United Brachial Plexus Network, Inc.

The time has come for my 2 yr old granddaughter Arabella to have her 1st surgery,performed by docs at Cincinnati. The following is being performed- Release of subscapularis,pectoralis minor,anterior capsule, and Latissimus Dorsi Transfer. Wow, sounds like alot. I welcome ANY comments,suggestions,or experiences. Posts or email is fine- mdangels909298@yahoo.com

Thank You, Margaret

This type of thing is really the surgery that they've been doing the longest.... It does sound like a lot but the kids do ok. Maia was playing as though nothing changed 3 days later (splinted of course).

I guess the one major thing I want to tell you is that whoever is there with the baby has to be her guardian angel - that means staying connected and watching everything very carefully - making sure that pain meds come on time, etc. Be assertive if you have to. There's no hospital in the world where mistakes don't happen. My husband and I always stayed with Maia... one napped while the other one stayed up and watched and then we would switch off. We never left her alone.

I wish Arabella the best experience and a fast and great recovery.

-francine

Thank you! It makes me feel better about their long time experience, and also thank you for the "angel" advice.

you're very welcome - I hope that all goes well and that she snaps back quickly

of course grandma may have to have a couple of sips of wine perhaps to settle down- but that's ok

trust in your faith that all will be just as it's supposed to be

-francine

I agree with Francine. I always stayed with Brandon....daddy was not good enough or assertive enough. I left the room around 1:00 pm they came in and gave Brandon Tylenol Three which leaves his daddy so wired up, he cannot sleep for days.....so guess who paid that price....after the doctors telling me it would wear off in a few hours, I called the doctor at 4:00 am to order some benadryl so that Brandon and I could sleep. Never again did I leave daddy alone with him in the room.. His defense was, well they are the doctors....NO!!! I am the mommy !!! It is not all the bad, after the fact, the waiting is the worst, but Brandon was back to his old self after 1 day. They nicknamed him "WILDCHILD" on the floor, all he wanted to do was go and play and eat french fries. The waiting was bad....I think I wore a path in the carpet !! Ha, HA
Good Luck on the surgery and I hope it all works out for you and your grandaughter !!!

Gayle
Mom of Brandon 10 years old ROBPI

Is the surgery at cincinatti childrens hospital? Dr.Cornwall, who did all three of Amaries surgeries, moved there and he is WONDERFUL!!! We could not be more pleased with the progress she has made, and we owe it to all his great work! I am sure the team is excellent, and your grandaughter will do great!

Good luck, I hope you are able to be there for the surgery. My son just had his first surgery in October at Shriners in Philly. My mom flew out there with us, it was great having grandma there with us. Hubby stayed at home with the older kids. I also agree with Francine, make sure to stay on top of the meds if she needs them. My son had a similar surgery, with the exception of the transfer. They gave him some morphine when he was coming out of anstesia. But after that, he handeled it really well and didn't need any additional pain meds. We roomed for the night stay in the hospital with 3 other kids that had the same surgery, all that were older than my son, I believe they all seemed to be in pain and their moms stayed on top of that. You are lucky that your granddaughter is old enough to talk and let them know if she's hurting. My son was only 11 months when he had the surgery so obviously wasn't talking yet. But he mostly just slept after the surgery, pretty much the whole day. I know the whole process seems overwhelming, but little kids are so amazing, they handle it so much better that we adults do. My son was back to himself in less than 2 days, he even learned to scoot around since he could no longer crawl in the cast. I wish you and Arabella the best, and hope for a fast and painless recovery.


Message was edited by: Kaiden'smom

Happy to say surgery went well! Dr. Foad was her surgeon, I was pleased with him. In fact everyone we had to deal with from the 1st step to the last was wonderful! And yes she's bouncin back fast! Thanks for all the input, and the prayers!

HOORAY for Bella!!!!

HUGS,
Carolyn J
LOBPI adult/70