Guest guest Posted December 9, 2005 Report Share Posted December 9, 2005 I was told the other day that my unborn daughter is going to have a clubbed foot. I'm not sure how to handel it yet. I've got so many questions for the doctor's but they say they can't say till the baby is born. i'm not sure what to do. i mean i don't know if she's going to need everyday special care or what. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 11, 2005 Report Share Posted December 11, 2005 Welcome to the board and congratulations! Most of us can understand your anxiety. Rest assured that there is probably nothing majorly wrong with your baby and clubfoot is a relatively easy to fix birth defect when treated by a good doctor. That said, we know how overwhelming it is when you're starting out on this journey!!! Have you been to Dr. Ponseti's website yet? There is information there that is very reassuring to parents that their child will be just fine. http://www.vh.org/pediatric/patient/orthopaedics/clubfeet/index.html There's a parents' checklist at this site that will help you in talking to the doctors: http://members.tripod.com/ponseti_links-ivil The doctors should be willing to speak with you ahead of time to answer all your questions about treatment. While it's true that they cannot tell you the severity of your daughter's foot prior to her being born, they should still know exactly what protocol they'll use to treat her and explain it to you. That checklist will help you with that. If the doctors won't talk with you via phone or in person, then keep looking for another doctor! There's a list of doctors on Dr. Ponseti's website with contact information. If you let us know what region you're in, we can maybe make recommendations also. I'm not sure about what you mean by everyday special care. If you choose to use the Ponseti method to correct her foot, she will have a toe-to-groin cast that is changed every 5-7 days until the foot is corrected. This usually takes 5-7 weeks on average. Then she will be placed in a Foot Abduction Brace (FAB) also known as a Dennis Brown Bar (DBB), which is two open-toed shoes mounted on a bar. She will wear this 23 hours/day for the first 3 months, and then gradually stepping down the time in the brace every day until she's walking, then she'll wear it 10-12 hours/day (nights) until she's 4-5 years old. This seems daunting at first, but you'll read the testimony of many families here that to the child, it's just a part of their nightly routine, like putting on pajamas and brushing their teeth. Once they're used to it, they actually have a hard time falling asleep without it. It's cheap insurance in reducing the chance that she'll relapse/regress and need additional castings and/or surgery. I hope this helps. We're here to answer your questions and help you find the information you need so that you can have peace of mind and get educated on clubfoot treatment options so you can confidently make decisions about your daughter's care. Welcome aboard! & (3-16-00, left clubfoot, switched to Ponseti method at 4 months old) http://ponseticlubfoot.freeservers.com/ > > I was told the other day that my unborn daughter is going to have a > clubbed foot. I'm not sure how to handel it yet. I've got so many > questions for the doctor's but they say they can't say till the baby > is born. i'm not sure what to do. i mean i don't know if she's going > to need everyday special care or what. > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 11, 2005 Report Share Posted December 11, 2005 Just a quick reply here as I go off to bed but hey, don't get yourself worked up, it is really not a very big deal in the scheme of things and she won't need much " Special " care. You'll see, and we're all here to help you though it, OK? I'm three months away from delivering my THIRD club footed baby! shawnee 1st time posting I was told the other day that my unborn daughter is going to have a clubbed foot. I'm not sure how to handel it yet. I've got so many questions for the doctor's but they say they can't say till the baby is born. i'm not sure what to do. i mean i don't know if she's going to need everyday special care or what. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 12, 2005 Report Share Posted December 12, 2005 Good! Yes look at the site and others, you'll soon realize this isn't the end of the world! We mostly end up just having fun with our baby's clubbed feet; some decorate the casts and others dream up great answers for all the stupid questions strangers like to ask about it. haha. Rest assured though that if treated properly, the condition will be history before your child is old enough to even know he was born with it, OK? s. Re: 1st time posting Welcome to the board and congratulations! Most of us can understand your anxiety. Rest assured that there is probably nothing majorly wrong with your baby and clubfoot is a relatively easy to fix birth defect when treated by a good doctor. That said, we know how overwhelming it is when you're starting out on this journey!!! Have you been to Dr. Ponseti's website yet? There is information there that is very reassuring to parents that their child will be just fine. http://www.vh.org/pediatric/patient/orthopaedics/clubfeet/index.html There's a parents' checklist at this site that will help you in talking to the doctors: http://members.tripod.com/ponseti_links-ivil The doctors should be willing to speak with you ahead of time to answer all your questions about treatment. While it's true that they cannot tell you the severity of your daughter's foot prior to her being born, they should still know exactly what protocol they'll use to treat her and explain it to you. That checklist will help you with that. If the doctors won't talk with you via phone or in person, then keep looking for another doctor! There's a list of doctors on Dr. Ponseti's website with contact information. If you let us know what region you're in, we can maybe make recommendations also. I'm not sure about what you mean by everyday special care. If you choose to use the Ponseti method to correct her foot, she will have a toe-to-groin cast that is changed every 5-7 days until the foot is corrected. This usually takes 5-7 weeks on average. Then she will be placed in a Foot Abduction Brace (FAB) also known as a Dennis Brown Bar (DBB), which is two open-toed shoes mounted on a bar. She will wear this 23 hours/day for the first 3 months, and then gradually stepping down the time in the brace every day until she's walking, then she'll wear it 10-12 hours/day (nights) until she's 4-5 years old. This seems daunting at first, but you'll read the testimony of many families here that to the child, it's just a part of their nightly routine, like putting on pajamas and brushing their teeth. Once they're used to it, they actually have a hard time falling asleep without it. It's cheap insurance in reducing the chance that she'll relapse/regress and need additional castings and/or surgery. I hope this helps. We're here to answer your questions and help you find the information you need so that you can have peace of mind and get educated on clubfoot treatment options so you can confidently make decisions about your daughter's care. Welcome aboard! & (3-16-00, left clubfoot, switched to Ponseti method at 4 months old) http://ponseticlubfoot.freeservers.com/ > > I was told the other day that my unborn daughter is going to have a > clubbed foot. I'm not sure how to handel it yet. I've got so many > questions for the doctor's but they say they can't say till the baby > is born. i'm not sure what to do. i mean i don't know if she's going > to need everyday special care or what. > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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