Cerebral Palsy/Tendon Transfer in heel/foot?

[disneyobessed]

Has anyone had a child that has had this done? My son is 10 with CP and his foot looks like it is literally collapsing. The last few days he has complained it hurts.. we are having his AFOs looked at b/c his foot is red where it hits the brace. His Ortho mentioned he may need this surgery when we saw him in the spring. We will see him again on Oct 28th. My son had the hamstring lengthening hip abductor surgery in 2007 and Im still mentally healing from that. He had a hard time with pain and anethesia.. casts were a nightmare up to his upper thigh.. Can anyone give me any information on this. Thanks.

 

[disneyobessed]

bump.....

 

[Eeyore5]

I am not familiar with that procedure. If you are hesitant, get a second opinion. I would also see if their is a pain management team you can work with if you do the surgery. Are you going to a hospital tat specializes in children with disabilities? Sometimes that helps. I have mild CP and have a fair amount of muscle pain. Have you tried swimming with him? It wouldn't necessarily help the foot collapsing, but I have found using a warm pool works well for decreasing overall pain and improving sleep quality. The senior center where I live has a warm pool. I am only 36, but I can use it with a doctor's note.
One other thought, it is important you find a way to correct his alignment whether it is surgical or bracing. I had knee issues secondary to the CP because I didn't get supports for my feet until I was a teen. I didn't get diagnosed until then even though I didn't walk across a room until 3.

 

[disneyobessed]

I am not familiar with that procedure. If you are hesitant, get a second opinion. I would also see if their is a pain management team you can work with if you do the surgery. Are you going to a hospital tat specializes in children with disabilities? Sometimes that helps. I have mild CP and have a fair amount of muscle pain. Have you tried swimming with him? It wouldn't necessarily help the foot collapsing, but I have found using a warm pool works well for decreasing overall pain and improving sleep quality. The senior center where I live has a warm pool. I am only 36, but I can use it with a doctor's note.
One other thought, it is important you find a way to correct his alignment whether it is surgical or bracing. I had knee issues secondary to the CP because I didn't get supports for my feet until I was a teen. I didn't get diagnosed until then even though I didn't walk across a room until 3.

Thanks for your input.. yes we go to a hospital/dr clinic that specializes in kids with CP orthopedic issues.. My son does use the YMCA on Sundays and we have a hottub he goes in. Im not having second thoughts on the surgery.. just wondering what to expect...

 

[Eeyore5]

I'm glad you go to a specialty place. The physiatrist I see primarily does sports med. I am one of her few patients with CP. She wanted me to try Botox a few years ago. I went to the specialty hospital here (they have an adult program) and found out that for my level of CP, it was a bad idea. I have students with CP and had seen it do great things so I was interested to see if it would help me.

Does the hospital have a pain management team? If they do, I would work with before surgery to have a plan in place. If not, they may be able to refer you to a pain specialist. They should be able to come up with a good plan ahead of time so he is more comfortable.