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Author Topic: Dr. Monegal - Two stage internal Femur - Sept 2015 - Antonio  (Read 21886 times)

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Antonio

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Dr. Monegal - Two stage internal Femur - Sept 2015 - Antonio
« on: August 05, 2016, 10:45:49 AM »

Hi everyone,

I thought I'd document my story for posterity as this forum gave me the confidence to finally do it. A big thanks to all the Dr. Monegal patients I've met.

My stats:
Age: Early 40s
Residence: Barcelona, Spain
Pre-LL height: (a.m./p.m./before bed) 167/166/165,5 cm
Post-LL height: (ditto) 174,5/173,5/173 cm
Weight (Sept 2015, 15-20% bodyfat): 70 kg
Weight (Aug 2016, 15-20% bodyfat): 70 kg
Pre-LL athleticism: Squat (legs parallel to ground) 66 kg 3x6 reps, jog 5k 30 mins, swim 2k 25 mins
Lengthening: 7,5 cm in femurs in two stages (first op Right Sept 2015, second op Left Feb 2016)

Summary of process:
July 2015 - Consultation with Dr. Monegal in Clinica Diagonal, set date of 1st surgery.
Sept 2015 - 1st op on Right femur, 6 days stay in Clinica Diagonal. Moving around with crutches. Can shower by myself. Back to work and driving 10 days after op. R knee flexion 110 deg. Fitbone lengthening at aprox 1mm/day. Walking with crutches about half hour a day and up and down 2 flights of stairs every day.
Nov 2015 - Xrays show 33mm lengthened. Screw loose, Dr. Monegal schedules op in 3 days. R knee flexion 90 deg. Pain level 6/10 at night, Dr. Monegal prescribes Tramadol for pain, Orfidal to sleep at night.
Nov 2015 - Operation to push screw back into place in Clinica Diagonal. Local anaesthetic, very uncomfortable as Dr. Monegal literally hammered the screw back into place.
Dec 2015 - Xrays show 78mm lengthened. Decided to stop lengthening as beginning to get nerve pain in R foot and front of shin. R knee flexion 135 deg.
Feb 2016 - 2nd op on L femur, 6 days stay in Clinica Diagonal. Back to work and driving 14 days after op. L knee flexion 70 deg. R knee flexion 150 deg.
Mar 2016 - R occasional nerve pain in foot and shin level 2/10. R knee flexion 180 deg but only after hot bath. L knee flexion 80 deg.
April 2016 - Xrays show good bone cloud on R and L (helped by bone spur). R knee flexion 180 deg, no more nerve pain, slight pain when going upstairs. L pain 4/10 at night, knee flexion 90 deg. Using only one crutch since mid April.
May 2016 - Stopped lengthening at aprox 78mm (confirmed by Xrays). Telemetry confirms no disparity between R and L. Went first time to work without crutches on 10th May. Walking akwardly but without crutches
June 2016 - R pain only when going upstairs, knee flexion 180 deg, muscle mass coming back. L no pain, but knee flexion at only 90 deg. Increase stretching in heated pool.
July 2016 - L knee flexion 100 deg. Went to gym to do squats, could only do 26kg and still not reaching parallel to ground.
Aug 2016 - R almost no pain except after sitting in same position for a long time. L knee flexion 135 deg. Swim 2k 2x a week, walk half hour every day. Squats 40 kg 3x6 reps.

Will update with progress.

Feel free to ask me anything.






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Auron

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Re: Dr. Monegal - Two stage internal Femur - Sept 2015 - Antonio
« Reply #1 on: August 05, 2016, 11:03:06 AM »

Hi, congratulations on your new height ;)

Are you happy with the end result? Was it what you expected?
How are the scars? What about your proportions, are the femurs too long now?

