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Author Topic: Quadrilateral lengthening - Dr. Paley & Robbins  (Read 13520 times)

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motoboarder

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Re: Quadrilateral lengthening - Dr. Paley & Robbins
« Reply #62 on: September 13, 2022, 10:26:29 PM »

that's wonderful, congrats bro.

Thanks balme
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Asian male age 30-36; 163cm -> Gained 4cm tibias & 5.6cm femurs
Tibia surgery 01/18/2022; Femur surgery 02/01/2022
Diary http://www.limblengtheningforum.com/index.php?topic=69090.0
Recommended wheelchair transport in West Palm Beach: East Coast Taxi (561) 651-1111 (please DON'T mention it's from me)

tallerwouldbenice

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Re: Quadrilateral lengthening - Dr. Paley & Robbins
« Reply #63 on: September 18, 2022, 10:47:45 AM »

Well done, dude. At consolidation + 6 months I'm doing pretty well. I walk more or less normally, although if I do a lot of walking I will still feel sore afterwards. I'm far from being as flexible as pre-op but then again I don't stretch :-p I still feel funny because of the rods though, and I think that won't go away until removal.
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akali

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Re: Quadrilateral lengthening - Dr. Paley & Robbins
« Reply #64 on: September 19, 2022, 08:06:35 AM »

So in how many days you reached your goal?
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balme

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Re: Quadrilateral lengthening - Dr. Paley & Robbins
« Reply #65 on: September 19, 2022, 02:01:55 PM »

motoboarder, do you know what were your tibia&femur length before surgery?
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motoboarder

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Re: Quadrilateral lengthening - Dr. Paley & Robbins
« Reply #66 on: September 19, 2022, 05:42:10 PM »

So in how many days you reached your goal?

Precisely about 3mo & 5 days, from the day I had my 1st surgery on tibias to the last day of lengthening.
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Asian male age 30-36; 163cm -> Gained 4cm tibias & 5.6cm femurs
Tibia surgery 01/18/2022; Femur surgery 02/01/2022
Diary http://www.limblengtheningforum.com/index.php?topic=69090.0
Recommended wheelchair transport in West Palm Beach: East Coast Taxi (561) 651-1111 (please DON'T mention it's from me)

motoboarder

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Re: Quadrilateral lengthening - Dr. Paley & Robbins
« Reply #67 on: September 19, 2022, 05:50:15 PM »

Well done, dude. At consolidation + 6 months I'm doing pretty well. I walk more or less normally, although if I do a lot of walking I will still feel sore afterwards. I'm far from being as flexible as pre-op but then again I don't stretch :-p I still feel funny because of the rods though, and I think that won't go away until removal.

Thanks dude. Well done on your progress as well. Yeah, a lot of walking also bothered me. I think it takes exercises to get better each day/week. And same here about the funning feeling in legs especially around the knee areas. I'm sure removal will help. I heard prior LLers said that they felt like 1k% better after the nails were out.
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Asian male age 30-36; 163cm -> Gained 4cm tibias & 5.6cm femurs
Tibia surgery 01/18/2022; Femur surgery 02/01/2022
Diary http://www.limblengtheningforum.com/index.php?topic=69090.0
Recommended wheelchair transport in West Palm Beach: East Coast Taxi (561) 651-1111 (please DON'T mention it's from me)

Mini0510

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Re: Quadrilateral lengthening - Dr. Paley & Robbins
« Reply #68 on: September 20, 2022, 12:48:28 AM »

@motoboarder Did you have concerns about your arm length? after lengthening both legs
and cost? I heard it was increased
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motoboarder

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Re: Quadrilateral lengthening - Dr. Paley & Robbins
« Reply #69 on: September 21, 2022, 12:33:06 AM »

@motoboarder Did you have concerns about your arm length? after lengthening both legs
and cost? I heard it was increased

Not much. I mean it is what it is now. My arm span now is ~5cm shorter than my height. And I don't want any arm lengthening. Costs differ by doctors. My cost was $195k I think at the beginning of this year. It covered 2 surgeries + 70 hour of PT (14 weeks, M-F 1h/day).
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Asian male age 30-36; 163cm -> Gained 4cm tibias & 5.6cm femurs
Tibia surgery 01/18/2022; Femur surgery 02/01/2022
Diary http://www.limblengtheningforum.com/index.php?topic=69090.0
Recommended wheelchair transport in West Palm Beach: East Coast Taxi (561) 651-1111 (please DON'T mention it's from me)

