I just got back from Nathan’s third visit to the orthopedist to look at his club feet. Meredith slept in to get some much-deserved sleep. While in the waiting room, I talked briefly with a mom who was there with her one-month-old son who had a club foot. She said they had had the same experience we’ve had of finding lots and lots of people who’ve either had a club foot, or had a sibling or spouse or someone that had. It’s really not that rare, it seems.
Nathan again expressed his violent opposition to the adjustment, and again calmed down completely about a minute after he was done. As I type this, he’s sound asleep on my chest – clearly the torture of the adjustment had no lasting effects.
The doctor said that Nathan’s doing fine, and that next week he wants to do the surgery to lengthen Nathan’s Achilles tendon. Or tendons, rather, since both feet have tightened tendons. One of the effects of club foot is that the Achilles tendon tends to be too short. You could see it pretty clearly today on Nathan’s feet – the adjustments have already really turned his feet around, but his heel is clearly much higher than it should be.
So, as the doctor explained to me, the procedure is that they put numbing cream on Nathan’s heels, and let that sit for 20 or 30 minute. Then they go in with a scalpel through a very small incision and snap the Achilles tendon. He assures me that it reconnects on its own, only longer. Babies are truly amazing – if someone cut my Achilles tendon, I bet it wouldn’t just grow back. He said that sometimes, babies are completely calm through it (must be amazing numbing cream), and sometimes they cry, but not usually more than they do during the normal adjustments. Then he puts a compression bandage on it for 10 minutes to stop the bleeding, then the casts go on as normal. The incision is so small that he won’t even need stitches to close it.
It all sounds very reasonable and minor and safe.
Or, looked at from another perspective: They’re going to cut my baby with a knife!
OK, I’m sure it will be fine. But it’s a little scary to think about. Poor little Nathan.
Posted by Mike at January 20, 2005 11:19 AMThat is a little scary! Once you're sure his heels are in the right place, make sure you take him down to the Styx and submerge him fully.
my thoughts are with you guys. sounds like things are going great.
oh, and could you bring back some of that numbing cream? it's, um, for a friend.
d
Posted by: davemomma on January 20, 2005 09:54 PMits good to know that he is doing great.and i hope that he,ll be completly fine one day.unfortunatly my daughter has clubfeet and i am struggling for her left foot to be straight she is 3 now
Posted by: sadaf on August 5, 2005 07:57 AM