Limb Lengthening Forum
Limb Lengthening Surgery => Limb Lengthening Patients Experiences => Topic started by: iamprepared on February 12, 2017, 02:02:57 PM
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I travelled to Seoul, South Korea in January 2017 to begin my LL journey.
I've been dreaming about this for a number of years and I'm excited it's finally my turn. For those years, the community has really helped visualize what it'd be like to get the surgery done for myself. This time, I'd like to share my story with you guys.
Below is my personal info. Note that I value my privacy greatly so I'm sharing rather limited info about me. I'll get into more detail about LL journey itself though.
About
Age: 20s
Gender: Male
Ethnicity & Nationality: N/A
Starting Height: 5'5'' 1/2 (166cm)
Goal Height: 5'8'' (172.5cm)
Weight: 145 Ibs (65kg)
Surgery
Doctor: Donghoon Lee
Operation: Femurs
Type: Precise 2.1
Planned Distraction: 6.5cm
Diameter: 10.7mm (This supports 50 Ibs per leg unlike 12.5mm that supports 75 Ibs. I'm guessing this would make it harder for me to use a walker)
Surgery Date: January 20, 2017
Why I chose Precise 2.1
Despite much benefit discussed about full-weight bearing during distraction phase, the chance of complication from nails like Guichet seems higher than Precise (damage from clicking, discrepancy in legs length..etc.). I want to get it right safely and Precise 2.1 seems the safest option available at this point.
Why I chose Dr.Donghoon Lee
I shortlisted to two doctors - Dr.Paley in Florida and Dr.Donghoon Lee in Seoul (3rd doctor on the list was Dr.Mahboubian in LA). I've followed Dr.Paley for many years and I knew his reputation. Interestingly Dr.Lee was trained under Dr.Paley years ago and I knew Dr.Lee from his theses where I was sold on his passion to get his patients back to "sports" (he was the first orthopedic surgeon to use stem cell therapy for rapid bone consolidation). After all, both doctors were great and either location was okay for me, but the total cost was cheaper with Dr.Lee.
Pre-op exercise
For the past 3 months, I did stretching 3 times a day, leg exercise 1 a week and upper body exercise everyday mainly developing triceps, and running 4-5 times a week.
How I’m paying for it
I’ve saved some money and I’m borrowing from people very close to me.
Why now?
I rarely have a holiday but I happen to have a holiday for this quarter. It’s probably the only time I can do such a big surgery and hopefully have the time to recover. I also don’t think I'd wait for Precise 3 that may support full-weight bearing for 145 Ibs male. The speed of innovation in this industry has been slow and it could come out in years.
A couple of weeks have passed since the surgery. I've been keeping daily diary on my laptop, but I’ve been very busy surviving everyday… I’ll be posting my experience soon.
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Good luck and have a safe and easy lengthening :)
How much is the total price with dollars/euros? Since you are there you surely know
Again, best of luck
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Iamprepared
The Precice 2.1 nail hasn't been manufactured since May of 2015. Only the Precice 2.2 has manufactured since that time. So how are you having surgery with the Precice 2.1 in January of 2017?
Please describe EXACTLY what is included and EXACTLY what the total cost is, with pictures of the facilities.
Looking forward to following this experience. Dr. Donghoon Lee is my first choice for surgery. His website and his post op videos on youtube really seem to show how well trained he is by Dr. Paley and how well his patients do after surgery.
Keep up the good work.
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Hi Iamprepared, (I'm going to get confused with all of these Iam... names!)
Congratulations for taking such a big step forward in choosing to go through with your leg lengthening surgery. Dr Lee is a very solid choice for cosmetic limb lengthening and I have read some of his methods during recovery to improve consolidation. It's very interesting stuff and I believe the next big step in limb lengthening. It's also nice to see you've chosen to lengthen a relatively safe length in your femurs.
I look forward to seeing your 'daily diary' experience since your initial surgery and the primary 2 weeks of lengthening. I truly hope the lengthening gives you the results that you desire, I am sure it will and it's always beneficial for prospective members to read the experiences of others.
Best of luck, friend.
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The Precice 2.1 nail hasn't been manufactured since May of 2015. Only the Precice 2.2 has manufactured since that time. So how are you having surgery with the Precice 2.1 in January of 2017?
Please describe EXACTLY what is included and EXACTLY what the total cost is, with pictures of the facilities.
Hi Rod, could it be possible that clinics purchase a set amount of Precice nails from the manufacturers at any one moment meaning that they could possibly still be using previous stock of 2.1 nails?
I understand your reservations and hope Iamprepared can provide adequate evidence to prove the legitimacy of this diary. I'm sure it is possible to do so while maintaining privacy to put members minds at rest and be sure that this diary is in fact real.
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Good luck and have a safe and easy lengthening :)
How much is the total price with dollars/euros? Since you are there you surely know
Again, best of luck
Hey Tibike200, thanks for your warm wish! The cost including 7 days in hospital was around $60,000 USD. (there is 10% tax, $6,000, which you pay and get it back when you leave the country. So $66,000 for now and eventually I'll have paid $60,000). This includes all medications, PT, x-rays during 7 days.
After 7 days, the follow-up meeting with Dr.Lee every 2 weeks would cost me around $200-250 (this includes "pain killers" and x-ray). About $1,200 for 5 visits.
You need to pay for PT separately. $100 per session (usually lasts for 1h). I don't think it's cheap but they can come and visit your place. I think I'll be doing 3-4 times a week so I'm expected to spend around $4000 for the next 3 months.