Mini0510

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Re: Quadrilateral lengthening - Dr. Paley & Robbins
« Reply #70 on: September 22, 2022, 04:44:38 AM »

Not much. I mean it is what it is now. My arm span now is ~5cm shorter than my height. And I don't want any arm lengthening. Costs differ by doctors. My cost was $195k I think at the beginning of this year. It covered 2 surgeries + 70 hour of PT (14 weeks, M-F 1h/day).

oh ok my hand goes like perfectly in my pocket now. So if i lengthen by 10cm, i should still have the same hand position in my pocket?
I found out that my wingspan is  negative because i have narrow shoulders and a small hand. My arms are actually just slightly below average.
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hippo60

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Re: Quadrilateral lengthening - Dr. Paley & Robbins
« Reply #71 on: November 04, 2022, 04:38:04 PM »

How much do you think your pre-surgery stretching helped? Paley said in his recent interview with Cyborg4Life that he doesn't think it helps/needed and stretching only have short term effect (was kinda surprised hearing that).

And how was the process of lengthening both segments? Did it make it harder to do stretches or anything like that?
Did you do PT in your apartment as well? Or you drove to their place from the beginning?
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SpeedDialer

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Re: Quadrilateral lengthening - Dr. Paley & Robbins
« Reply #72 on: November 04, 2022, 06:03:48 PM »


I'm thinking of doing precise 2.2 tibias with Dr. Giotikas someday. What are some of the biggest differences you noticed between femur and tibia lengthening?

I'm doing gnail internal femurs now
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motoboarder

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Re: Quadrilateral lengthening - Dr. Paley & Robbins
« Reply #73 on: November 06, 2022, 06:02:26 AM »

How much do you think your pre-surgery stretching helped? Paley said in his recent interview with Cyborg4Life that he doesn't think it helps/needed and stretching only have short term effect (was kinda surprised hearing that).

And how was the process of lengthening both segments? Did it make it harder to do stretches or anything like that?
Did you do PT in your apartment as well? Or you drove to their place from the beginning?

Pre-stretching helped a lot, I'll still recommend it. I pre-stretched for 2 months every day.

Lengthening both segments require harder work and better preparation. IMO I think a refreshing nutritious non-depressing living environment is a HUG factor. Apparently more stretches. I stretched 3-5 times a day every day during lengthening - including the 1h PT M-F they provided.

I did therapy 1h/day M-F at Paley's PT center. I signed contract with a wheelchair van service paying them weekly to have them transport me back and forth. Then more PTs in my apartment.
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Asian male age 30-36; 163cm -> Gained 4cm tibias & 5.6cm femurs
Tibia surgery 01/18/2022; Femur surgery 02/01/2022
Diary http://www.limblengtheningforum.com/index.php?topic=69090.0
Recommended wheelchair transport in West Palm Beach: East Coast Taxi (561) 651-1111 (please DON'T mention it's from me)

hippo60

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Re: Quadrilateral lengthening - Dr. Paley & Robbins
« Reply #74 on: November 06, 2022, 04:36:54 PM »

Pre-stretching helped a lot, I'll still recommend it. I pre-stretched for 2 months every day.

Lengthening both segments require harder work and better preparation. IMO I think a refreshing nutritious non-depressing living environment is a HUG factor. Apparently more stretches. I stretched 3-5 times a day every day during lengthening - including the 1h PT M-F they provided.

I did therapy 1h/day M-F at Paley's PT center. I signed contract with a wheelchair van service paying them weekly to have them transport me back and forth. Then more PTs in my apartment.

Yeah I read that you stretched so much - that's impressive!
Can you share a little bit about your lengthening process? Did you have any issues / numbness / tightness etc? Don't think you wrote much about it  :-[

What do you mean by "refreshing nutritious non-depressing living environment"? Are you referring to their PT center or just in general?
How's the experience in a wheelchair van? Wondering about it as well. Do you also mind sharing how much you paid?
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motoboarder

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Re: Quadrilateral lengthening - Dr. Paley & Robbins
« Reply #75 on: November 07, 2022, 09:47:22 PM »

Yeah I read that you stretched so much - that's impressive!
Can you share a little bit about your lengthening process? Did you have any issues / numbness / tightness etc? Don't think you wrote much about it  :-[

What do you mean by "refreshing nutritious non-depressing living environment"? Are you referring to their PT center or just in general?
How's the experience in a wheelchair van? Wondering about it as well. Do you also mind sharing how much you paid?