Thank you for sharing your experience!
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Ozymandias

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Re: Dr. Monegal - Two stage internal Femur - Sept 2015 - Antonio
« Reply #2 on: August 05, 2016, 11:06:18 AM »

Hola Antonio,

Thanks for the info. Just a couple of questions:

- You said you lengthen at a rate of 1 mm/day. Did you find it painful or uncomfortable? (I'm asking this because most people do it at a rate of 0,8 mm/day)
- Which was the cause of the loose screw? Any accidental load or early weight-bearing?

Thanks!
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Antonio

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Re: Dr. Monegal - Two stage internal Femur - Sept 2015 - Antonio
« Reply #3 on: August 05, 2016, 11:12:48 AM »

Hi NoRegrets,

Thank you. Yes I am very happy with the new height. Previously I was not depressed or moping about it, but it definitely held me back socially. Now women approach me at parties! And there have been some nice compliments :)

Was the process what I expected? Yes, more or less. And the end result has been quite positive I must say.

The scars have healed nicely except for the R leg where the doctor had to push the screw back into place.

Regarding proportions, I think they have improved as previously I think I had rather short and overly muscular femurs.

Over the next few days I will post photos so you can judge the proportions.
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Antonio

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Re: Dr. Monegal - Two stage internal Femur - Sept 2015 - Antonio
« Reply #4 on: August 05, 2016, 11:23:39 AM »

Hola Ozymandias,

You're welcome.

Regarding the lengthening rate, it was an average over the 3 months or so per leg. I started at about 4x9 pulses a day on the Fitbone device at 0,27mm x 4 = 1,08 mm but at about 5 cm I slowed down to 3x9 or even 2x9 pulses depending on the pain/stiffness/work commitments. I let my body tell me whether I was going too fast or slow. After about a month or so after the ops, I only took painkillers at night to help me sleep. And during the day my pain levels were about 2 to 3/10 max, but only after lying or sitting in the same position after 2 hours or so.

Regarding the loose screw, it was due to me not using the heels at home. As my R leg grew longer I had to compensate with heels on my L, but I was lazy and just moved around on bare feet (even without crutches occasionally!). This weight at an angle on my R leg caused the rod to bend and the screw near my knee to become loose. The bending solved itself over time. With that knowledge, I was very careful about not putting weight at an angle on my L leg, and the screws still remain in place.


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Auron

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Re: Dr. Monegal - Two stage internal Femur - Sept 2015 - Antonio
« Reply #5 on: August 05, 2016, 01:44:46 PM »


Regarding proportions, I think they have improved as previously I think I had rather short and overly muscular femurs.

Over the next few days I will post photos so you can judge the proportions.

Awesome! If you could post your sitting height, knee height (while seated), etc, that would be great. I'm also considering lenghthening femur so I'm trying to gather information to make sure I know what I want  :)
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Antonio

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Re: Dr. Monegal - Two stage internal Femur - Sept 2015 - Antonio
« Reply #6 on: August 05, 2016, 03:24:52 PM »

My sitting height is 89 cm, and my knee height while seated is 49 cm.
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Auron

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Re: Dr. Monegal - Two stage internal Femur - Sept 2015 - Antonio
« Reply #7 on: August 05, 2016, 07:45:37 PM »

My sitting height is 89 cm, and my knee height while seated is 49 cm.
At 174cm it looks very good  :D thanks!
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Antonio

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Re: Dr. Monegal - Two stage internal Femur - Sept 2015 - Antonio
« Reply #8 on: August 08, 2016, 10:58:40 AM »

Hi,

A forum user has sent me an email. I wish to say that I do not wish to correspond by email, but only via the forum. However, as the user posts some interesting questions, I will answer them here. Sorry for the Spanish, for non-Spanish speakers.

