United Brachial Plexus Network, Inc.

My daugher is 11 yrs old and is scheduled for a mod quad in June. She will be have the surgery at TCH and Dr. Nath will be her surgeon. Is there anyone that can offer any advise? How will she manage with the split when she gets home? How long will take to get back into doing the things she is use to doing (ride a bike, cheerleading, dance etc..)? What was the best PT excercise? Our time is running out and we have so many questions. I still have a small amount of doubts but, I don't want my fears to interfear with her progress. We would love to hear from someone around her age that has been through this.

Mary - can I have your email.... I want to give you the email for another mom who has a teenage daughter.

francine@injurednewborn.com

Hello,
My son was 10 when he had it done and he did fine...it is harder for bigger kids but it is definately worth it.
T.

Thank you for your reply. God bless you

My daughter is 9 and is scheduled for her first surgery at the end of Sept. Of course we hoped for a full recovery...She is doing great and has a reasonable range of motion; never complains of pain or sensitivity. Wepd like to believe that she is situated at the higher (meaning better) end of the spectrum as far as her injury is concerned. However, she still cannot touch the top or back of her head and cannot supinate. She has a winging shoulder blade, although not terrible. Of course I'm torn, not to mention scared to death about putting her through this surgery, but I'll never be able to live with myself knowing that I did not do all I could to bring her as close to normal as possible.
If there is anything you can tell be about your experience with surgery, I would truly appreciate it.

Mary,
I just had the surgery on Sept. 11th. I am 5 days post mod quad now and am quite suprised at the results. I know you are having doubts in your mind but trust me, the sooner she does it the better. Dr. Nath was my surgeon also. I can move my arm back farther than I have ever been able to, right after the surgery. I am starting PT this coming Thursday. I am in a bit of discomfort but not a huge amount of pain. The pillow (splint) is quite large however I can move my fingers a lot more than I could before and it is quite manageable. I know being an adult is probably a lot easier than a child, however, I really do recommend the surgery and I would definately do it all over again if I had too. If you have any questions at all please feel free to e mail me personally. I would love to help you out. Let me know how it goes.

Ann, just caught your post at the end sorry.
Same goes for you and your daughter as well. Please feel free to e mail me and I can try to help you out more. I can also now put my hand back behind my head and stretch it. It is a tremendous feeling. The surgery really is worth it. Your daughter will thank you in the long run for putting her through it. My mom was disappointed that she didn't hear of it sooner. Let me know when her actual surgery date is if you could.
And good luck to her!!