I rented an apartment here for about $1,200 a month so I definitely won't be paying for the expensive hospital stay after 7 days (about $15-20K for 3 months stay). About $3,600 for 3 months in my case.
One unusual thing is that you need to rent the distraction device for $2,500 from a 3rd party company (the explanation given to me was.. "there is only one dealer in Korea that has this device, so they can charge whatever.."). Oh you also need to put $3,500 deposit.
Excluding food and flights, my total cost would be about $70,700 (given I'll get $6,000 tax and $3,500 device deposit back!)
I've expanded further as many people seem to ask about this topic. Note there will be minor difference as the currency rate changes.
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Iamprepared
The Precice 2.1 nail hasn't been manufactured since May of 2015. Only the Precice 2.2 has manufactured since that time. So how are you having surgery with the Precice 2.1 in January of 2017?
Please describe EXACTLY what is included and EXACTLY what the total cost is, with pictures of the facilities.
Looking forward to following this experience. Dr. Donghoon Lee is my first choice for surgery. His website and his post op videos on youtube really seem to show how well trained he is by Dr. Paley and how well his patients do after surgery.
Keep up the good work.
Hey easy there tiger. I'm positive Dr.Lee said we'll use "Precise 2.1" during the consultation, so I'll stick with my statement. With your encouragement, I've posted detail on how much I'm spending, take a look. For the pictures of the facilities, I recommend you just type "Severance Hospital in Sinchon" on Google.
Good luck, if you're considering Dr.Lee. He's been excellent so far.
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Hi Iamprepared, (I'm going to get confused with all of these Iam... names!)
Congratulations for taking such a big step forward in choosing to go through with your leg lengthening surgery. Dr Lee is a very solid choice for cosmetic limb lengthening and I have read some of his methods during recovery to improve consolidation.
Thank you for you kind words, 682!
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X-ray & Consultation
I took x-ray and was asked to come into the doctor’s room. I sat down and an assistant came in and sat in front of her computer, showing me her back. Dr.Lee came in and sat in front of me. It was a strange feeling that he was so familiar to me (due to my research) but he didn’t know me at all. He first opened up a bit of social chat and invited me for questions. I asked several questions about the surgery. Dr.Lee seemed an objective and transparent doctor telling me the potential outcome, both best case and worst case. Still, he assured that he has achieved 0% rate for patients suffering from major complication or long term issue. He was conservative, allowing patients what’s safe for them; He doesn’t like to allow weight bearing using walker as he thinks the Precise 2.1 nail is not strong enough. He much prefers all patients to use wheelchair during the distraction phase. He was more interested in patients' safe recovery through exercise and stretching. There was PT available in the hospital but he repeatedly mentioned his team is planning to build one of best facilities for physical therapy in the coming year. At the end of the meeting, I met with his assistant separately to book a surgery. It was an easy decision for me because I had already made my decision before the consultation. The consultation cost was about $250 USD.
Health Check
A few days prior to surgery, I was asked to do complete health check-up. This cost me about $300.
1 day before
I was hospitalized and taken to 3D x-ray at night. They wanted to see the complete angles of leg bones. It took about 1-2 hours. I was then taken to record a video of me walking. This was for the doctor to see whether the angle of fumers need to be corrected to make walking more natural. I was pretty impressed by the level of cosmetic perfection they want to achieve.
[Week1]
Day1
On my way to the surgery room, I insisted I need to use toilet as I didn’t want to have the urge to go poo immediately after the surgery (having heard many horror stories in this community). The nurse escorted me to the toilet and I was able to take the last one. In surgery room, Dr.Lee and his team greeted me. I felt the sense of trust. I was soon injected with general anesthesia and felt asleep. Woke up, screaming in pain and complained to a nurse nearby, asking why my knees are up and bent, and why she didn’t straighten my legs. She said I naturally chose to bend my knees this way. I was in the surgery waiting room, shivering and feeling way too cold to continue my words about not watching out a patient right after surgery. I was soon delivered to my room and carried to a different bed. The rollover caused some sharp pain. Another nurse connected pain killer, Fentanyl, to the drip bag. She said it will be injected every hour. I was also given Ultraset (pain killer) to swallow. After a while, I felt no pain. But whenever I try to move around in the bed, I felt a sharp pain especially on my right leg. The nurse came in every few hours to check my fever, pressure and to ask me the level of pain I’m experiencing. I just said, “no pain”.
In the evening, Dr.Lee and his team came into the room and said something very pleasing to hear “the surgery was successful”. He then emphasized on the importance of quad muscle, as well as flexibility of my legs. Immediately after he left, I tried to exercise my legs to strengthen the quad muscle (just above knee). I was quickly intrigued about the state of my legs: my flexibility and strength were all gone after the surgery. It was very hard to lift my leg. I grabbed the steels around the bed and gave ultimate strength to my abs and arms. My leg slowly went up (with the knee bent). I counted to 10, screaming at each number count.
The pain is under management (0-2 pain level). I learned to avoid certain moves that give me the sharp pain: I had to life my leg and then move left or right horizontally. If I just try to move my leg on the bed (with the friction) or move diagonally I would have some sharp pain.
Surprisingly, my sleep was really good on the first day, sleeping for 8 hours!
Day2
3 nurses are assigned to me and come into the room every few hours. They even check my fever at 4am in the morning while I'm asleep. I’m given a few pee bottles. I use them on the bed. No shame, when you can’t go to toilet! The nurses are nice to replace them with new ones when they see the bottles filled up. Dr.Lee and his team made a quick visit to see how I’m doing. I asked about the knee pain on my right leg and he said this is common and I’d get better soon.
