After being referred by her GP Nina finally gets to see an Orthopaedic Consultant at King's Mill Hospital
Xrays are done and blood tests performed
The team in the fracture clinic are superb and the Consultant spends a fair bit of time with us getting to know the medical history and evaluating the next course of action
The bad news is that there appears to be no discernable bone growth in Nina's femur from when she last had Xrays a few months back in Spain
She is advised to go back to non weight bearing movement on her crutches and we are told her knee is intact and doesn't need replacing despite limited flexion of the joint
Inter-Consultant letters are sidelined and after a few calls to his colleagues Nina is fast tracked to go see a Professor Moran at Queens Medical Centre
This guy is a specialist in treating 'Non Unions' as in Nina's case and complicated non healed fractures. After such bad news at least we know we will be in the right hands now...
A couple of weeks pass and we visit QMC
More blood tests and a preliminary examination by the 'Prof', as the staff call him, reveal a way forward for Nina
He says she now needs surgery as soon as he can book her in to perform a bone graft and do work relating to the supporting metalwork
He also points out that a follow up operation involving stripping muscle back from her thigh bone would help with knee articulation but its a complex op and a painful rehab afterwards
This can't be done first as its the muscles that provide the blood flow to the bone for healing. He promises he can do good work and perhaps incorporate both techniques to some extent in one operation
A CT scan and lengthy consultation is now expected and at this stage he will suggest the best course of action based on his tests, scans and Nina's wishes
We were OK right up to the point he pointed out her leg had been "smashed to pieces" and "you've had a life changing injury"
Nina broke down bless her as the reality of her injury and future capabilities was finally spelled out by a Specialist in his field
He also said that her supporting metalwork could fail at any stage but in any case would not last two years being the sole means of support for her leg
Bizarrely he advises now to go back to weight bearing movement on her crutches with pro active physio. We guess this is to get her legs in best shape ready for the next lay up
Can you believe we threw away the bedpan and dumped the wheelchair!
Now we wait and hopefully a date for her surgery will soon be known.
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