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Hello everyone,

We took Caleb for the consultation with the specialist today. Instead of Children's Hospital in Oakland, we went to the UCSF Children's Hospital. They are a nationally top-rated hospital and worth the extra drive. :) We will be scheduling his surgery on Monday for (probably) late March. The following is a description of what's in store for him and us.

One of us will be able to be with him in the induction room while the anesthesiologist puts him to sleep, then he'll go into surgery for about 2 1/2 hours. The surgeon will actually cut part of the ball of the leg bone and curve it toward the hip socket. They will use a small metal plate and three screws to keep everything aligned, which will be removed 6-12 months later, when the bones have healed ,as an outpatient procedure.

Next, a cast will be applied. This surgeon does the cast differently than many other doctors do. It will start at the waist rather than the middle of the abdomen, and on the left side will go down to the ankle. On the right side it will go down to the knee. His legs will be in a frog-legged position to allow the bones to heal properly. He'll get his choice of cast colors, too. He told the surgeon his favorite color is red, but his favorite color changes with every time he's asked. :) The best part is, with this surgery, he'll only need the cast for six WEEKS (not months!) Praise God!

We'll be able to be with him in the recovery room after the surgery, and one of us will be able to stay the night with him. She doesn't expect him to have much pain, but she'll prescribe Tylenol with Codeine just in case. We can use Motrin instead. We'll be able to take him home the day after the surgery as long as the doctors and we have no reservations against it. He won't fit in his car seat, so he will be using a special harness that attaches to the seat of the car. I've never heard of that, but the doc assured us they're legal. :) Also, a special reclined wheelchair will be delivered to our house so he can get around.

He'll have to be followed annually by a pediatric orthopedist until he's 16 to make sure the hip bone grows properly over the ball of the leg bone. The left leg, which is shorter right now, should catch up to the other one over time because of it being cut. (If it hasn't by the time he's 12 or 13, there is another procedure to correct that so it doesn't affect him negatively.)



Those are all the details we know. Reading it all over, it's quite a bit! I'm glad I took notes while we were there. Please pray for Caleb. The surgeon said she could tell he is a brave boy, and that's so true. We told him his hip bone needs help, and she's going to fix it. When she was asking him about his cast, he asked if he could have it tonight! :) Sorry buddy, nobody else is ready!

-Carla