One complaint about this hospital so far is food. Breakfast, lunch and dinner are all quite bad (4 out of 10). I just think the amount of nutrition here is not enough to heal my body quickly.
I’m doing stretching and exercise 6 times a day, every 3 hours. I know I have to regain my muscle and flexibility. Stretching feels really good. It causes “good” pain. Exercise is harder with occasional sharp pain to my legs, especially to my right knee. I lift my legs up and down very slowly with my knees bent and drink protein shake right after. I know I have to build some muscle if I want to get out of the bed and use the wheelchair.
My sleep is again very restful. I’d say my pain level today is 0-1.
Day3
I made an improvement. I can now lift my legs on the bed without my knees bent. My quad muscle has developed and they are quite visible now. I’m still stuck in the bed but I’m making sure I never miss stretching and exercise 6 times a day with the reminder feature on my iPhone. Dr.Lee and his team made another visit and it’s always good to see them (I think they come everyday). He is quite impressed about my mobility and how I manage to do the leg exercise. I am introduced with an electric device that stimulates my leg muscles. I’ve gotta say this is pretty useful.
Day4
I now exercise my legs by lifting them close to my chest. My flexibility is almost back to before the surgery. The assistant doctor thinks it’s pretty remarkable. I can touch my toe with my forearm, touch my ass with feet and touch my chest with knees. Fentanyl has run out and now I replaced Ultracets with Targin (It’s Oxycodone, and I’m given this when I asked for Oxycontin – I learned this compound from ‘Doingitforme’)
The worst part of today is poo. I’m still afraid to get out of the bed and use wheelchair as I don’t want to risk falling over when my muscles are not strong enough. Eventually, I did manage to get it done with a tool on the bed. Not going to get into much detail but, it was easily most painful nightmare so far.
Day5
Now my quad muscles are quite strong that I can lift without screaming. I’m now able to get to wheelchair myself. In my first try, it took about about 15 minutes. I had my legs get down first and my ass second. This was a mistake because the strength in my leg muscles soon faded away and they wandered around in pain: they had nowhere to rest. After a break, I tried again reversing the order. This time, I had my ass go down to wheelchair first. This was way easier because my legs can rest on the bed until my ass landed on wheelchair. I then pull legs one by one to the seat. It took about 5 minutes.
For the first time since the surgery, I came out of the room in wheelchair. Very happy moment, strolling around. The hospital is really huge, and I'm exploring everywhere. It’s snowing here today. And it’s beautiful.
Day6
My first PT session began and It went very successful. All my stretching and exercise for the past days paid off and the therapist was visibly impressed. He is fun and very knowledgeable about recovery programs. One thing he said was very encouraging, "we may be able to maintain muscle and flexibility all the way until we finish distraction".
Bed to wheelchair now only takes 2 minutes. Remember It took 15 minutes yesterday! I can now go to toilet as well. It’s still pretty painful to switch from wheelchair to the cubicle.
I’ve finally switched Targin to Oxycontin, and I can feel Oxycontin works better! (‘Doingitforme’ was right). My current pain level is about 0-1. My sleep is good.
Day7
Lengthening has started. 0.25mm for 4 times a day. There is no pain during distraction. The device is very simple to use. I’ve changed my stretching and exercise from 6 times to 4 times a day to sync with the lengthening interval. I need to make a good habit!
I feel great overall. I’m glad the pain is no where near what I had imagined before the surgery. I'm also happy with my decision to go with Dr.Lee. He is skilled and very reliable. The team and staff here call him the "Professor" and they show the utmost respect for him.
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Great to see a patient experience from Dr. Donghoon Lee. I've always been a strong supporter of his. I'm curious about the use of the PRECICE 2.1 as opposed to the PRECICE 2.2. Please speak with Dr. Donghoon Lee and post in greater detail as to the reason behind this decision. It's very interesting.
(http://i63.tinypic.com/2j46paf.png)
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It sounds like your experience thus far has been exceptional. I am thoroughly impressed with your dedication and clearly it has paid off. I await your next post with interest.
Best of luck.
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Hi Iamprepared
No physical rehabilitation costs?
Can you upload some photos? You look so brave
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Great to see a patient experience from Dr. Donghoon Lee. I've always been a strong supporter of his. I'm curious about the use of the PRECICE 2.1 as opposed to the PRECICE 2.2. Please speak with Dr. Donghoon Lee and post in greater detail as to the reason behind this decision. It's very interesting.
Hey Stadiometer, thanks for the great info. I'm also more intrigued about the use of 2.1 since 2.2 seems clearly better. I'll ask Dr.Lee in my next visit.
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It sounds like your experience thus far has been exceptional. I am thoroughly impressed with your dedication and clearly it has paid off. I await your next post with interest.
Best of luck.
Hey 682, thanks for the continued support!
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Hi Iamprepared
No physical rehabilitation costs?
Can you upload some photos? You look so brave
Hey 1683131665, PT during hospital stay is free. Currently I pay $100 a session but I do only 2-3 times a week. I'm doing exercise + stretching myself 4 times a day, taking things to a little extreme. Having done this for a few weeks now, I'm convinced such an extreme approach works well. My legs are so flexible and strong that surprise the physical therapist.
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[Update] 1cm
I've just achieved 1cm, assuming the distraction happened as expected. I'm also worried about whether the distraction is actually happening smoothly (just like 'programdude'). My concern is that I feel like my bones are healing quickly judging from my muscle strength (as it can promote bone growth), so the worst nightmare would be premature consolidation. My visit to Dr.Lee is scheduled next week, so fingers are crossed.