Q1) Me ha sorprendido mucho que Monegal te dejase alargar tanto (7,5cms). Yo tuve la mala suerte de que cuando le vi se estropeo la máquina de rayos x, así que no me pudieron hacer la telemetría y no sé mis proporciones exactas fémur/tibia. Monegal me dijo que esto es clave para saber cuánto puedo alargar ya que para él lo fundamental es respetar las proporciones biomecánicas de la pierna. A ti te mencionó esto? 7,5cms sería la cantidad ideal que yo alargaría, aunque con 6,5 o 6 seguramente me conforme...

A1) Monegal no prohibe alargar la cantidad que quieras, siempre y cuando tu cuerpo la aguanta, sobre todo la flexibilidad y mobilidad. En mi caso, mis femurs aún después de 7,5 cm están en los limites estadisticos del ratio de femur:tibia. Para mi lo más importante era caminar e estirar cada día, para comprobar que mi cuerpo no "rechazaria" la pierna nueva.

Q2) A mi Monegal (repito, que no hemos podido ver mi telemetría, así que todo es "provisional") me recomendó operarme los dos segmentos (fémur y tibia). Podría hacer los 2 segmentos de una pierna a la vez, con lo que alargaría más rápido y además mantendría las proporciones intactas. El fallo es que las tibias me acojonan mucho. Muchísimo. Por lo visto dan muchos más problemas, son dos huesos (tibia y peroné, este último por lo visto consolida bastante mal) y el juego del tobillo es súper delicado. En fin un montón de problemas. Por suerte, el dinero (hacer los dos segmentos es más caro) no es un problema y haré lo que sea mejor, pero a pesar de ello las tibias me dan mucho miedo. A ti Monegal te comentó esta posibilidad? Tu qué opinas?

A2) Sí me comentó, pero estaba seguro de que solo quería operarme en un segmento. Para mi, esta operación tiene tantos variables y riesgos que no voy a jugarmela en tantos huesos. Al final, es cuestión de la altura y las proporciones en que te sientes comodo. La ventaja de hacerlo un segmento (y un hueso) a la vez es que tienes tiempo para ir comprobando la reacción de tu cuerpo, y puedes tomar las medidas correctivas si hagan falta.

Q3) Cuales crees que son las condiciones óptimas para llegar a la operación? Monegal no tiene unos requisitos. Por lo que hablé con el, la fuerza/musculatura no le preocupa para nada. Yo aquí no sé qué pensar. Hay gente que dice que cuanto menos músculos mejor (en parte por eso a las chicas les duele menos) y otros que dicen que la recuperación es mejor si estas más fuerte. Con la flexibilidad no hay dudas, cuanto más, mejor. Yo creo que no voy mal. Al estirar abductores, puedo llevar el pie al culo, de pie toco el suelo con las manos (apoyando las palmas, que lo mío me ha costado!) y tumbado puedo llevar mis piernas a más de 90º. Creo que puedo mejorar algo más hasta la operación pero comparado con otros pacientes creo que no voy muy mal. Tu como lo ves? Como afecta a esto (a la preparación) el hacerlo en 2 fases? Yagen me dijo que cuando se operó una pierna se centró en ella (lógicamente), dejando de estirar la otra. A ti te pasó lo mismo? hay que hacer el esfuerzo de seguir entrenando la pierna "buena" para prepararla para su operación?

A3) Para mi, la fuerza y la flexibilidad son ambas igual de importantes. Siempre pensaba que el fisico ideal para LL sería el de un gimnasta de nivel olímpico, que tiene la fuerza para saltar y la flexibilidad para doblar. Hay que mejorar en las dos, sin perjudicar ni el uno ni el otro. El músculo se compone de celdas que tienen la capacidad de agrandar y estirar, y durante el proceso, vas a perder fuerza y flexibilidad, asi que si puedes mantener o aumentar tu flexibildad mientras ganas músculo, para mí mejor.

Te veo bien, sobre todo en fuerza. Yo tenía un poco mejor de flexibilidad que tu antes de empezar, tumbado podia tocar mi pecho con la pierna (de consecuencia, no tenía nada de "duck-ass"). Hice los mismos estiramientos antes, durante y después de cada operación. Reconozco que era un poco fanatico, estiraba durante media hora cada 4 horas cada dia.

