Catching up

Rachel May 2012 9 months old

May 2012 Preparing for more club foot casting

Clubbed Feet 9 months old after

2 weeks of serial casting before bilateral heel cord release

June 2012 10 months old

Hip spica cast after left hip tendonectomy and closed reduction of left hip

Used to treat hip dysplasia

Hip spica cast was worn from June until October 2012

Rachel received a total of 3 different hip spica casts- each one required her to be under anethesia

Unfortunately during this time period her clubbed feet were left untreated due to the hip spica cast.

For other parents with a baby going into a hip spica cast- Rachel did not fit into any traditional baby equipment- no strollers, no highchairs, no bouncy chairs, no wagons and ect. My grandmother had bought Rachel a pack and play that we used with various pillows to prop her during this time period. You need to reposition your little one frequently to avoid pressure sores forming from the hip spica cast. Lots of sponge baths and yes, the cast becomes very stinky. Rachel was learning how to self feed during this time period- highly recommend skipping the cute light colored casts and going for dark blue, dark purple or black casting.

During her summer in the hip spica cast Rachel did a lot of hiking our family. We had used the Infantino baby carrier and would alternate positioning her on Mom's back and Mom's front.Rachel loves being outdoors and hiking would seem to make the hip spica cast alittle more bearable for her. We did most of our hiking on the cooler summer days to avoid Rachel from overheating in the cast.

After Rachel's hip spica cast was removed at the beginning of October 2012, her orthopedic doctor had her start wearing a Rhino Cruiser brace. She wore this brace 23 hours a day for the first month out of the cast. After a month the Rhino Cruiser brace was reduced to wearing during naps and at night while sleeping. She currently continues with this brace (Jan 2013). She had been diagnosed with bilateral hip dysplasia- prior to the surgery on her left hip- her right hip had corrected itself and did not require surgical intervention. On her x-rays there was basically minimal to no left hip socket- her body has been working hard and she continues to grow bone in her hip sockets. Rachel has always been a tough cookie- during her time period in the hip spica cast she continued to roll herself over and was able to support her upper body on her arms and pull herself forward. One month out of the hip spica cast she -retaught herself to sit up on her own and was a warrier four point crawling.