Enjoy your breakfast! (Update)

[Random Orbital Bob]

I thought you'd all enjoy some gratuitous leg surgery shots to help digest your breakfasts on this fine Sunday. Some of you know my family has been through a tough time this last few months. One of our challenges is the youngest lad who has a rare bone disease. This last week we hope will see the first step in a process to get him walking normally again. The pictures are of an external fixator called an Illazarov frame which pin the freshly cut bone in the right place to aid its healing. He also has a metal rod going right down the centre of the bone, inserted through the knee to strengthen it.

And yes...those are bolts holding his bone together on the outside!

Those spare bolt holes.....what do you think....nice little coffee cup holder....place for a bandsaw box.....sorry...humour helps me to stay sane.

He's a trooper and no mistake. Public forum so no faces or names but the little tyke has my respect

 

[Steve Maskery]

To Soldier, Soldier's Mum and Dad, and the surgeons:

=D> =D> =D> =D> =D> =D> =D> =D> =D>

 

[Silas Gull]

I did: fried potatoes and poached eggs.

All the very best to your relative. May he live long and lay strong.

 

[paulm]

Glad it all went well so far Rob, a lot of physio later I expect when healed up well enough. He'll have some scars to show off to his mates later !

When I was a young tearaway on a motorbike I had a smash (not my fault !) that landed me in hospital for about four months with leg in traction. They drilled and screwed a metal rod at right angles through the lower leg bone below the knee, and tied the traction weights with lines to each end of the rod and over the end of the bed to keep the leg in tension. Worst bit was when the surgeon turned up unannounced one evening to remove the rod from my leg and without so much as a paracetamol tablet or anything, stuck a ratchet handle on the end and proceeded to just wind it out :shock: (hammer)

Hope they are a bit more considerate with your young lad when they get to that stage, I'm sure they will be !

Cheers, Paul

 

[Random Orbital Bob]

LOL...that's a classic Paul. I have to say that Orthopaedic surgery does tend to attract a certain type of Doctor. I reckon it's the big tools!!!

Thanks for the support everyone.

The surgeon is an absolute genius, the whole team in fact at Royal National Orthopaedic Stanmore. Thank goodness for the NHS.

 

[DennisCA]

Good luck with your son and future physio, it's the hardest when your children are sick, they should all at least have the right to be born healthy.

Still we're lucky to have the quality of health care we do in this part of the world. I have been through similar experiences myself, one of my twin sons needed heart surgery at 3 months old (and was 2 months early to boot), they both still have issues with their thumbs and future surgery is on the horizon, they'll sadly won't have all 10 fingers even in the best case scenario, but for woodworking circles maybe that's not so odd.

 

[Racers]

Give him a hug from me.

Pete

 

[AES]

Yup, obviously a plucky little beggar. I guess it'll be tough for him to keep going with all the Physio, but IMHO it IS worth it, and again for me, the Physio's have been excellent at motivating me (and keeping me motivated).

I wish him all the very best, and to his Mum & Dad too (I was never in the position myself but I guess you'll both be very important in keeping the motivation going too).

Krgds
AES

 

[lanemaux]

Best wishes to your lad from me and mine. If I may be so bold as to make a suggestion , he probably won't need flowers and cards to know you are behind him. Smuggle in food instead. Even though he probably does not need to be sodium- free , hospitals try to make people go sodium (and flavour ) free anyway. I do not mean to disparage your hospital cooking over there , but if it is anything like what has been inflicted on me in the past, something on rye with a decent mustard with a side of chips won't be unappreciated. My eyes teared up when a friend brought me an Italian hot veal on a ciabatta. She still gets the extra nice Xmas cards.

 

[kostello]

I have a friend who's an orthopaedic surgeon.......

The journal of bone and joint medicine he gets has lots of tool adverts in......the tools look very familiar... They are just all stainless steel and shiny..... And expenditure

 

[jpw123]

All the best rob, it must be hard but try to stay positive.

 

[Kalimna]

Fingers crossed all goes well for the future, and may he recover swiftly.
Oh, and +1 for smuggling in food

Good luck,
Adam

 

[John15]

Best wishes Rob for your boy's speedy recovery.

John

 

[Baldhead]

It's things like this that put your problems into perspective, my problems are nothing to what the little fellow, your wife and your good self have, I wish him all the very best, PM me your address and there's a fiver on its way for a big sweety mix up, you all deserve a share.

Take care

Baldhead

 

[Random Orbital Bob]

Well I've just signed on again after a day of chores and running around. What a lovely surprise to find all the positive messages. Thank you all very much, your kindness and generosity is genuinely appreciated and the littl'un will doubtless enjoy Stew's kind gesture.

On the subject of smuggling in food, his Nanna made some awesome soup which was the first thing he had post op and when his French Auntie arrived she brought a veritable hamper with smoked salmon, some fabulous truffle impregnated cheese local to her Deli near Versailles, a nice bottle of red....we had a picnic with the curtains drawn quietly sniggering all the while

I cant se the point in being sick AND going hungry

 

[Random Orbital Bob]

By the way folks, Mrs Orbital Bob has just read all your posts and is also passing on her thanks. However she has also just "required" me to immediately leave the premises in search of a huge quantity of anything made by cadburys so I'm signing off for an expedition into the night.

 

[Baldhead]

By the way folks, Mrs Orbital Bob has just read all your posts and is also passing on her thanks. However she has also just "required" me to immediately leave the premises in search of a huge quantity of anything made by cadburys so I'm signing off for an expedition into the night.

Bob I remember years ago when my misses was pregnant with our second, she craved chocolate, you don't think Mrs Orbital Bob is................eh, you know.

Baldhead

 

[Random Orbital Bob]

I bloody hope not Stew

 

[Woodmonkey]

All the best to you and family, certainly puts other problems in perspective doesn't it, I must learn to stop getting stressed about cr@p that really doesn't matter...

 

[AES]

@R-O-B:

PM sent.

AES