Q4) Tú te hiciste el famoso "IT band release" (operación del tendón tibial). La mayoría de foreros dice que si alargas más de cierta cantidad (creo que 6cms) los doctores suelen hacerlo. Guichet, en cambio no lo hace nunca. Tú te lo hiciste? Que efectos secundarios tiene (además de que estarás algo más cómodo y con menos tensión)?

A4) No lo hice y no pienso hacerlo. Cuanto menos se toca, mejor. De hecho, no tomaba ni tomo ningún suplemento dietético.

Q5) Tu también seguiste trabajando durante todo el proceso. Yo tengo un trabajo de oficina y croe que podría compatibilizarlo. Mi mayor miedo es lo cansado que pueda estar. yagen me dijo que lo que más le costaba a él era dormir por las noches, y al no descansar al día siguiente estaba hecho polvo. A ti te pasó lo mismo? Tienes algún truco/pastilla para conciliar el sueño? Otra duda al respecto es, tú te pediste la baja durante los primeros 15 días tras la operación? De ser así, que pusiste en el parte?

A5) A mi tambien me costó dormir, pero después de un mes encontré mi rutina para dormir bien. A las 23h, me bañé con agua caliente, después estirar, y enseguida tomé Tramadol y Orfidal. Con esto dormia 7 u 8 horas seguidas. Pero cada pierna es diferente. Con mi segunda pierna no tuve nada de problemas en conciliar el sueño.

No pedí la baja, pedí días de vacaciones. Y durante las vacaciones, tuve un accidente de moto ... Y la segunda vez, recaí por intentar hacer demasiado :)

Q6) Que terapia de recuperación has seguido tú? Lo hacías por tu cuenta o con Claudio? Yagen iba bastante a su rollo, bien aconsejado, pero sin ir al fisio ni hacer demasiados estiramientos, más allá de caminar (con muletas) y usar una máquina de CPM.

A6) Todo por mi cuenta, no gasté ni un duro con el fisio. Estirar, caminar cada dia, y ultimamente nadar y gimnasio.

Q7) Yo vivo en Madrid. No es lo ideal (mucho mejor en Barcelona como tu) pero creo que no está mal del todo. Hay algún beneficio a quedarse en Barcelona? Evidentemente, si tuviese algún problemilla (como lo de tu clavo) estando en Barcelona, se soluciona en un momento, pero teniendo en cuanta que tú tardaste unos días en operarte de lo del clavo, entiendo que no es algo súper urgente y que yo podría volar a Barcelona, corregir y volver a Madrid. Respecto a la terapia, hay algún beneficio en quedarse en Barcelona o puede Claudio explicarle a otro fisio (con discreción, mi plan es que no se entere nadie de mi operación) la terapia de rehabilitación?

A7) No es imprescindible que estés en BCN. Creo que puedes hacerlo igual de bien desde Madrid.

Q8) Última. Qué tal es tu recuperación? He visto que andas sin ayuda desde mayo. Qué tal andas ya? Se te nota? Yo tengo una boda a finales de junio del año que viene y soy testigo (por eso en principio quería esperar hasta entonces para operarme, pero ya ha cambiado la fecha 3 veces y no quiero seguir "postergando mi vida"), y me gustaría "estar bien para entonces". No es algo que me obsesione, si tengo que ir con muletas, que le vamos a hacer, y si ando raro pues también, pero a ser posible me gustaría llegar bien (cosas como que me canse de pie a la hora o cosas asi no me importan). Tu como lo ves? Tengo alguna posibilidad? Considera que pretendo alargar 6-7cms y que siendo realistas es muy difícil que me opere antes de noviembre (octubre quizás, pero antes imposible).