Yeah, thanks!
Little about my process:
- My 1 issue was the 1 week delay of tibias (1st) surgery due to me catching covid lol. As a result my 2 surgeries were 2w apart instead of 3. However it was manageable for me in my 30s.
- 1-2 weeks after each surgery is pretty hard: prolonging painful in legs, very hard to sleep, sweat almost all night due to pain. I drank oxycodone almost every night during these initial periods.
- Disturbing night sleep pattern - all LLers mentioned this. Once I was in the process, I felt like it became the norm and I no longer noticed it as an issue. To aid night sleep, I usually waited several days to couple weeks to drink a 10mg oxycodone. This thing could cause addition but at my rate of consumption it didn't for me. I took naps during the day whenever the body demanded to compensate.
- According to comments form PTs at Paley's I didn't have tightness at all during the process. I think this is thank to my pre-stretch + frequent stretching + my super well living condition during the time + my lengthening goal was moderate.
- I had numbness at the front area of my right tibia toward the last 2w of lengthening. I was only lengthening femurs at this point as tibias were already done. So this was interesting. I knew another femur-only patient here who also had the same pattern of numbness. Though he almost maxed out the 8cm.

"refreshing nutritious non-depressing living environment" - I referred to my living space. Paley's care center is super awesome too. The center is super clean and smells nice. All the PTs are helpful & personable. My living space:
- Spacious 2b2ba apt for me & my sister as my caretaker. I literally relocated to FL just for this procedure. I signed a year lease so I didn't have to stress about moving out after lengthening completion.
- Took 3mo off work
- Plenty nutritious food cooked everyday by my sister
- Surrounded speakers, huge TV, xbox one, PS4, etc for entertainment. As said, I literally relocated here.

This thing by itself is critical I think:
- Single-minded mentality for LL: no pokes from nosy friends (I don't have any nosy ones), no work, no sxx, no going out (just Paley's & my home), etc you get the point. I lived as a comfortable peaceful disabled person who appreciated life during this time. By having no distraction from normal life aspects, I think it helped my mind+body take the LL process as a new norm instead of a burden. While many LLers despite the lengthening+recovery process, I myself enjoyed it (knowing that it had an ending). It gave me some new interesting perspectives of life.

Wheelchair van was good, very secure. I recommended the service I used in my sig. In fact I became good friend with the driver who ran this as his home business. Because it was his business, I'll give you a range: it's $80-$120 daily round trip. The price depends on distance, as my apt was only 4-5 miles from St. Mary hospital. Ask for discount if doing 5-day a week contract.
« Last Edit: November 07, 2022, 10:09:01 PM by motoboarder »
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Asian male age 30-36; 163cm -> Gained 4cm tibias & 5.6cm femurs
Tibia surgery 01/18/2022; Femur surgery 02/01/2022
Diary http://www.limblengtheningforum.com/index.php?topic=69090.0
Recommended wheelchair transport in West Palm Beach: East Coast Taxi (561) 651-1111 (please DON'T mention it's from me)

hippo60

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Re: Quadrilateral lengthening - Dr. Paley & Robbins
« Reply #76 on: November 11, 2022, 05:28:30 PM »

Wow that's super helpful, thanks!

"Disturbing night sleep pattern" - You mean you'd wake up throughout the night but you just see it as "part of the process"? At this point you were in pain or was it more of an "inconvenience"?

I read about your relocation - I think that's super smart and can definitely be a game changer. That's personally a strong incentive for me to do it locally. And totally agree with you on the mentality, hopefully I'll be in a similar mindset 8)

$80-$120 (let's call it $100 ;)) per day isn't cheap. Uber/Lyft weren't significantly cheaper? Even with your sister with you, you were worried about it?

Care yo share about "It gave me some new interesting perspectives of life"? Appearing the ability to walk and take care of yourself a lot more? :)

One last thing, any equipment you recommend purchasing pre surgery?
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Ceiling

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Re: Quadrilateral lengthening - Dr. Paley & Robbins
« Reply #77 on: November 20, 2022, 09:40:03 PM »

Congrats, Motoboarder, and thank you for sharing!

As you mentioned, you took three months off from work.  Do you think it is manageable if I still work 8 hours/day, for example, starting from the third week post-op?  Thank you!
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akali

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Re: Quadrilateral lengthening - Dr. Paley & Robbins
« Reply #78 on: November 28, 2022, 08:39:47 AM »

Precisely about 3mo & 5 days, from the day I had my 1st surgery on tibias to the last day of lengthening.