<Stay>
I've rented an apartment here for about $1200 a month. Almost all apartments here are shoes-free environment and the floor is clean enough for you to lie down. I'm currently doing most of my activities on a 5cm thick mattress (king size) - sleeping, stretching, exercising, eating (on a small table), reading, peeing (yes.. I still use bottles). I have positioned important items around the mattress such as daily clothes, water, supplements, books, lengthening device, etc. I ordered a stick with pinch at the end and I grab items without having to move my legs - when I first used it, I was literally blown away by how useful it was. I also ordered a skateboard and this has been a great tool, moving around without pain on my ass (crawling) to the toilet, kitchen, door. Korea's e-commerce has been fantastic; all the items I order today arrive tomorrow. I also call up and order breakfast, lunch and dinner. I'm getting used to this lifestyle just fine!
<Exercise>
Exercise (strength + stretching) has been by far the most important priority since I left the hospital. I lengthen 0.25mm for 4 times a day with 4 hours interval: 9am, 1pm, 5pm, 9pm. To make a good habit, I exercise at the same time as the lengthening: 4 sessions a day of which each session lasts for about 45 minutes. So far, I've never missed a session.
Strength exercise (2 times a day)
- Sit and lift a leg and stay in the air for 10 seconds (10 times per leg)
- Sit and lift a leg quickly (50 times per leg)
- Sit on a chair and do the bicycle moves (100 ups and downs per leg)
Stretching (4 times a day)
- Lie down and knee to the chest (3 times per leg, 10 seconds each)
- Sit and forearms to the toes (3 times per leg, 10 seconds each)
- Lie down and put one leg behind the other and pull the leg (3 times per leg, 10 seconds each)
- Feet to my ass (3 times per leg, 10 seconds each)
I'm currently doing PT 2 times a week, unlike 5 times that was originally planned. The reason is I can do all moves recommended by Dr.Lee by myself. Once I reach 3-4cm, we'll see if I need more professional PT.
<Pain / Sleep>
Like almost everyone in the community, I'm finally experiencing bad sleeps. I generally wake up 2 times (at 2am, 4am). Not good! I always wake up with my knees bent and raised up, and with the urge to pee. Sometime I wake up from a dream of myself doing stretching.. and surprisingly I'm actually doing that stretching move when I open my eyes. How funny! I'm cutting down my water consumption during the evening to see if my sleep will get better. Also I think I've developed some immunity against the pain killer (currently I'm using Oxycontin) so I feel like it wears out quicker than before. I take 2 pills a day and I'm trying to hold the 2nd pill until late at night so that I may sleep well. But the 1st pill lasts until about 5pm and some irritating pain comes and goes (Level 4 out of 10), so I usually take the 2nd one just before or right after dinner. Overall the pain level throughout the day is 1-4.
<Transport>
I've finally learned to use a regular taxi by myself. One issue is that only one out of 15 taxi drivers would stop when they see a person on a wheelchair. So whenever a kind driver stops, I give a really generous tip. It's too bad there is no Uber here..
The day I got out of the hospital, I really struggled to get to the apartment. I couldn't call a wheelchair accessible taxi as you need to apparently "register" as a disabled person first. Also I was very disappointed that Severance hospital was not able to get me a wheelchair accessible taxi -- I couldn't get my head around how this was happening. So I just got on a regular taxi (after many attempts to catch one). I used all my upper body strength to hop on the taxi. It was risky!
<Scar>
I've had the pad over my scars and stitches removed. I'm happy the scars are very small. I hear from the assistant that Dr.Lee is known for making very small incisions during the surgery that leaves small scars.
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I've clarified with Dr.Lee on the version of device used on my fumers.
Dr.Lee double checked it with the company and it turns out I'm in fact using Precise 2.3 and NOT Precise 2.1.
Thanks for pointing out about this and sorry for confusion. I'm actually glad I'm using most up-to-date version!
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All the best Bro and may u got healed soon and
surely u will be one of the successful stories
Can u plz upload some pictures of ur scars ?
With thanks in advance
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I've clarified with Dr.Lee on the version of device used on my fumers.
Dr.Lee double checked it with the company and it turns out I'm in fact using Precise 2.3 and NOT Precise 2.1.
Thanks for pointing out about this and sorry for confusion. I'm actually glad I'm using most up-to-date version!
There is no such thing as the Precice 2.3 so how can you be using an internal nail that doesn't exist?!
The Precice 2.2 is the most up to date version. I mentioned this in my post and Stadiometer posted that clip straight from Dr. Paley's website.
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There is no such thing as the Precice 2.3 so how can you be using an internal nail that doesn't exist?!
The Precice 2.2 is the most up to date version. I mentioned this in my post and Stadiometer posted that clip straight from Dr. Paley's website.
Hey Rod Thick, that's very interesting. Since you were right about v2.1, please let me check again with Dr.Lee in my next visit. As far as I know, Dr.Lee contacted to the new company (which acquired Ellipse Technologies) to learn that the nail his hospital imports was the newest version, v.2.3.
As soon as I speak to him again, I'll make a post about this. Thanks!
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All the best Bro and may u got healed soon and
surely u will be one of the successful stories
Can u plz upload some pictures of ur scars ?
With thanks in advance
Hey Jamee! Thanks for the good wish bro! I'm pushing myself to do more exercise and stretching everyday, so hopefully this would help the recovery later.
Let me think about uploading any picture of my body (as I care about privacy greatly). In the meantime, let me try to describe the state of my scars:
There are 8 scars on each leg: 3 next to knee, 1 middle of thigh, 3 upper part of thigh, 1 end of thigh.