A8) Ando cojeando un poco, y bajar las escaleras es lo más complicado ahora, pero noto mejoras cada semana. Cada paciente es un mundo. La recuperación tambien depende de los segmentos, tu preparación, la intervención, tu ánimo, etc. No pretendo ser el experto en el proceso, mi recomendación es que hables con Monegal y/o Guichet para determinar el timing y te dejas suficiente margen.

Saludos,

Antonio
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LLCaptain

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Re: Dr. Monegal - Two stage internal Femur - Sept 2015 - Antonio
« Reply #9 on: August 08, 2016, 11:34:06 AM »

Is this the same Spanish kid that sends all the patients super long essay level messages? Cuz that guy is weird, people's times are valuable and those super long questions are annoying. No one likes reading all that junk.

Props to Antonio for actually taking the time to answer these questions.
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Antonio

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Re: Dr. Monegal - Two stage internal Femur - Sept 2015 - Antonio
« Reply #10 on: August 08, 2016, 11:52:00 AM »

Thank you LLCaptain. It was my pleasure to talk about myself while lying on the beach.

I don't know who he is, I've never met him before nor has anyone mentioned him to me before.
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Antonio

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Update Aug 2016: Starting to feel good about my legs again
« Reply #11 on: August 12, 2016, 07:34:15 AM »

Aug 2016: 3 months post L leg lengthening

As promised, here are some photos. Sorry for the poor quality; I'm not used to selfies.

http://imgur.com/rJ1zFKx
http://imgur.com/a/9Ou3v

I'm getting back the mobility and muscle shape in my thighs; walking is almost normal except for the first steps after getting up from the chair.
Pain: L pain in knee after stretching, R shin pain after strenous workouts
Flexibility: L knee flexion 135 deg. R 180 deg.
Strength: Squats 30 kg, leg press 40 kg
Stamina: Walking 1 hour, Swimming 2k no problem

After my first leg workout, I had shooting nerve pains along my right shin, and could barely walk for two days afterwards. It was great! It meant I was targeting the right muscles and after the pains subsided, it meant that the pains were muscular and not from the joints.

Now I'm following a 1 day on/3 day off cycle; I train legs every other workout and arms/upper body every other. Cardio (swim 2k) 2 days after workout. Walk half hour every day. Stretch 4x a day every day.





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dream_catcher

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Re: Update Aug 2016: Starting to feel good about my legs again
« Reply #12 on: August 14, 2016, 08:00:52 PM »

Aug 2016: 3 months post L leg lengthening

As promised, here are some photos. Sorry for the poor quality; I'm not used to selfies.

http://imgur.com/rJ1zFKx
http://imgur.com/a/9Ou3v

I'm getting back the mobility and muscle shape in my thighs; walking is almost normal except for the first steps after getting up from the chair.
Pain: L pain in knee after stretching, R shin pain after strenous workouts
Flexibility: L knee flexion 135 deg. R 180 deg.
Strength: Squats 30 kg, leg press 40 kg
Stamina: Walking 1 hour, Swimming 2k no problem

After my first leg workout, I had shooting nerve pains along my right shin, and could barely walk for two days afterwards. It was great! It meant I was targeting the right muscles and after the pains subsided, it meant that the pains were muscular and not from the joints.

Now I'm following a 1 day on/3 day off cycle; I train legs every other workout and arms/upper body every other. Cardio (swim 2k) 2 days after workout. Walk half hour every day. Stretch 4x a day every day.

Hello Antonio, we're of similar age and I just finished LL on internal femurs with Dr.Guichet. I've a couple of questions for you. When did you no longer have pain when walking? How much and what kind of leg exercises did you do after stopping LL? When were you able to walk without crutches?
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Antonio

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Re: Dr. Monegal - Two stage internal Femur - Sept 2015 - Antonio
« Reply #13 on: August 15, 2016, 12:22:42 PM »

Hello dream_catcher,

Congrats on finishing lengthening. Good diary. I actually had a consultation with Guichet in 2014 but the timing was not ideal.

