Print

Please login or register.
1 Hour 1 Day 1 Week 1 Month Forever
Login with username, password and session length

[vetpat]

Good night guys,

Soon it'll be NYE and I guess many of you think about improving your lives doing a limb lengthening surgery next year.

I did surgery ˜5 years ago and I must say it was a great decision. Guess some of you might have some questions/doubts about Mitkovic's method and I'll be happy to answer and discuss.

Happy new year guys!

[Peaceout]

Hi
1.How much did you lengthen? Before/after height?
2.What about your scars?
3.Do you think you recovered absolutely %100 or having any minor issues?
4.How is your runing speed right now?
5.And some info about your proportions would be great. Thanks!

[vetpat]

1. I did 5.5cm. I'm 5'7 right now.
2. None of my friends noticed. Maybe because they don't stare at my legs or maybe it is because my legs are a little hairy. I might post pictures in the future.
3. I do think I recovered 99%. Nothing noticeable to complain.
4. I can run and do squats at the gym with heavy weights (˜200lbs)
5. I didn't stretch much so I guess my proportions are okay.

[Keep Growing]

Hi there,
How about misalignment? Have you experienced any?
When did you start walking? Can you wear the device under your pants?
Speaking about proportions, what do you mean you didn't stretch much?

Happy New Year!

[aspirant185]

How did your quality of life in terms of job situation/women/social activities change after adding the 2 inches ?

[vetpat]

Hi there,
How about misalignment? Have you experienced any?
When did you start walking? Can you wear the device under your pants?
Speaking about proportions, what do you mean you didn't stretch much?

Happy New Year!

No misalignment in my case. I guess it is more likely for heavy weight patients.
You can wear the device under your pants but it is visible. Not as much as the Illizarov method of course.
4 months after surgery I was walking in crutches. Took me 6 months to walk without crutches. You lose a lot of muscle in your legs so it can take a couple months more. Can't remember how long it took me for feeling confident about walking, climbing stairs, etc but I would guess a year to return to normal life (but not sports).
Most patients try to stretch as much as possible. They usually aim for 7.5cm. I recommend something between 5cm to 6cm for maintaining proportions and physical abilities. Not to say faster recovery and less risk of complications.

[vetpat]

How did your quality of life in terms of job situation/women/social activities change after adding the 2 inches ?

Interesting question.

It really improves your life. Staying "hidden" for a year is not easy but adding 2 inches to your height makes a lot of difference. I continue to be short at 5'7 but taller than most women around the world and not much below average. It all depends of your environment. If you live in Netherlands, 5'7 will be quite below average height. If you go to Vietnam, you'll feel above average.

Still feel short but can't describe how better I feel. A single word to describe is improvement. 1 year procedure to improve your life for a...lifetime. I highly recommend limb lengthening.

Dr. Mitkovic's is an experienced doctor and if you plan to do tibias I would say his method is much better than the Illizarov since pins doesn't go through muscle and the external device is much smaller. As for femurs, I would say look for internal method with another doctor like Betz or Guichet. I've seen two patients having a bad time. Maybe because they did both tibias and femurs at the same time. Having pins cutting through your muscles is painful and will leave you with nasty scars.

[Alittletooshort]

That´s nice to hear! Some pictures of your current proportions would be very helpful.
How long did you have to wear the monorails?
Edit:
May I ask for your age?

[vetpat]

Here's a pic:

This pic is a few years old so the scars are a little less visible.

Can't remember exactly how long I used the monorails but it was something like 7 months.

I am on my mid 30'.

[Tiny]

Hi vetpat,

Thanks for the AMA.

1. How's Nis or Serbia in general?
2. How's the quality of the hospital?

Thanks,
Tiny

[Uppland]

Here's a pic:

This pic is a few years old so the scars are a little less visible.

Can't remember exactly how long I used the monorails but it was something like 7 months.

I am on my mid 30'.

Your proportions look OK but I think it was the right call to stop at a 2 inch gain.

[Alittletooshort]

Your tibias look a bit long imo, but not to a point where it is noticable to someone who doesn´t know about LL. I have to say that you look a lot taller than 5´7, If I didn´t know I´d estimate your height to be around 6´1.

[aspirant185]

Dr. Mitkovic is a good option for me personally. I am from Sofia, Bulgaria, which is only around 100 miles away from Nis, meaning I don't have to rent an apartment and hire people to take care of me. Moreover, Bulgarian is really close to Serbian so I would have no problems communicating with Dr. and with his staff. I wish he offered internal femurs...I am looking to gain at least 6 cm, preferably 7.5 , and doing 6-7.5 tibs makes little sense apart from the financial perspective.

