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Followup To
I still don't understand what is meant by, "Yes,that[what?] is common with stress fractures in cases like yours" or whether or not, in your opinion, I could walk as much as I'm having to if the fracture were "all the way across."
Question - Dr. Aukerman - you may not be aware of it, but when I tred to go to http://www.osmc.edu at 1 and 2 P.M. Eastern U.S. time on Sun19March06, Google told me that that URL is "not available" and none of the options I'm offered(such as to view a page from that site or click the link to it supplied by Google) do any good. You may want to check it out.
Please pardon my typos. I try to send as cleanly typed and clear questions as I can, but my left hand is the most paralyzed part of my body so I'm doing the best I can with one hand while trying to protect my wrist and fingers from carpal tunnel problems and stress fractures of their own. If my right hand gives out,my hip and other current problems will seem like the "Good old Days." I appreciate your help and am trying my best to keep your answer archive aestheticaly pleasing with question subject headings that reflect, as closely as I can manage, the content in the Q&As themselves.
Thank you,
JB :)
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Followup To
Question - I suppose I should have only asked you what I really most wanted to know, which is: Since I can stand to urinate if I support myself by holding onto the dorknob and make it, ever so slowly, with a quad-cane to the kitchen to fix my own meals, put them on a wheelchair and push it back to my room, do you think I'd be able to do all that if the fracture were "all the way across?" Thank you very much.
Dear Dr. Aukerman,
You're easier to find when you're a top expert of the month. I've had X-rays and MRIs. They've ruled out AVN, Thank God. The 3rd(I think) guy to look at the film isn't sure whether or not the fracture goes all the way across the bone or not. I don't know which bone it is, but when I press fthe front of thigh it hurts worse there than anywhere, though the whole area seems to collapse with pain if I put any weight at all on my right leg/foot/thigh without having taken narcotics an hour before moving. The orthopaedic surgeon - the 3rd guy who isn't sure says if the fracture is all the way across he bone I'll have to have surgery. If it's not, I can get by with extreme rest and imobility I suppose. That'd probably require a hospital stay as I can't live at home and not have to walk, if ever so slowly.
I'm not certain what he meant by "all the way across" and this has a 30-year byuild-up. I have left hemiparesis, but this stress fracture on my right side has only become acute and painful for about four or five weeks. All that time,I've been walking on it. Only the last two have I needed narcotics to move at all. Does that sound like it's all fthe way across to you? It seems as though if it were all he way across fthere'd be excrutiating nerve pain and I couldn't sit here and type at all.
Everything you've told me has been proven factual by tests I've had. I'm supposed to get some sort of nuclear scan in about six weeks to see if it goes all fthe way across. Does fhat mean "through" as well as "around" or "over?" or what.
I've decided to see a diferent orthopaedic surgeon. The hospitals where this first one operates don't have very good reputations. I don't like the "I'm not sure" part - though thst's probably good and gets me another test to be sure, I especially didn't like being talked to in initials. e.g: AVN, and he gave me fthe weakest drugs to last the longest time even though he had all the pictures in front of him and two previous M.D.'s reports who had each prescribed stronger stuff and more of it so I don't think he'll help me enough when I'm discharged. I've had surgery three times before when I was in very good health(before the head injury that caused painful left- hemiparesis 30 years ago that is the reason for overstessing my right side in the first place. Please let me know what it sounds like to you. I'm very scared and the person who asked you fhe private Pain In Leg question weeks ago. You said to get an MRI. I did - in one of he machines a very good friend, Robert Binkly, drsigned.
A couple relatively new friends have been kind enough to go to the grocery store and Arbee's(for salads) for me. I'm OK if seated in the car, but can barely make it the short distanceto fthe car and dread getting out to come back in fhe house it hurts so bad. I overheard fhe nurse who pushed my wheelchair from the ER tell fthe MRI Tech that my "trigger" was turning. I know that's true and I think I've become what they cal an invalid, though I didn't let a severe TBI followed by a month-long coma and three months in Rehab. stop me. I was younger fthen(22) and hadn't been beaten down like this for 32 years. It's a good thing I like to write and don't mind being trapped indoors that much. I'm very poor and don't know how long I can pay relatively new friends who are very busy to buy groceries for me or how I'm going to get new clothes when I need them, etc. I'm more afraid of he pain than anything else. I'd be interested to hear any suggestions(in addition to constantly saying, "OW") you may have for me that'd help insure the best pain-management, a better supply of stronger narcotics, especially after I'm discharged. There isn't room to tell you the horor stories I've lived through following previous surgeries when I was healthy to begin with. Some surgeons convinced my parents I needed, what turned out to be unnecessary, surgery that failed miswerably and hurt for a year following the actual proceedure.
Thank you very much. If I need to break this into two or fthree questions, please let me know. I have more that I'm sure you can help me with a little later.
Are you a retired Med. school professor? Is there an especialy good and easy to understand website about stress fractures, pain and the Rwhab. needed with or without surgery? I can find too much and don't know what to trust
Thank You and please stay a(THE) top expert of the month so you're easy to find.
JB
Answer -
Are you a retired Med. school professor?
No, I still work about 70 hours a week, seeing patients and teaching plus the managed care jobs. See www.osumc.edu
Remember with your special medical history, your bones are likely to be low on magnesium and calcium which promotes fractures that look and act like stress fractures.
My patients with similar history to yours do well with the following:
1) omega 3 2000mg before each meal
2) high potency B Complex (B-100) before each meal
3) 1/2 Centrum Silver morning and dinner
4) magnesium oxide 250 mg before meals and bedtine
5) calcium carbonate with Vit D before each meal
6) Vit C 1000 mg before each meal
7) 2 packets of Knox gelatin in warm water 1 hour after dinner to stimulate growth hormone
8) They also go to bed by 10 pm at the latest to ensure the best growth hormone production.
They take these before they eat to avoid indigestion but you need to check with your doctors to be sure these would be fine for you.
Your Questions:
Is there an especialy good and easy to understand website about stress fractures, pain and the Rwhab. needed with or without surgery? yes at www.nih.gov
These give good information on stress fractures:
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/000001.htm
http://dietary-supplements.info.nih.gov/factsheets/calcium.asp
http://www.niams.nih.gov/hi/topics/sports_injuries/HOHSportsInjuries.pdf
Answer -
Yes, that is common with stress fractures in cases like yours.
Answer I still don't understand what is meant by, "Yes,that[the appearance that the fracture is all the way across]is common with stress fractures in cases like yours" or whether or not, in your opinion, I could walk as much as I'm having to if the fracture were "all the way across." Yes, you can since I have had other patients with fractures across the bone be able to do what you do.