To answer your questions, I didn't have any pain while walking from about May onwards, or about a month after I stopped lengthening my L leg.

During 2 months after lengthening, all I did was walk every day for at least half an hour with crutches or one crutch, and do stretching. Then I started to do swimming and light cycling on the exercise bike. I didn't do any weightbearing (additional to bodyweight) exercises until end of last month.

I was able to walk without crutches 2 weeks after lengthening my L leg.

Keep your spirits up. 90% of the LL battle is mental anyway. I found it helpful to keep a training log, and used it to motivate myself by seeing the progress I made, no matter how small. I remember counting the tiles in the pool when I stretched to check my knee bending progress!
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Auron

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Re: Dr. Monegal - Two stage internal Femur - Sept 2015 - Antonio
« Reply #14 on: August 15, 2016, 01:06:17 PM »

Looking good Antonio  ;)

Hows the consolidation going in both legs?
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Antonio

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Re: Dr. Monegal - Two stage internal Femur - Sept 2015 - Antonio
« Reply #15 on: August 15, 2016, 01:14:19 PM »

Thanks NoRegrets.

I don't know from the last xrays. I will ask Dr. Monegal to have them done again at the beginning of September.
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Antonio

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Re: Dr. Monegal - Two stage internal Femur - Sept 2015 - Antonio
« Reply #16 on: August 24, 2016, 09:13:04 AM »

Hi,

A forum user has sent me a private email. I wish to say that I do not wish to correspond by email, but only via the forum (public record). However, as the user posts some interesting questions, I will answer them here. For wider benefit, I will translate his questions from Spanish.

Q1. How much weight do you think the Fitbone can handle? Of course I will use crutches during the procedure, but I am afraid that an accidental overload could damage tha nail (or screw, as was your case)

A1. According to Dr. Monegal, the Fitbone nail can handle up to 25 kg i.e. partial weight bearing during distraction. The manufacturer Wittenstein does not specify any weight except says that it is up to the discretion of the surgeon based on the recovery of the patient.

I personally think that if you weigh 70 kg or less and place most of your weight on your good leg, and are careful about not placing weight at an angle on the operated leg, then with crutches you can move around without problems. Of course if you start jumping or fall down, then of course there are no guarantees.

Q2. Another patient has told me that he used only one crutch after the third or fourth week, which implies some weight bearing on the operated leg. Do you think this is feasible?

A2. Assuming you are going to do the two-stage lengthening, then yes, it is feasible, as you will have recovered on your first leg to place most of your weight on it. The crutch will support the weight of the second leg.

With bilateral lengthening I don't think it possible as you will probably still be in the wheelchair then.

Suerte! Un abrazo
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Ozymandias

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Re: Dr. Monegal - Two stage internal Femur - Sept 2015 - Antonio
« Reply #17 on: August 24, 2016, 10:06:42 AM »

Thanks for the answers, Antonio.

I want to say that it was me who asked Antonio these questions. I did it via PM to avoid the apparently unavoidable trolling by "that user" in every Monegal thread. But I agree that making them public will benefit more users.

I personally think that if you weigh 70 kg or less and place most of your weight on your good leg, and are careful about not placing weight at an angle on the operated leg, then with crutches you can move around without problems. Of course if you start jumping or fall down, then of course there are no guarantees.

This is particularly interesting. You are not the first to point that it is the bending moment, rather than the pure compressive strength, the most likely cause for a nail failure. Even in jbc's recent consultation with Paley, he was told that "they [internal nails] are most vulnerable to breaking at full extension". Another point in favour of not lengthening too much!
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Peaceout

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Re: Dr. Monegal - Two stage internal Femur - Sept 2015 - Antonio
« Reply #18 on: August 24, 2016, 02:31:28 PM »

Your proportions look great :)what is your wingspan?
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Antonio

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Re: Dr. Monegal - Two stage internal Femur - Sept 2015 - Antonio
« Reply #19 on: August 26, 2016, 08:05:28 AM »

Thanks Peaceout.