- 3 next to knee: First one is about 1.5cm length & 0.4 height (for ITB release) and the other two are about 0.6cm length & 0.4 height.
- 1 middle of thigh & 3 upper part of thigh: Look similar to "the other two" above
- 1 end of thigh: 2cm length & 0.5cm height
They are currently dark pink color and they're becoming to look similar to other scars on my legs. Scars are obviously visible when you're nked, but if you wear short and someone sees the 3 scars next to knee, they probably wouldn't pay any special attention.
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[Update] 2cm
I’ve reached 2cm. Great news is my fumers are distracting beautifully. From my recent visit to Dr.Lee, he mentioned that there is no need to decrease or increase the frequency of lengthening (some patients get told to lengthen 3 times or 5 times a day, unlike 4 times a day I’m doing now).
<Flexibility / Strength>
At 2cm, I don’t see any difference in my flexibility or muscle strength just yet. As a matter of fact, my flexibility is better than at 1cm as I’ve been doing stretching 4 times a day (30 minutes per session). My PT session is now reduced to 1 per week (recommended by Dr.Lee), because I can do all moves by myself. He suggests that when I reach 4cm, I would need more PT as I would need help executing certain moves. My legs have also developed muscle from an intense strength workout (2 times day), but I have a trouble giving the full strength to quad muscle just above the knee. Dr.Lee says this is normal but I want to find a way to maximize the quad strength. Currently using EMS (electric muscle stimulator) device is the only way to see my quad muscle reach its full hardness. The device seems useful, but I’m not sure if this really helps me sustain the muscle hardness.
Dr.Lee believes it is muscle, not bone that is strongly related to whether you can fully recover and go back to extreme sports later. Generally, bone heals after a while but once muscle loosens it’s hard to regain the strength as muscle gets damaged in the process of loosening. So I’m doing a lot of workout and stretching to see if I can maintain the muscle strength and flexibility without much loosening.
<Pain / Sleep>
My sleep condition has not changed since my last post. I still wake up 1-2 times (about 3am and 5am) and I wake up in pain (pain level: 4 out of 10). Having the pain killer at 10pm (instead of 6pm) didn’t really help; Not having a nap during the day didn’t really help; Cutting the water consumption didn’t really help. I’m trying to figure out how I can sleep non-stop at night. Any feedback on this, please let me know!
<Precise version>
I was advised by Dr.Lee that we’re actually using v2.3, not v2.1. However, I’ve received a doubt from a member in the community as it is believed that v2.3 doesn’t exist. Let me make sure to check again about the version in my next visit and put this matter to rest.
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[Update] 3cm
I've passed 3cm. From my last visit to Dr.Lee, he confirmed that distraction is happening beautifully. X-ray shows light-white area in the region of distraction and Dr.Lee thinks this is a good sign for faster healing once the distraction is done. I'm told to stay lengthening 4 times a day, 0.25mm each. It is very satisfying to find out a good x-ray result.
<Tightness>
The outer side of both legs are getting tighter and this is causing my lower back to be lifted when I lie down. Dr.Lee advises me to massage (press) the outer area as hard as I would cry from the pain. I just got a deep tissue massage device and now I'm massaging the outer side 2-3 times a day, pressing them very hard.
<Flexibility>
My flexibility is still great. I don't see any difference in doing stretching moves between when I was at 0 cm and 3cm. I do a 30 minute stretching session 3 times a day (used to be 4 times but I allocated 1 time to develop more strength). My official PT from the hospital is only once a week as I can execute all stretching moves by myself just fine. The therapist believes I may be able to maintain this flexibility until the end of distraction, which would come as a huge gift to my body once the distraction ends and recovery starts.
<Strength>
My strength is great. Increasing bike session to 5km and adding leg extension with 5-10kg weight helped to develop my strength. I can give full hardness to my quad muscle now. It feels good!
<Pain>
I've left Oxycontin as the pain is getting mild. The chemical compound is way too similar to Heroin and Dr.Lee suggests that there is 100% chance you'll be addicted if you use it for long enough. Now I'm on Ultracet (Tramadol) 2 times a day and this does the job. I now have 0-1 pain level throughout the day. I still have 4/10 pain level when I wake up in my sleep. About 9 out of 10 times I sleep, I wake up in the middle of the night, irritated by pain. Dr.Lee says this is common as muscles respond to the new length each night. He says this would go away a few days after the end of distraction.
<Goal>
My goal 6.5cm has not changed yet. But, after reading other patients diaries, I'm thinking whether to settle at 6cm or even 5.5cm. Patients who did 8cm tend to show a sign of regret due to a slow healing process and complications (like bone getting broken after taking the rod out) and they think 5.5-6cm would have been good enough. I wonder how significant the bone growth and recovery would be at 5.5-6cm compared to 6.5cm. Anyone who has knowledge about this, please let me know.
<Dr.Lee>
After reading more patients diaries, I'm always reminded how important "safety" is when doing LL compared to anything else such as good flexibility, fast recovery or even doctor's skill. I can't make a comment for other doctors but Dr.Lee is definitely a safe doctor. He always seems to put patients' safety as his top priority over other things. He doesn't like to allow a number of activities that are allowed by other doctors, such as using a walker or crutches during distraction, as he believes the potential danger is far greater than the benefit. He does, however, emphasizes on important stretch and strength exercises you can do at home, safely. My respect for him grows at every visit I make to the doctor's office.