It's a bit longer than normal I think. How many mm did you lengthen per day? and how is your bone healing so far?
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motoboarder

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Re: Quadrilateral lengthening - Dr. Paley & Robbins
« Reply #79 on: November 28, 2022, 04:39:21 PM »

It's a bit longer than normal I think. How many mm did you lengthen per day? and how is your bone healing so far?

Total 1.25mm/day. Bone is healing fine.
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Asian male age 30-36; 163cm -> Gained 4cm tibias & 5.6cm femurs
Tibia surgery 01/18/2022; Femur surgery 02/01/2022
Diary http://www.limblengtheningforum.com/index.php?topic=69090.0
Recommended wheelchair transport in West Palm Beach: East Coast Taxi (561) 651-1111 (please DON'T mention it's from me)

motoboarder

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Re: Quadrilateral lengthening - Dr. Paley & Robbins
« Reply #80 on: November 28, 2022, 04:47:31 PM »

Congrats, Motoboarder, and thank you for sharing!

As you mentioned, you took three months off from work.  Do you think it is manageable if I still work 8 hours/day, for example, starting from the third week post-op?  Thank you!

Thanks!

I wouldn't recommend it. For me, I know 100% I wouldn't be able to manage that even from the 3rd week. The mind is constantly bothered by stretched muscles you really could only afford to lengthen & rest. Lengthening is the new full-time job if you will. After lengthening was done I went back to full 8h/day work. However I had to take breaks throughout the day lying on the bed because sitting long hour felt tired. The condition improved significantly within 1-2 mo of consolidation.
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Asian male age 30-36; 163cm -> Gained 4cm tibias & 5.6cm femurs
Tibia surgery 01/18/2022; Femur surgery 02/01/2022
Diary http://www.limblengtheningforum.com/index.php?topic=69090.0
Recommended wheelchair transport in West Palm Beach: East Coast Taxi (561) 651-1111 (please DON'T mention it's from me)

motoboarder

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Re: Quadrilateral lengthening - Dr. Paley & Robbins
« Reply #81 on: November 28, 2022, 05:02:58 PM »

Wow that's super helpful, thanks!

"Disturbing night sleep pattern" - You mean you'd wake up throughout the night but you just see it as "part of the process"? At this point you were in pain or was it more of an "inconvenience"?

I read about your relocation - I think that's super smart and can definitely be a game changer. That's personally a strong incentive for me to do it locally. And totally agree with you on the mentality, hopefully I'll be in a similar mindset 8)

$80-$120 (let's call it $100 ;)) per day isn't cheap. Uber/Lyft weren't significantly cheaper? Even with your sister with you, you were worried about it?

Care yo share about "It gave me some new interesting perspectives of life"? Appearing the ability to walk and take care of yourself a lot more? :)

One last thing, any equipment you recommend purchasing pre surgery?

"Disturbing night sleep pattern" - it's more painful & occasional waking up in the first 1-2 weeks only. After that it's shorter than avg night sleep (<8h). I'd say it's not pain, just discomfort you have to bear as part of the process. For me it's femur lengthening hardship + the very uncomfortable ankle boots (sorry it's been so long I forget what it's called. It's the thing you wear to keep your ankle muscles from getting tight. I wear them ALL THE TIME except when taking shower). Trust me, it pays off handsomely if you work hard during this period!

I just didn't want to deal with the cumbersome process of loading me on wheelchair to a lyft/uber. It's not common. Wheelchair vans is a service so you can rest assure that nothing would go wrong.

"It gave me some new interesting perspectives of life" - more like I lived as a disable person temp and came to realize I appreciated life more during that period. It just felt peaceful during consolidation when I couldn't walk yet and stayed indoor 100%. So now that I'm fully recovered, I won't take things for granted. Facts, research also shows people with disability on avg are more happy than people without.

I'd recommend installing the bidet to cleanup when you go #2. You can only do that before breaking your legs lol. Other things you can order from Amazon as the lengthening process goes. Having a helper is still recommended. I think I have link to the bidet in my 1st post.
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Asian male age 30-36; 163cm -> Gained 4cm tibias & 5.6cm femurs
Tibia surgery 01/18/2022; Femur surgery 02/01/2022
Diary http://www.limblengtheningforum.com/index.php?topic=69090.0
Recommended wheelchair transport in West Palm Beach: East Coast Taxi (561) 651-1111 (please DON'T mention it's from me)

hippo60

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Re: Quadrilateral lengthening - Dr. Paley & Robbins
« Reply #82 on: November 28, 2022, 07:24:27 PM »

I'd recommend installing the bidet to cleanup when you go #2. You can only do that before breaking your legs lol. Other things you can order from Amazon as the lengthening process goes. Having a helper is still recommended. I think I have link to the bidet in my 1st post.