My wingspan is 171.5 cm.

But I don't think wingspan is a good measure of proportionality as it depends a lot on shoulder width and flexibility. I prefer armlength.
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Antonio

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Re: Dr. Monegal - Two stage internal Femur - Sept 2015 - Antonio
« Reply #20 on: September 09, 2016, 09:33:30 AM »

Hi,

A forum user has sent me a private email. I wish to say that I do not wish to correspond by email, but only via the forum (public record). However, as the user posts some interesting questions, I will answer them here.

Q. Hey antonio, I hope your recovery is going fine.

 I wanted to ask you. You said that now your femurs look better proportionally according to you. did Monegal also state before you did the operation that your femurs are "shorter" than normal people your height, or was is your own feeling?
  To be more specific, did you femurs were "scientifically" short or it was just your own view of them?

 Thx in advance and best of luck with recovery :)

A. Thank you. My recovery is going better than I expected. 11 months after my first operation (or 4 months post lengthening my second leg), I am now walking without problems, except the first few steps after getting up from the chair. I can walk upstairs without holding onto the bannister. I am back to doing squats in the gym and have recovered 95% of my quads, hamstrings and glutes.

Dr. Monegal did not say anything about the length of my femurs, except that his recommendation for lengthening for my age would be 5-6 cm. It was my own feeling, I think that femur length looks proportionate when the fingertips come down to the middle of the thigh (see my post on Reflections on ideal femur length in the Proportions section). The reason is that people concentrate on different segments of the body when they look at you - if they look at your face and upper body then they are not concentrating on the legs and vice versa. That's why I think that torso length and tibia length are not as important (especially as the illusion of torso length can be manipulated by the width and muscularity of the upper body) as compared to arm length.

As far as the actual femur measurements go, I never did the complete X-rays measurement. However, measuring from top of hip to middle of knee gave me pre-LL 41 cm and post LL 49 cm and from top of knee to floor while sitting 49 cm. Tibias are supposed to look shorter than femurs anyway.

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Antonio

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Re: Dr. Monegal - Two stage internal Femur - Sept 2015 - Antonio
« Reply #21 on: September 16, 2016, 08:52:36 AM »

Update Sept 2016

Had my X-rays done and check-up with Dr. M yesterday.

Link: http://imgur.com/a/UsdXx

Link: http://imgur.com/a/Y6rPR

Bone consolidation is well on the way, curiously (according to Dr. M) it is much better on the internal side of my L leg and on the external part of my R. It should have been better on the internal side of both legs. The vagaries of the human body...

Screws in place, flexibility L knee 150 deg, R 180 deg. No valgus or varus. Hips aligned.

During the radiography, the lab technician had to adjust the lead plates repeatedly to get the whole thigh in one X-ray as she said "you have such long femurs!" (she didn't know I had had LL). I just smiled, mostly inwardly, the smile of quiet contentment.

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Jessie Believer

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Re: Dr. Monegal - Two stage internal Femur - Sept 2015 - Antonio
« Reply #22 on: September 16, 2016, 04:30:06 PM »

Hey Antonio, thanks for your update and X-rays. Is the right lower screw normally that bended?
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goldenegg

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Re: Dr. Monegal - Two stage internal Femur - Sept 2015 - Antonio
« Reply #23 on: September 16, 2016, 07:10:16 PM »

your consolidation in one leg looks pretty light and not really connected from the lateral view, so I'd take it easy on the weight bearing just to be safe. best of luck with your recovery!
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LLuser1

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Re: Dr. Monegal - Two stage internal Femur - Sept 2015 - Antonio
« Reply #24 on: September 21, 2016, 04:16:17 PM »

Yes man, no matter what this man says. This consolidation pattern is strange. Show your Xrays to another doctor.
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goldenegg

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Re: Dr. Monegal - Two stage internal Femur - Sept 2015 - Antonio
« Reply #25 on: September 28, 2016, 01:57:20 AM »

Yes man, no matter what this man says. This consolidation pattern is strange. Show your Xrays to another doctor.

