worried mom

[Guest guest]

Hello! My son Leo, born with BL clubfoot is one year old today!! We have

had a tough time with his treatment so far. He started out with an MD who

modified the protocol too much and ended up getting cellulitis secondary to

a blister when he went into the FAB without full correction. We changed

doctors and we are seeing Dr. Bosch at Tingley Hospital in

Albuquerque, NM, who is very loyal to the method, and finally got to the

nights and naps in braces point when we noticed his left foot relapsing.

X-rays also revealed a bit of a rocker bottom deformity so he was recasted

and a repeat BL tenotomies were performed. He is now 1 week out of the

casts and into the brace this time and I am so fearful of another

relapse. He is still supinating with his left foot, even after two months

in casts. Our orthopedist has stated that he will require an anterior

tibial tendon transfer at some point, probably around two yrs of age to

correct this. I just hope he can stay in the shoes until then. The

shoes are great, but sometimes I have difficulty getting his heel back all

the way. His feet are still so sensitive and he is a bigger, stronger baby

to get the shoes on, but at least he doesn't cry when they are on like the

first time around. Dr. Bosch has ordered 16-18 hrs a day in the shoes but

I'm so nervous I've only been giving a 2-4 hour break so far. He screams in

pain when I dorsiflex his feet and he doesn't tolerate any weight bearing,

even with my support. Is this unusual? I guess I'm writing to vent and

hear about other people's experiences with the braces and about the

ATT.

, mom to Leo, Jr. BL CF 2/28/04

Analea, 7/18/99

[Guest guest]

Welcome, & Leo!

I'm so sorry to hear about the struggles that you've endured with

Leo's treatment thus far. I hope that the shoes will be

able to hold his feet in the corrected position for you.

I'm very concerned about your last statement where you said that Leo

cries in pain when you try to dorsiflex his foot. This is very

troublesome to me. The lack of weight bearing is not *as much* of a

concern as it does take some time for some babies to want to do

this. However, if you think that flexing his feet is causing him

discomfort, I wouldn't take this lightly and make sure your doctor

addresses this concern with you immediately. If he brushes it off,

maybe you can get a second opinion from Dr. Brown (if he's

still in Albuquerque that is, and also if he wasn't your first

doctor that put Leo into the brace without full correction) as I

think he's an associate of Dr. Bosch?

Perhaps there is some complication that arose from the rocker-bottom

deformity and attempted correction. Was the rockerbottom caused by

treatment from the first ortho or did it form under Dr. Bosch's

care? Has Dr. Bosch mentioned that Leo might have a-typical

clubfoot to you?? Did they do follow-up x-rays after he came out of

the casts recently?

We're here for you- please keep us posted and ask any questions!

Regards,

& (3-16-00)

left clubfoot, switched to Ponseti method at 4 mo. old

[Guest guest]

Hi .

Have you thought about emailing pictures of Leo's feet to Dr. Ponseti

himself to get another opinion? Most of the time (and I am no doctor so

could be wrong) rockerbottom can come from incorrect casting. I know

there is another mom on this site who is currently facing surgery because

of rockerbottom. I think her daughter is older though. Also, if Leo is

in pain when the shoes are on, there may be another problem, like feet not

being corrected all the way or maybe a more severe case like atypical.

Ponseti's email address is: ignacio-ponseti@...

Let us know what you decide.

Shook

Retail Operations Manager/Baking Instructor

Vie de France Yamazaki, Inc.

2070 Chain Bridge Rd. Suite 500

Vienna, VA 22182

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