United Brachial Plexus Network, Inc.

Hi everyone, im mom to gabby 2 yr old robpi, she had her 2ndary surgery in boston on the 5th of jan. and we go back on the 15th of feb to have it taken off. What has anyone else gone through after the cast came off? ie.,were they in a lot of pain or what should i expect. thanks...any info would be a great help.
shell

Shell;
When Katie got her cast off, she did say that it hurt a little bit, so take some children's tylenol or motrin with you....we didn't and picked some up a convenience store. She was also pretty scared of the saw that cuts the cast off, but they let me hold her and cover her ears....plus these people are pros and worked quickly to get it off. Other than that she was in great spirits and couldn't wait to play in the tub. (Mommy was just as excited about that.) Katie also went directly into a removeable brace that still her arm up in the same position which she wore all the time except for therapy and baths.

We'll keep you in our thoughts.....don't worry, it just sounds worse than it is. I know I could hardly wait to get rid of that thing....enjoy!

Cheri, Mom to Katie, 3, LOBPI

After my son's Mod Quad, I gave him Motrin one hour before we left and he did awesome. No problems at all
Good LUCK

When Ella went in for her cast removal after secondary surgery I had to do downstairs in the hospital to the store there to buy motrin. I had no idea that she was going to need it, but she certainly did. I wish I knew so I could have given her a dose before the cast actually came off. She was in a lot of pain. She wouldn't move her arm. She held it still and close to her body. Dr Waters gave her a sling to put the arm in. We left it in a sling for the ride home. The pain was severe for a few days. Remember, there is no splinting (at least for most kids who have secondary surgery in Boston) so this makes the child go right from being in a cast for so long to nothing at all. It is like a shock to them and their body. Warm baths at home helped. I called Boston every day for 4 days after surgery asking it the pain was normal. They told me it was and that every child was different. I know some children who had pain as Ella did and then others who were just fine. TO be safe, bring motrin with you and give a dose to Gabby about an hour or 30 mins before it comes off. Other than that you will have to see how it goes b/c she may be just fine and have no pain at all. Good luck! Email if you have questions.
~Krista~

My daughter Alexis had significant pain when her second cast came off. But it only lasted two or three days. Mostly, she just didn't want us touching her arm (particularly lifting it). It looked emaciated to me (a real shocker), but color came back quickly, and soon she was pretty much back to "normal".

its was a while ago But david could not wait for it to come and i never gave him anything all he wanted was to go to mcdonalds when he was done oh yeah david is rbpi

My son was just barely 2 when he had the mod quad. He had a splint, not a cast, but when we took it off he had a hard time. He would not move his arm much for a couple of days and he held it like it hurt him. He wasn't really vocal at the time, so it couldn't really tell us much about how it felt, but I could tell it hurt him. I wasn't really prepared for it, because no one told me that it could be hard for a few days.

Good luck with the cast removal and if your daughter does have some pain, know that it usually only lasts a short time.

Connie

thanks everyone, just counting down the days!!!!I'm sure gabby will do just fine, she's one tough lil' cookie!! shelly

thanks everyone!!! i'msure that gabby will do just fine...she is one tough little cookie. I bet that if all of us were to give a description of our child's personality(one's with obpi) it would probaBLY BE
"strong willed" or my favorite one "FIESTY". THANKS AGAIN FOR ALL OF YOUR IDEAS.Anyone going to be in boston on the 15th anyway? shelly

How is your son? I'm worried because my son will also be very probably having secondary surgery soon. How long does it take to see improval? How much did you pay for this surgery? It is less expensive then primary, I think.