I didn't mean to imply that anything was strange. just that his consolidation seems slow, since his right leg is 1 year post op and still not fused all around (maybe due to older age?) and give a little more time for his other leg to heal before too much early weight bearing, which might lead to a bent or broken screw like Jessie Believer pointed out in his xrays. but that's just my non-professional opinion. hope everything is ok antonio!
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Dr Monegal

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Re: Dr. Monegal - Two stage internal Femur - Sept 2015 - Antonio
« Reply #26 on: September 28, 2016, 06:45:53 AM »

YES one leg Is slower because It Is a 2 stage procedure. So one leg Is 4 months delayed When compared with The other. No worries in any thread where my name appears The noid Lluser will start To blah blah blah with his Medical degree at Stanford To show Us the ligth
« Last Edit: September 28, 2016, 07:24:25 AM by Dr Monegal »
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Antonio

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Re: Dr. Monegal - Two stage internal Femur - Sept 2015 - Antonio
« Reply #27 on: September 28, 2016, 08:09:35 AM »

Ha ha, no worries everyone, I may be old(er) but I'm not disappearing :)

I wouldn't worry too much about the consolidation, for now. The literature shows that femur consolidation can take from 45 up to 93 days / cm lengthened, so I have still up till next year before I need to press the panic button :) Regarding the pattern, it's not unusual as when I was younger I broke my left arm (not purposely ;)), and the bone regeneration was similar.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27053972
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26874445 (Fitbone)
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21729641 (also indicates that healing rate is independent of lengthening rate)

I'm still doing weights because I'm a firm believer in testing my limits, whilst also listening carefully to my body. For me the benefits of (controlled) weight training which include increased bone regeneration simply outweigh the risks.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27046087 (increased bone density and wider shape of tibia, in British Army recruits (21 years, average height 178cm only!!)

@Jessie: Yes, the right screw is bent because it came loose and that brute Dr. M just whacked it back in! @Dr. M: don't worry, I'm just joking, I'm very grateful to you, you know I'm still your model patient :)

On the good news side, I gained 2 cm of muscle in diameter on my ass and hips, so my sitting height is now 91 cm!

Thighs are still underdeveloped at 54 cm, but I'm getting there...

Have a beautiful day everyone!


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KrP1

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Re: Dr. Monegal - Two stage internal Femur - Sept 2015 - Antonio
« Reply #28 on: September 28, 2016, 09:29:29 AM »

How much lengthening shows your telemetry/xrays?
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Antonio

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Re: Dr. Monegal - Two stage internal Femur - Sept 2015 - Antonio
« Reply #29 on: September 28, 2016, 10:37:28 AM »

The telemetry and X-rays are not reliable to determine the amount lengthened because:

1. The angle of the femur and leg placement creates distortion when projected onto a 2-D plane.
2. It is very hard to determine the exact point of fracture as the cut is at an angle.

Measuring on the screen gives a result varying between 6,5 cm and 7,8 cm
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Antonio

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Re: Dr. Monegal - Two stage internal Femur - Sept 2015 - Antonio
« Reply #30 on: January 17, 2017, 02:03:38 PM »

Update: Jan 2017. R 12 months post lengthening, L 8 months post lengthening

Got new X-rays today.

R: http://imgur.com/a/OPL0M

L: http://imgur.com/a/VGcoh

Consolidation has improved quite a bit since my last X-rays 2 months ago.

I can do everything I used to do, except getting up from chairs I need to support myself and I also avoid impact sports like running, tennis.

I don't feel any pain whatsover, but occasionally tightness in my hip flexors at night.
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