[blahblah]

I don't think anything is wrong with your proportions, actually looks pretty normal to me. But ya you do look much taller in the pic. like Alittletooshort said you look like 6'1.

[Peaceout]

You seriously look MUCH taller than 5'7 in this picture.And great proportions! Im glad you dont regret this and having a better life
Btw some people say femurs are better for proportions.I mean you can always hide them with clothes.But for tibias when you wear a short it may be noticeable.What do you think about this and what do you recommend for future LL'ers?

[vetpat]

Hi vetpat,

Thanks for the AMA.

1. How's Nis or Serbia in general?
2. How's the quality of the hospital?

Thanks,
Tiny

Nis is a small, calm and affordable city. I used to get on my wheelchair and go to a nearest park to meet with other patients to have some drinks. It was nice to hangout with them. Would be better without a wheelchair though.
Don't know how to describe Serbia. Maybe it is like most of the Eastern European countries. They're behind the west economically speaking but the population is quite polite, respectful and sometimes a little serious if they know you're american. Everyone stopped what they were doing to help me out (when they saw me in the wheelchair).

About the hospital... It was okay, nothing to complain. Some patients complained about food but it was...hospital food. Same for hospital staff. If you don't look arrogant nor disrespectful, they're going to be nice.

[vetpat]

Your proportions look OK but I think it was the right call to stop at a 2 inch gain.

Your tibias look a bit long imo, but not to a point where it is noticable to someone who doesn´t know about LL. I have to say that you look a lot taller than 5´7, If I didn´t know I´d estimate your height to be around 6´1.

I don't think anything is wrong with your proportions, actually looks pretty normal to me. But ya you do look much taller in the pic. like Alittletooshort said you look like 6'1.

I was wearing a small shirt who makes my torso look shorter. I think my proportions look better now than it was before-op. Proportionally speaking, I do look taller than 5'7 but it doesn't matter when I stand next to somebody. A good way to determine if someone is tall, is to look at their arms and head (proportionally to the body). Being slim helps too.

You seriously look MUCH taller than 5'7 in this picture.And great proportions! Im glad you dont regret this and having a better life
Btw some people say femurs are better for proportions.I mean you can always hide them with clothes.But for tibias when you wear a short it may be noticeable.What do you think about this and what do you recommend for future LL'ers?

I recommend to start with tibias. It does look much better IMO. Short guys have quite short tibias. Sit next to somebody and compare your knee height so you can have an idea. Mine is normal for somebody from 5'7 to 5'9.
As for scars, for men in general, don't bother. Even in beach/pool only once or twice somebody asked me about it. Since I am fit, one guy asked me if I did martial arts. I told him yes. People can be curious but they'll be weary of asking personal questions.
When my girlfriend ask me about it I just told her it is a long and sad story. That's it. [Sad because I had to do surgery to "fix" my height.]

The best advice I can give to future patients is to not exaggerate. Go to a reasonable target. Don't expect to go from 5'2 to 6'ft. Most guys want to go from extremely short to tall. I know it's not easy since you'll think "oh, I can do a few extra turns and get an extra inch".

[vetpat]

Dr. Mitkovic is a good option for me personally. I am from Sofia, Bulgaria, which is only around 100 miles away from Nis, meaning I don't have to rent an apartment and hire people to take care of me. Moreover, Bulgarian is really close to Serbian so I would have no problems communicating with Dr. and with his staff. I wish he offered internal femurs...I am looking to gain at least 6 cm, preferably 7.5 , and doing 6-7.5 tibs makes little sense apart from the financial perspective.

I made a friend from Bulgaria while in Serbia. Cool guy!

Aim for 6.5 cm. That's enough. Get a few books and step on it so you get the feel. It does make a difference. If you choose Dr. Mitkovic, go for tibias only.

[aspirant185]

Nice ! was he also doing LL or you just met him randomly in the town ?

[vetpat]

Nice ! was he also doing LL or you just met him randomly in the town ?

He was also a patient. During your staying, you meet many patients which gives you more confidence about the procedure. They come from all continents, literally. I spoke with many before doing surgery and it is nice to hang out with them during your stay.

[Keep Growing]

Hi, thanks for answering all our questions.
What was your weight at the time of surgery?
You said you recovered 99%. But how about you ability to jump, swim, play sports like basketball, football, tennis?
How do you find this method for doing 3 cm only? (I'm trying to avoid any complication and I'm also limited by the proportions)
Any knee problems? Permanent pain?

