Post by Donna Brown on May 6, 2007 20:52:02 GMT -5
I'm 43 years old now and had Perthes from the age of 4 1/2 years. I spent 3 months flat on my back in hospital in traction, then a further 12+ months wearing a calliper (brace) on my right leg and a built-up shoe on my left foot.
I did pretty well and have gone on to marry, have two gorgeous kids, hold down a job etc etc. But a couple of years ago, my hip started to niggle, then got very painful. I am now awaiting a hip replacement, which my specialist feels will need to be done within the next 12-18 months - we'll see!
The two children I mentioned - Alex was diagnosed with bi-lateral Perthes at 3 1/2 years old. He was extremely lucky to have a very mild case, that required only restrictions and some pain meds. If I didn't know what to look for, I probably wouldn't have even realised he had perthes! He is now almost 13 years old, his hips look 'normal' and he is doing extremely well.
Caitlin was diagnosed with bi-lateral Perthes at 5 years old. She had a few sessions of traction, petrie casts for 6 weeks, then went on to have bi-lateral pelvic osteotomies, one of which failed to do the job as well as it should. In October 2004 she became the first child in NZ to have an external fixator for Perthes, that was removed in February 2005. She then wore a brace 24/7 for six weeks, then at nights only for a further 6 months.
Today she is almost 11 years old. Her femoral heads are in regrowth, or reossification or whatever terminology your specialist uses. In other words, we are heading towards the end of her Perthes journey. Her femoral heads are both ovoid in shape and will apparently function not unlike a cows hips (love it when the specialist says that!). She may need a hip replacement, but he feels that she should get into her 50's or 60's before that is an issue, whereas without the intervention she had, that would have been needed in her 20's probably.
So I know more about Perthes than I ever wished to, both as a patient and as a parent. I struggled to find information when my son and then daughter were diagnosed, so set about to ensure that I try and help as many other families as I could - this is where both the website and messageboard come in!
I would love to see you make use of this board to introduce yourself too, so just click on the appropriate links!
I did pretty well and have gone on to marry, have two gorgeous kids, hold down a job etc etc. But a couple of years ago, my hip started to niggle, then got very painful. I am now awaiting a hip replacement, which my specialist feels will need to be done within the next 12-18 months - we'll see!
The two children I mentioned - Alex was diagnosed with bi-lateral Perthes at 3 1/2 years old. He was extremely lucky to have a very mild case, that required only restrictions and some pain meds. If I didn't know what to look for, I probably wouldn't have even realised he had perthes! He is now almost 13 years old, his hips look 'normal' and he is doing extremely well.
Caitlin was diagnosed with bi-lateral Perthes at 5 years old. She had a few sessions of traction, petrie casts for 6 weeks, then went on to have bi-lateral pelvic osteotomies, one of which failed to do the job as well as it should. In October 2004 she became the first child in NZ to have an external fixator for Perthes, that was removed in February 2005. She then wore a brace 24/7 for six weeks, then at nights only for a further 6 months.
Today she is almost 11 years old. Her femoral heads are in regrowth, or reossification or whatever terminology your specialist uses. In other words, we are heading towards the end of her Perthes journey. Her femoral heads are both ovoid in shape and will apparently function not unlike a cows hips (love it when the specialist says that!). She may need a hip replacement, but he feels that she should get into her 50's or 60's before that is an issue, whereas without the intervention she had, that would have been needed in her 20's probably.
So I know more about Perthes than I ever wished to, both as a patient and as a parent. I struggled to find information when my son and then daughter were diagnosed, so set about to ensure that I try and help as many other families as I could - this is where both the website and messageboard come in!
I would love to see you make use of this board to introduce yourself too, so just click on the appropriate links!