown is always a bit scary, isn't it!
I've had several surgeries, and my daughter has had 2 day surgeries
for ear tubes.
Your hospital may be different, so you can call the day surgery dept
and ask them how they handle your type of situation.

You should ask the anesthesiologist whether he'll use IV or a mask to
put your ds to sleep. Ask whether he'll be intubated to protect his
airway.... many short surgeries do not require intubation, but if it's
expected to last a while, it is important.

They'll stress that you not allow your ds to eat or drink anything
past midnight the night before.

You'll have to ask if you're allowed to be with him until he's put
under. Our hospital doesn't allow anyone in the OR, but it wasn't an
issue for my dd, as she was looking forward to it as an adventure.

During the surgery, staff in the day surgery dept will probably show
you to the waiting room and they'll call you when your ds is out of
the OR.

If your ds has a favorite toy or lovey, ask if he can take it in the
OR with him. My dd took her beanie kitty, a "baby" she's had for 5
years.

If you think of any other questions, be sure to ask :-)

Nan

"Shelley" wrote in message
...
I feel bad for him because even though he knows they need to fix it and
he has to put another cast on him, he doesn't really understand what an
operation is. I hope my baby isn't too scared...or that his mommy isn't
either.

Hi Shelley,

I don't have any real advice since I haven't been through this, but I did
want to say that I'm sorry your little guy has to go through this.
Hospitals deal a lot with scared kids, so I can't imagine that they
wouldn't let you stay with him until he was out, and be there when he woke
up. But then, as I said, I don't actually know anything. So those are
both excellent questions to ask.

Try to stay confident around him, because the more calm you are, the more
calm he is likely to be. Good luck to both of you.

Bizby




Thanks. I'm just waiting for the doctors office to call with more details.
I just wish they'd call. I hate not knowing. There's a possibility that
they may want to send him to the children's hospital to do it which is 5
hours away, so right now knowing when and where are the biggest unknowns for
me. I hope they call soon.

Shelley

----- Original Message -----
From: "Sue"
Newsgroups: misc.kids
Sent: Thursday, May 11, 2006 9:51 AM
Subject: Broken arm from a month ago


"Shelley" wrote in message
As for the surgery part, neither DH nor I have ever had any kind of
operation ourselves and are not quite sure what to expect. Doctor just
said
that we would need to do it in the next week and that he'd call us and I
was
so surprised, I never go much details. What are some of the questions I
should ask? I might think that this would be a day surgery so I wonder
if
we'd go home the same day. Do you think they'd let us stay with him
until
he's put under? I think he'd freak out if they wheeled him away while
he's
still awake and neither of us with him.

It should be an outpatient surgery and go home the same day. Most doctors
will let you stay with the child until they fall asleep.

I hope so. He's done so well so far with this whole thing but we've been
right beside him the whole way. I know he'd be very upset if he had to go
alone while still awake. As long as we're there when he goes to sleep and
again when he wakes up, I think he'll be more calm which will inturn keep us
more calm.

Whenever Allison
has to have surgery, we opt for the mask anesthesia so that way they can
start the IV after she has been put to sleep so there is no pain what so
ever.

I'll ask about that.

I have always stayed until she falls asleep, but you will have to
clear this with the doctor and anesthesiologist. If you do stay until he
is
asleep, keep in mind that they get a little weird before they go to sleep.
It may be disturbing to you, so you have to decide if you are going to be
able to handle it.

Seeing him not quite himself will be better than knowing he is scared, but
thanks for pointing that out. It's better to know ahead of time and expect
it than to be surprised and wondering what's going on when it happens.

If you have any other questions, feel free to ask.

Thanks,
Shelley

--
Sue (mom to three girls)

"Nan" wrote in message
...
On Thu, 11 May 2006 11:18:52 GMT, "Shelley"
wrote:

As for the surgery part, neither DH nor I have ever had any kind of
operation ourselves and are not quite sure what to expect. Doctor just
said
that we would need to do it in the next week and that he'd call us and I
was
so surprised, I never go much details. What are some of the questions I
should ask? I might think that this would be a day surgery so I wonder if
we'd go home the same day. Do you think they'd let us stay with him until
he's put under? I think he'd freak out if they wheeled him away while
he's
still awake and neither of us with him.

I feel bad for him because even though he knows they need to fix it and he
has to put another cast on him, he doesn't really understand what an
operation is. I hope my baby isn't too scared...or that his mommy isn't
either.

The unknown is always a bit scary, isn't it!
I've had several surgeries, and my daughter has had 2 day surgeries
for ear tubes.
Your hospital may be different, so you can call the day surgery dept
and ask them how they handle your type of situation.

As I've mentioned in my reply to bizby, I'm still not sure if they are going
to do it locally or at the children't hospital 5 hours away. Once I find
that out, I guess I'll be able to get more details.


You should ask the anesthesiologist whether he'll use IV or a mask to
put your ds to sleep. Ask whether he'll be intubated to protect his
airway.... many short surgeries do not require intubation, but if it's
expected to last a while, it is important.

They'll stress that you not allow your ds to eat or drink anything
past midnight the night before.

You'll have to ask if you're allowed to be with him until he's put
under. Our hospital doesn't allow anyone in the OR, but it wasn't an
issue for my dd, as she was looking forward to it as an adventure.

During the surgery, staff in the day surgery dept will probably show
you to the waiting room and they'll call you when your ds is out of
the OR.

If your ds has a favorite toy or lovey, ask if he can take it in the
OR with him. My dd took her beanie kitty, a "baby" she's had for 5
years.

All good points. Thank-you. He may like the idea of a comfort item.
Although he doesn't have a real attachment to anything in particular, having
something familiar with him could really help.


If you think of any other questions, be sure to ask :-)


Thanks,
Shelley

Nan