Before seeing Dr. Patterson, Sydney had X-rays taken of her hands. LOTS of fun with an 11 month old, although the lady who took the X-rays was super fast- much better than the techs we have had in the past that want to be super gentle but end up taking WAY too long.
After X-rays, we waited in the exam room until a resident came to speak with us. We typically talk to a resident before seeing Dr. Patterson, so we are used to it. I must digress and tell a few funny experiences we have had with residents. The first one we met with looked like she was about 19 (made me feel old) and pretty much the only thing she said to us was how "cute" Sydney was...over and over. Then during our trip to the ER following her surgery, there was the one who did an exam on Sydney prior to her being released. I guess it's protocol to check ears, throat, etc. Well, when it was time to check inside Sydney's mouth, she told her to "open your mouth" and proceeded to wait as if she would accommodate her. And the resident we just met with last week had his white coat buttoned completely wrong. Now, I know each of these people are way smarter than I could ever hope to be, but it is nice to have something to laugh about and ease some of the stress during these doctor visits.
Dr. Patterson took a look at both of her hands, and started out with some wonderful words. I wish I could remember her exact wording, but it went something like, "I'm done with her left hand. It is a non-issue at this point in my opinion". Music to my ears! Her left hand does look amazing, to me. Her fingers are so straight, the nails look pretty good, I really couldn't ask for them to look any better.
Now her right hand isn't quite as lucky. Both fingers are curving inward (towards each other) rather severely. At this point, Dr. Patterson wants to leave them alone. We will continue using the brace for the time being. In the future we will discuss the possibility of more surgery on that hand. She says she can most definitely straighten them out, but she is unsure of how much flexibility she will have in the fingers. If surgery becomes a reality it won't happen until Sydney is at least 3 years old. In my mind, Sydney will do a lot of developing over the next few years. She will establish a dominant hand, begin drawing and 'writing', and will develop many more fine motor skills. All of these things will either prove her fingers are a hindrance in her life or a moot point. I'm praying for the latter. If they don't seem to have an impact on her daily life, we may decide to put surgery off longer. Dr. Patterson assured us it won't matter when surgery is done; time will not affect the outcome. So for now I won't even worry myself thinking about surgery.
After meeting with Dr. Patterson, we headed over to the Women and Children's Hospital to meet with Sydney's physical therapist, Emily. We explained issues we had with Sydney's brace, and she made a new contraption that should make it easier for us to put on and harder for Sydney to pull off. I'm hoping that she is able to build tolerance up so she is able to wear it while sleeping. If she only wears it during waking hours, she won't really be using the fingers which somewhat defeats the purpose. Her PT was very helpful in designing something that would work for us. We are sad to hear she will not be returning to work following having a baby (due September 16, Sydney's due date!).
Overall, I am so pleased with how Sydney has done post surgery. She uses both hands interchangeably and does not seem to have seem to have any issues with either one. I am humbled over and over by how blessed we are!
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| A little light reading waiting for X-rays |
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| Waiting for Dr. Patterson |
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