<Precise 2.3>
Dr.Lee confirmed that we're using Precise 2.3 and not Precise 2.1. He double checked the email sent by NuVasive (which acquired Ellipse Technologies) claiming the nail is Precise 2.3. So, for those who think v2.3 doesn't exist, I'd recommend to contact NuVasive directly.
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Hi I'm glad that the entire procedure and everything in general is going well. I truly do want to know though how old are you? I am just starting out college, and truly dislike my height. When looking at this post I noticed that you are my height and we're able to pay for it. I just want to know how old you are in order to know how long it may take until I can one day do this surgery. I am 19 and soon will be 20 and am similar height and weight (I weight 10 lbs more than you though). What questions did you ask the dr when you first did the consultation and did you finish college or work your way for to save that money, and from when did you start saving? I really hope you can answer these questions since as you should know it's kinda hard at times being of short stature, and I truly appreciate the advice you give since I want to find a way to save enough money and do that surgery. P.S. did you lift weights or prepare yourself some way to get in good enough shape before the surgery?
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<Precise 2.3>
Dr.Lee confirmed that we're using Precise 2.3 and not Precise 2.1. He double checked the email sent by NuVasive (which acquired Ellipse Technologies) claiming the nail is Precise 2.3. So, for those who think v2.3 doesn't exist, I'd recommend to contact NuVasive directly.
(http://i68.tinypic.com/14xw8x.jpg)
(http://i65.tinypic.com/1174j1d.png)
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(http://i68.tinypic.com/14xw8x.jpg)
(http://i65.tinypic.com/1174j1d.png)
Hey Stadiometer, note that Dr.Paley doesn't make Precise devices. Please try asking NuVasive instead.
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Hi I'm glad that the entire procedure and everything in general is going well. I truly do want to know though how old are you? I am just starting out college, and truly dislike my height. When looking at this post I noticed that you are my height and we're able to pay for it. I just want to know how old you are in order to know how long it may take until I can one day do this surgery. I am 19 and soon will be 20 and am similar height and weight (I weight 10 lbs more than you though). What questions did you ask the dr when you first did the consultation and did you finish college or work your way for to save that money, and from when did you start saving? I really hope you can answer these questions since as you should know it's kinda hard at times being of short stature, and I truly appreciate the advice you give since I want to find a way to save enough money and do that surgery. P.S. did you lift weights or prepare yourself some way to get in good enough shape before the surgery?
Hey Blake,
If you're alone in paying for the surgery, you could save as much as $10-15K a year for the next five years to pursue this. With help from people close to you, you could do it earlier and pay them back as you earn money later. I'm in 20s as I mentioned in the previous post and I don't think my exact age will matter much when it comes to helping you materialize your dream here. Don't feel bad about 3-5 years horizon, because by then it's very likely Precise III will come out that would allow weight-bearing during the distraction. As far as preparation goes, I'd recommend you make stretching and jogging as part of you daily habit. Doing this regularly for the next years, you'll find the surgery much easier.
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[Update] 4cm
I've just passed 4cm. Overall, I feel great with my new femur length. They look good as I sit down too. I'm excited about finishing the distraction phase in about 3 weeks!
Massage
I've been going to sports massage lately to soften muscle around my thighs. This actually helped reduce the muscle pain in my sleep and finally I sleep rather restfully. I strongly recommend you to put massage into your LL regimen. I think 3 times a week seems great.
Flexibility
Dr.Lee previously told me that from 4cm onwards, people lose flexibility significantly and I can now understand this. I'm stretching a few times a day so 4cm doesn't affect me much but I can confirm that stretching has become a little harder than it was at 3cm. Let's see what will happen at 5cm!
Strength
I've been doing a lot of intense workout and my thigh muscles at 4cm are even stronger than at 3cm. I want to keep my muscles strong so that the damage from muscle loosening is not significant by the time the distraction is complete. I'm doing massage and stretching regularly so the developed muscle around my legs are not too tight or bulky.
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are you wheelchair bound?
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[Update] 4cm
Massage
I've been going to sports massage lately to soften muscle around my thighs. This actually helped reduce the muscle pain in my sleep and finally I sleep rather restfully. I strongly recommend you to put massage into your LL regimen. I think 3 times a week seems great.
I completely agree. I've been reading some studies on the importance of flexibility and how stiff, tight muscle are detrimental to lengthening and can cause damage. Massage seems an excellent way of increasing blood flow, stretching the deeper muscular structures and relaxing stiff muscles - it's a great addition and I think it will make the world of difference.
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I'm sorry, but this patient experience is making Dr. Donghoon look bad when the patient doesn't even know the nail that's being used. I posted about this earlier when you first said you were lengthening with the Precice 2.1, then you changed it and said you are lengthening with the Precice 2.3.
For one last time.... THE PRECICE 2.3 DOES NOT EXIST. YOU ARE LENGTHENING WITH THE PRECICE 2.2 THAT WAS LAST UPDATED AND RELEASED IN MAY 2015.
Iamprepared, I hope you realize how bad this looks. Especially when you disregard what Dr. Paley is saying. Do you know that Dr. Paley is the co-creator of the Precice nail, do you know Dr. Paley has implanted more Precice nails than any other surgeon in the world, do you know that Dr. Paley is always the first surgeon in the world to implant a new Precice nail when it is updated and released?
So Dr. Paley is literally the best person in the world to contact and ask questions about any new Precice nails. He is always the first surgeon to know and the first surgeon to use the new technology. This is the reason why we all know about the upcoming Precice 3.0 that will be made with Cobalt Chromium and allow full weight bearing during lengthening. We know this information before the nail has even been released because of Dr. Paley.
