A Limb Lengthening Diary with Dr. Kevin Debiparshad (Dr. D or Dr. Kevin).
Surgical limb lengthening seems like a horrific procedure, it really does. I am writing this diary to demonstrate that my experience with Dr. Debiparshad was not. It is definitely not a walk in the park, but it is certainly doable with Dr. D
I am also sharing my experience as gratitude to the members on this forum. I am not sure that I would have had the audacity to go through this if it weren’t for the shared experiences of the other members here.
I am currently almost 2 weeks post op and I am going to share my story.
Background
I am about 5’6”, which, I know is not really short but it is short enough to have experienced height discrimination. Height discrimination exists. It may not be as obvious as other forms of discrimination, but living it sucks.
About 2 months ago my brother showed me a video on the internet about cosmetic limb lengthening with Dr. Debiparshad from the series The Doctors TV show. Afterwards, my brother and I found this forum and started investigating the procedure. I am a medical doctor so I know quite a bit about internal fixation of bone fractures with metal rods and I have even assisted many of these surgeries while I was in medical school. But the is was the first time I had learned of the cosmetic use fracture induced lengthening. It seems like a pretty obvious cosmetic treatment.
It did not take much for my brother and I to decide we wanted to go ahead with the procedure together.
Location was not important for us and we were sure that we wanted to find the best surgeon in the country for our procedure.
We researched the ll surgeons through PubMed and NCBI as well as surgeons listed in this forum. For us, Dr. Debiparshad’s medical education, publications and level of experience put him at the top of our list.
Dr. Debiparshad works with Ronnie and Teresa, all great and very helpful.
Surgery:
Day of surgery
We arrived early in the morning. The hospital he uses is great. Clean and very nice nurses. Registration at the hospital was relatively easy.
My brother went first.
I remember being wheeled into the OR then waking up in quite a bit of pain. Probably the most pain I have ever experienced, but it didn’t last long. The post op nurse was very kind and receptive. She quickly gave me increasing doses of Dilaudid until the pain was under control.
I was then transported to my private hospital room.
I walked once with a front wheeled walker with my nurse that night before falling asleep for the night.
I have always told my patients that “surgical pain” lasts about 48 hours then regresses quickly. Having lived this experience I now it’s true, now. My nurse gave me Dilaudid on a routine schedule for those two days and I did not really suffer that much. Some post op nausea for which I did not need medication.
Post op day 1 and 2, we walked with PT twice a day and were discharged to a hotel at the end of post op day 2.
We did not require a caregiver or any additional assistance, although I have seen many diaries in which people did hire someone to help them.
Dr. Debiparshad recommends Physical Therapy daily for two weeks with a specific group he works with.
I go once a day for about 1-1.5 hours.
Pain: Yes, there is pain and you should be psychologically ready for it.
Sleep is very important for healing and for your mental state.
I spend most days stretching my legs and strengthening exercises.
At the end of the second week you meet Dr. Debiparshad for a follow up exam and X-rays to prove everything is going well.
He needs patients to return monthly for an exam and X-rays every two weeks which can be done locally.
I walk around with crutches although I think Dr. Debiparshad prefers a walker. For me the crutches seem easier. I was able to walk short distances without a walking aid at post op day 5 which is really very quick, and not common according to the PTs. I think Dr. Debiparshad wants his patients to be able to walk independently by the end of the second week , but everyone is different. My brother is still using his front wheeled walker. I have seen many posts of people complaining of unilateral leg pain, which my brother also has, but I don’t, so everyone is different.
The pain is worse in the morning and getting out of bed can be torture. Daily pain can be really depressing. Ronnie and Dr. Debiparshad are very helpful. Knowing the pain is temporary and this will all be over in 12 weeks makes it easier to deal with. Heating pads are also helpful. Stretching prior to the distracting (bone stretching) also helps.
I am very optimistic with my treatment and progress and I’ll try a post updates in the future
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Topic: A Limb Lengthening Diary with Dr. Kevin Debiparshad (Dr. D or Dr. Kevin). (Read 1124 times)