Hi all,
I'm now in the process of finalising my plan, and as part of that I'm considering whether to lengthen 10 cm or 13 cm. Particularly, I'm now considering the following options:
1) Combined tibia (5cm) and femur (5cm) 3 weeks apart
2) Femur (8cm) followed by tibia (5cm) 1 year later
Questions:
- What's your recommendation?
- Is there any patient that has performed a similar procedure (either 1 or 2) whose diary is available online? If so, would you please share the link (I've only found iamready's diary)
The following might be relevant:
The surgeon I'm now considering is Dr Paley, and my concerns revolve around (i) prolonged downtime, (ii) loss of functionality and (iii) complication risks.
Re (i) - my main concern is that I won't be able to return back to work within a reasonable timeframe. I can take 3 - 4 months off (in any given year), but anything beyond that, would be difficult as I will need to return to work and maintain cashflow.
Re (ii) and (iii) - while I understand that the more you lengthen the higher the risk is, but I wonder how much higher is the risk of complication between 10cm and 13cm? I'm a sporty and outdoorsy guy, so I'd like to have key functionalities as intact as possible.
More information about me, I'm 5'3. I've considered the height increase difference between 10cm and 13cm, and to me, there is a big difference between the two. And given my current height, only by lengthening 13cm I would be more or less average height (though obviously it'll still be on the shorter end considering where I live). I live in a western country and am looking to move to US one day (to give you a perspective of what I'm comparing with).
Also, the price difference between the two options is only $10,000. Yes the other price you have to pay is the time (as the second option will add another 3-4 months of downtime), but that's something that I currently consider as worth it for the extra 3cm (given all the considerations I've given above).
Look forward to hearing your comments and thoughts.
Cheers