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are you wheelchair bound?
Yes I am. I find it much safer than taking risk with walker.
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I completely agree. I've been reading some studies on the importance of flexibility and how stiff, tight muscle are detrimental to lengthening and can cause damage. Massage seems an excellent way of increasing blood flow, stretching the deeper muscular structures and relaxing stiff muscles - it's a great addition and I think it will make the world of difference.
Yes 682, massage has been really helpful. I strongly recommend it to everyone during the distraction phase.
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For one last time.... THE PRECICE 2.3 DOES NOT EXIST. YOU ARE LENGTHENING WITH THE PRECICE 2.2 THAT WAS LAST UPDATED AND RELEASED IN MAY 2015.
Iamprepared, I hope you realize how bad this looks. Especially when you disregard what Dr. Paley is saying. Do you know that Dr. Paley is the co-creator of the Precice nail, do you know Dr. Paley has implanted more Precice nails than any other surgeon in the world, do you know that Dr. Paley is always the first surgeon in the world to implant a new Precice nail when it is updated and released?
Hey man, why are you always being so sarcastic in my journal? Do you realize I'm here to contribute to the community spending my own time?
Dr.Lee confirmed from NuVasive that the nail in my legs is Precise 2.3. During the consultation, I was initially told the nail was 2.1 but it was corrected to 2.3. Period.
I'm curious if you're capable of understanding basic English. I did not disregard Dr.Paley, but stated that he doesn't produce Precise devices himself. Before you making a baseless statement, why don't you just contact NuVasive that creates and distributes Precise devices?
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[Update] 5cm
I've just passed 5cm. My proportion looks great, honestly my thighs look beautiful as I sit down on a chair (in comparison to what it was before). I think another cm would complete my satisfaction while being safe and proportional. I'm excited as the distraction is getting to the end and I'm now counting the final days. It feels like a bear about to finish its long sleep during the hibernation. It feels that long! It's possible I finish it in 10 days at 6cm or push another 5 days to reach 6.5cm. Either way is fine, I'll decide this once I reach 6cm.
5cm is the critical level where most of LLers seem to report a significant loss in flexibility and muscle mass. Fortunately, I haven't lost any muscle mass, they actually became harder and stronger. My flexibility has gone down slightly but it's not significant. The culprit is less frequent stretching sessions. Currently, doing stretching properly hurts and it takes a good amount of mental preparation. I've been doing it 1-2 times a day recently and I can see a clear difference from doing it 3 times a day. I'm going to have to try harder and add more sessions as things are getting to the end soon.
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Congratulations! Which were the worst moments in your opinion? Is there a relief after the surgery itself despite the pain? And what are you going to tell your friends?
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Congrats on a smooth journey so far. I have a few questions if you don't mind answering.
How close were you able to schedule an actual surgery date after the consultation? Do you feel renting your own place is a good arrangement based on your cab experience and difficulties getting around?
Did Dr. Lee require a ITB release for you(pass 5 cm ) or was it not necessary?
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I’m an assistant of Dr. Lee. I agree with all you said. As far as we know, the company’s policy is to use every new device in USA first and distribute abroad after they confirm it is safe. As you said Dr. Paley is the first surgeon in the world who uses every most updated PRECICE nail. So it is not possible to use it in Korea beforehand. The information about version we know is double checked by the company and we think it is the most updated version of PRECICE nail which is same as used in USA. But it seems that whether the nail is 2.1 or 2.3 is not that important matter at the moment, so we don’t think it is not necessary to confirm it again to the company. For your reference, we attach the email from the company about the version. Personal information is blotted out.
(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/b-QVDfYBARqLEdh4ww_xrKDF0NHUfxp0hIpJfUvTm1g09r-OVlvcpjFhCuLz2TBhSkyIXp2skSRRER_POL4RLKjSD7QZDOCWtOrgfvCKOuLtqNZNrf5qbGPpkibmrruJpXbTP1j_ARoPbsQTcet8AZTidQ721ezInDqtr8ZmGNsnuBkf5YznRF2fVVqUXDMONJUwuhBtyV9uJFLIE1aoBNFB3P81QRojpp2SDc2TQNZ_EmxdXk7_bQnlQhM0pvVZCwD_ujUwD173w5sk0fUsGClIOt5gahq989ayv1gxlNpId9Lk4qnH8bP3tslCxrIZRBhir76-fAVFKWF-O6_WPt0zgcL4Q54xBBL5pC1ZL-acC2tMPa9w9XabbBEB6CMIw3Q3CpbrEGIZ9ZjrUT6mnyADRzHUzZP6H6DIU-DdLhOgnpusTX4k7ai3tS9krcPriaZkjyl1sTehyL-Gv49peRJnhJw7FgAMT9ME8-NbEKw28sreoTrgo0JZRkHKVS_7sTLwCKo6Vzx37ezGLPW83xodRL2w0VzpzOBRYwPo6NWINz0fAHk1OvoEDObJACNSFHRASm2RXIWOGbzKZ6J3AhQHKWJUSzFsyexUS4zJqMUTtaE=w660-h297-no)
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unfortunately the image does not work
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Congratulations! Which were the worst moments in your opinion? Is there a relief after the surgery itself despite the pain? And what are you going to tell your friends?
Thanks Mdream,
The worst moment I think is dealing with poo on your bed right after surgery. Within 3 days after the surgery, it is very difficult and more importantly not safe to get out of your bed. The hospital didn't have a good solution for me, so I had to find own ways to get it done and clean myself after. For the pain after surgery, you just need to constantly take strong pain killers to get the relief on the pain. This really helps.