[vetpat]

Hi, thanks for answering all our questions.
What was your weight at the time of surgery?
You said you recovered 99%. But how about you ability to jump, swim, play sports like basketball, football, tennis?
How do you find this method for doing 3 cm only? (I'm trying to avoid any complication and I'm also limited by the proportions)
Any knee problems? Permanent pain?

My weight is and was around 150 lbs. I can jump, swim, play any kind sport, lift heavy weights... Even martial arts. When I say 99%, I mean things that I notice but you eventually forget.
-When you crouch, your ankles touch your butt. Not after surgery.
-When you're standing and raise your feet to tie your shoe laces. You have to raise it more.
That's nothing compared to the benefits of getting taller. I can only imagine going from average height to tall.

The device doesn't touch your knee so no problem in that area. I had pain while running but it was because my leg was quite skinny. When I recovered muscle, everything became fine.

Even 1 cm is worth it IMO. If it is your first surgery, aim at 5 cm.

[Dingo]

It really sucks that Dr Mitkovic doesn't do internals. I mean, as an orthopedic doctor he must have used nails for fractures hundreds of times in addition to his work on limb lengthening.

He has experience on the two skills needed for internal lengthening.

Do you know why he doesn't use a nail like Precice? Do you think, from your personal experience with him, that it may be possible to convince him?

[Medium Drink Of Water]

I heard that the only machine in Serbia that has the proper equipment for internals is the Vojna Bolnica in Nis, a hospital he's no longer affiliated with.

[vetpat]

It really sucks that Dr Mitkovic doesn't do internals. I mean, as an orthopedic doctor he must have used nails for fractures hundreds of times in addition to his work on limb lengthening.

He has experience on the two skills needed for internal lengthening.

Do you know why he doesn't use a nail like Precice? Do you think, from your personal experience with him, that it may be possible to convince him?

I guess he doesn't do internals due to:
- Cost: Nails aren't cheap. Extra surgery to remove them. I removed his external device by myself at home.
- Complications: If you get one, externals are much easier to treat.
- Experience: Even his device went thru refinements during the years. His device is SOLID.

My advice is don't bother about Mitkovic's internal device. Even if he appeared with one TODAY, I would advise to use the external since it was successfully tested hundreds of times. This is MEDICAL procedure and you should AVOID ANY RISK you can.

[aspirant185]

Hey again,

I wanted to ask you, since I am thinking right now about going to Dr. Mitkovic next year around this time to gain 5 cm, how much time after you made the initial contact he could operate you. Was there a wait list or sth like that ? Since you do around 5 cm, how much time after the surgery you could work (from the hospital bed on your laptop, for example)

[westercoasten]

What did he charge?
What is the method?
What was the intial, 0,5cm?

[LLuser1]

What do you think of people talking   about Mitkovic because of misalignments and poor aftercare?

[Tiny]

What do you think of people talking crap about Mitkovic because of misalignments and poor aftercare?

Where did you learn about his poor aftercare?

[vetpat]

Hey again,

I wanted to ask you, since I am thinking right now about going to Dr. Mitkovic next year around this time to gain 5 cm, how much time after you made the initial contact he could operate you. Was there a wait list or sth like that ? Since you do around 5 cm, how much time after the surgery you could work (from the hospital bed on your laptop, for example)

Hey,

Can't remember how long it was. Email him and tell him you plan to travel there to meet him in person AND if you decide to do the procedure, how long it will take to start. I lost a few weeks since I was having problem wiring the money (my bank had problems filling the instructions and the transfer was cancelled 3 times due to currency conversion).
I'm guessing if you're already there, he might get you a schedule in less than 2 weeks but I'm just guessing.

I stayed in hospital for a week. First three days are more critical due to trauma. It took me a month to sleep okay. If you work on your laptop, that's how long I would guess. You might double that just in case. You might feel discomfort during the stretching (mine took 45 days). Then it's much easier since your muscles get more relaxed.

[vetpat]

What did he charge?
What is the method?
What was the intial, 0,5cm?

Was something like 7 thousand euro at the time.
Method? I did external tibias.
Initial stretch I guess? Don't know but not much since I felt pain when putting the feet on the floor. I guess the bone was touching. I was stretching few mm 6X a day, stopping like 3 or 4 times due to pain. Taking a day without stretching helps to ease the pain.