That's such a great idea - just ordered one! I was worried about that part being tougher ::)
What about shower bench / cold packs / small exercise bike? Did you need any of that?
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motoboarder

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Re: Quadrilateral lengthening - Dr. Paley & Robbins
« Reply #83 on: November 30, 2022, 06:18:17 AM »

That's such a great idea - just ordered one! I was worried about that part being tougher ::)
What about shower bench / cold packs / small exercise bike? Did you need any of that?

Yeah I bought a shower chair. Cold packs were given by the hospital - I only need them for the 1st month or so though. I didn't buy any exercise bike. Paley's PT center has that. We have 1h PT each day 5 days a week.
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Asian male age 30-36; 163cm -> Gained 4cm tibias & 5.6cm femurs
Tibia surgery 01/18/2022; Femur surgery 02/01/2022
Diary http://www.limblengtheningforum.com/index.php?topic=69090.0
Recommended wheelchair transport in West Palm Beach: East Coast Taxi (561) 651-1111 (please DON'T mention it's from me)

hippo60

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Re: Quadrilateral lengthening - Dr. Paley & Robbins
« Reply #84 on: November 30, 2022, 03:16:23 PM »

Yeah I bought a shower chair. Cold packs were given by the hospital - I only need them for the 1st month or so though. I didn't buy any exercise bike. Paley's PT center has that. We have 1h PT each day 5 days a week.

Got it!  ;)
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akali

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Re: Quadrilateral lengthening - Dr. Paley & Robbins
« Reply #85 on: December 01, 2022, 10:48:30 AM »

Total 1.25mm/day. Bone is healing fine.

Do you have any recent x-ray?
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motoboarder

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Re: Quadrilateral lengthening - Dr. Paley & Robbins
« Reply #86 on: December 02, 2022, 07:24:42 PM »

Do you have any recent x-ray?

They're in my diary. Last ones were taken in July/Aug I think. I haven't had one after my doctors approve me for unaided walking.
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Asian male age 30-36; 163cm -> Gained 4cm tibias & 5.6cm femurs
Tibia surgery 01/18/2022; Femur surgery 02/01/2022
Diary http://www.limblengtheningforum.com/index.php?topic=69090.0
Recommended wheelchair transport in West Palm Beach: East Coast Taxi (561) 651-1111 (please DON'T mention it's from me)

King29

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Re: Quadrilateral lengthening - Dr. Paley & Robbins
« Reply #87 on: December 02, 2022, 08:39:32 PM »

Were femurs or Tibias more painful? What do you rate the pain levels for each segment 1-10?
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darthmaul

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Re: Quadrilateral lengthening - Dr. Paley & Robbins
« Reply #88 on: December 03, 2022, 10:45:37 AM »

I heard that the tibias are more painful than femur but also I remember one of the patient said that from their experience femurs are harder than the tibia.I think it changes from person to person
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motoboarder

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Re: Quadrilateral lengthening - Dr. Paley & Robbins
« Reply #89 on: January 15, 2023, 03:32:46 AM »

Yep pretty much that. For me tibias had more sharp pain during the first few weeks, but easing out throughout lengthening. Femurs structure was simpler but heavier, so the pain felt more like an exhaustive pain throughout. They're different kinds of pain, not apple to apple.
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Asian male age 30-36; 163cm -> Gained 4cm tibias & 5.6cm femurs
Tibia surgery 01/18/2022; Femur surgery 02/01/2022
Diary http://www.limblengtheningforum.com/index.php?topic=69090.0
Recommended wheelchair transport in West Palm Beach: East Coast Taxi (561) 651-1111 (please DON'T mention it's from me)

Yau

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Re: Quadrilateral lengthening - Dr. Paley & Robbins
« Reply #90 on: April 22, 2023, 02:34:26 AM »

Hi! Any updates?
How about your walking and athletic ability now?
All pains go away?
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darthmaul

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Re: Quadrilateral lengthening - Dr. Paley & Robbins
« Reply #91 on: May 15, 2023, 12:24:50 PM »

I think the most difficult part is achilles tendon and it is my worst nightmare about doing tibias...... I think long tibias are more attractive but the ballerina syndrome and the recovery process is scaring me actually. How is your Achilles right now?
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sphenopetroclival

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Re: Quadrilateral lengthening - Dr. Paley & Robbins
« Reply #92 on: May 20, 2023, 03:19:32 PM »

If you have recent imaging data please put it at this thread. Redact any information that could be used to dox you.
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