A large family, homeschooling, adoption, special needs, whatever strikes my fancy, sort of blog.

A large family, homeschooling, adoption, special needs, whatever strikes my fancy, sort of blog.

Tuesday, October 7, 2014

Warning! Graphic post surgery pictures


I just wanted to give a post surgical update on Katie's hand and leg.  These photos are not for the squeamish, but they're not too terrible.  My hope is that they will show the realities of Amniotic Banding for those who might be considering adopting a child with this need.  


2 weeks post surgery.  The procedure she had was called Z-plasty.


As you can see, she's looking really good here.  Some stitches have fallen out, a little bruising, a little redness, but no ooze, swelling, or blood.


I was really pleased with our first glimpse of the site.  I wrapped it back up and the next time we saw it, it looked like this:


A little scabby/crusty, but otherwise, moving right along.


The stitches are pretty long, so they poke out a bit.


Again, we wrapped it back up, and kept it wrapped until her 1 month post op visit.


It was very exciting to get to unwrap her hand at Shriners while the resident unwrapped her leg, because I hadn't seen the hand at all.


I got to see her wiggle her fingers and spread them for the first time ever!


The scabs on her hand have all come off, and she is using it with no problems at all.

The doctor at Shriners was pleased with both sites and told us to go home and have a long bath to help soak the stitches out.


Katie was thrilled because she loves baths, and has really missed them, going without for a month.


After a couple of baths, you can see, it's really looking better.  Still some stitches poking out, and certainly some dry skin!  But things are progressing.


After I took these pictures, I gooped up her leg with Organic Healing Balm from Honest Company.  I think it's looking better every day.  Once all the stitches have dissolved, I plan to use essential oils to help reduce scarring.

I had her wear leggings to Apple Hill, just to keep dirt/hay out of it, but she's been wearing shorts & dresses around the house.  She and Hannah wore really long dresses to church Sunday, just because I didn't want to deal with gasps and, "Omigosh, what happened to her??"


Fortunately, she's pretty stinkin' cute, whatever she wears, and is taking it all in stride.

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10 comments:

  1. It looks great, thanks for sharing! We used cocoa butter post z-plasty but prior to casting We haven't been able to use anything since.

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    1. Hoping your casting goes well. Katie had 9, but the last one was just a boot to hold things in place until her AFO was finished.

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  2. How precious she is. Happy for good procedures and good healing. May God continue to bless you.

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    1. Thank you, Wanda! :) I'm so glad things have gone well for her. No relapse of her clubbed foot while she's been unable to wear her brace, too, which is such a relief.

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  3. Oh, what a precious child! It hurts me to look at these pictures, but she is a beautiful child!

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    1. She has been such a trooper! She only needed pain relief for the first couple of days. She's totally fine with me gooping it up at naps or bedtime, unlike kids who don't want you to mess with their owies because it might hurt. I'm really impressed with her.

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  4. She's adorable! Thanks for sharing I hope she feels better soon. She looks like she does.

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    1. She's doing great! She reminds me to put stuff on her scar at nap time. :)

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  5. I'm curious...which oils will you use for scar therapy? My daughter just had a cast removed from her second cleft hand repair and I'm looking for a natural way to reduce the scar.

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    1. I'm alternating frankincense and lavender oils. :) We use Young Living.

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