Friday, April 24, 2009

Baby needs a new pair of shoes!



On Monday Om saw Dr. Mosca at Seattle Children's Hospital for a club foot checkup. Dr. Mosca said that Om's feet look great. His left foot is in the top 5% of club feet cases, and the right foot is in the top 1%. Again, it is all based on dorsiflexion, and according to the doc, Om has dorsiflexion very close to a normal foot. The achilles tendon has been growing wonderfully and is flexible.

I love that hospital...the atmosphere, the decor, how organized the system of check - in is (although I end up going through several lines and waiting a lot for a 5 min check up!). I don't mind waiting to a certain point as long as I know why I am waiting.

First the orthotist came and checked Om's feet and measured him for his growth. He determined that Om needed an upgrade to his Denis Brown Bar and Shoes. While we waited for him to adjust the new shoes, Om's weight was checked. After the orthotist put on Om's new shoes, we waited for what seemed like an eternity for Dr. Mosca. Thankfully the rooms and hallway are child friendly with pictures of sea creatures etc to entertain Om. I also took the time to feed Om breakfast and let him play with the paper cover on the patient table. Dr. Mosca almost always has a sidekick with him...whether it be a resident, a nurse, or another physician who is shadowing Dr. Mosca for the day. Dr. Mosca is very knowledgeable about this birth defect. When I ask him a question, he doesn't hesitate to go into a mini lecture explaining the dynamics of a particular problem. I actually like the explaination, because I have the habit of looking things up on the internet/library so why not save some time and have it come straight from the source? :-)

Om will continue to wear the brace 12 hours a day. And we got the okay to keep Om in the shoes for the straight 12 hours and do not need to bother with putting them on during the day. Om is incredibly mobile, and wearing the brace during the day is just annoying for his active legs.



Om munching on a mum-mum while waiting in the room.

3 comments:

Unknown said...

Excellent progress...way to go li'l Om!

You are such a good looking guy, your Mommy is gonna have to shovel the girls away from you :)

Sue said...

Sounds like you're in great hands! I've heard really good things about Dr. Mosca on the clubfoot board. He sounds very much like the new doc we switched to (Dr. van Bosse in Philadelphia). Going to the right person is half the battle, I think. The first doctor we had, when Grace was born, had the worst bedside manner -- treated us like Patient #4193 instead of like human beings. We'd wait 3 hours in the waiting room and he'd never spend more than 5 minutes with us. If I asked a question he'd give me a look like I was wasting his time ... UGH. I am SO glad you guys don't have to go through that. Having a doctor who treats you with respect, who takes the time to talk you through things, and who clearly WANTS to help your child makes the whole journey so much easier.

Congrats on the decrease in hours -- that's a big step! You just wait ... he'll be walking in no time! :)

Priyanka said...

Thats great news! Om looks ADORABLE munching on his mum-mum :)