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Congrats on a smooth journey so far. I have a few questions if you don't mind answering.
How close were you able to schedule an actual surgery date after the consultation? Do you feel renting your own place is a good arrangement based on your cab experience and difficulties getting around?
Did Dr. Lee require a ITB release for you(pass 5 cm ) or was it not necessary?
Thanks Cobalt,
My surgery date was very close to the consultation date since I was already in the country and I was looking for the earliest option. I was lucky to do this way because Dr.Lee has a lot of surgeries booked in advance and usually 4-6 months after the consultation seem to be what's available. Renting own place comes with a lot of research as a foreigner and you gotta be prepared for a lot of isolation. I've resolved cab problem here by finding an app that's similar to Uber and I don't get around much at all. It has been a lonely journey for me but this suits me fine for now. I don't think patients should expect a social and bright time during the distraction phase. I can tell you that it is dark, lonely and painful. Dr.Lee seems to prefer doing ITB release on all patients as this makes stretching a lot easier when you start distracting.
-iamprepared
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[Update] Complete at 6cm
Hey guys, I've finally finished the distraction at 6cm. One of debates I have had for myself for the entire distraction period was whether to finish at 6cm or do 5 more days to reach 6.5cm. Over the weekend, I finally concluded it would be BETTER to finish this at 6cm. Firstly, I'm overly satisfied with the current length of my femurs. I drew a red line of 6cm on my legs and I was amazed at how long that was. The part of my legs that didn't exist before appeared right there. They are mine. I can feel them and they look so natural. Essentially they come from my own bones, skins, blood, muscle and hard work. Secondly, the conventional wisdom in LL is the less you do, the better for your body, given that you are satisfied with the length. Thirdly, stretching has become a lot harder than at 4-5cm and I think I just reached the safe limit zone. I can still do all stretching moves at 6cm but I cannot foresee what will change at 6.5cm. Fourthly, my ratio looks beautiful right now. I had a through examination of my ratios and they look great. Adding extra length to my femurs could make my body look unnatural. Lastly, I'm ready to move on. According to Dr.Lee, 1cm extra after 6cm would take 1 month extra recovery time. Doing the math, 0.5cm is about 15 days more in wheelchair. I went out on the weekend and there was a bright sunshine for the first time since I came to this country. It was now Spring here. Colorful flowers were everywhere on the street and the warmth made me smile. I felt like I've just finished this long Winter odyssey and I was ready to live my life again, with more authenticity and confidence. This has been quite a journey. For over 2 months, I had to deal with pain, loss of sleep, loneliness. However, only a few days after the distraction phase, the pains are gone (except for the pain from stretching, which I plan to do regularly) and my sleep is great. Instead of loneliness, I now have this feeling of excitement of meeting people again very soon. So if you ask me if I would do the whole process again to achieve the same goal? My answer is, Definitely.
Below, I'd like to list 5 most important things in LL, for anyone who want to pursue their goal.
1.Safety: This is the most important thing. Do not try to weight bear with the technology that doesn't support yet. Listen to your doctor and stay in the wheelchair if you have to. I've seen other patients (not Dr.Lee's) having their nails bent, screw broken by using walker and crutches too early. Any accident will add a lot more extra time in your recovery.
2.Stretching: Do 3 times a day. Start this a few months before the surgery and make it a strong habit of yours. What I found is that during the distraction phase, if you reduce the number to 1-2 a day, it gets twice as harder tomorrow when you do another stretching. You'll eventually become scared to do any more stretching and you'll end up doing one stretching by force during PT session. The pain from stretching is a good pain, really good for your legs and body later, remember.
3.Exercise: From lifting legs to doing bike, make the muscle exercise your daily routine. Muscle damage from distraction is what's causing you to underperform in sports 1-2 year after the surgery. Keep your muscle strong during the distraction phase. This will help you walk faster as well.
4.Doctor: Choose the right doctor to perform the surgery. One must be skilled and precise in performing the surgery, and attentive and responsible to the patient. I made this No.4. I think the surgery is about 5% of this journey and the rest comes from your own efforts during the distraction and the recovery phase. For me, I made the right choice with Dr.Lee.
5.Food: Organize all the food deliveries. I have had almost all meals, fruits, snacks delivered to my place directly. I was never out of quality food that help heal my muscle and bone.
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Congrats. Be sure to keep us updated on your recovery. You did right to stop at 6cm. With your starting height, being 178.5, its not worth the risk.
Good luck and I wish you a swift recovery
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Congrats. Be sure to keep us updated on your recovery. You did right to stop at 6cm. With your starting height, being 178.5, its not worth the risk.
Good luck and I wish you a swift recovery
Think you may be mistaken here TIBIKE. His starting height was 166cm
About
Age: 20s
Gender: Male
Ethnicity & Nationality: N/A
Starting Height: 5'5'' 1/2 (166cm)
Goal Height: 5'8'' (172.5cm)
Weight: 145 Ibs (65kg)
Surgery
Doctor: Donghoon Lee
Operation: Femurs
Type: Precise 2.1
Planned Distraction: 6.5cm
Diameter: 10.7mm (This supports 50 Ibs per leg unlike 12.5mm that supports 75 Ibs. I'm guessing this would make it harder for me to use a walker)
Surgery Date: January 20, 2017
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you are right. I was reading fast and thought his starting height was his goal height.
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I’m an assistant of Dr. Lee. I agree with all you said. As far as we know, the company’s policy is to use every new device in USA first and distribute abroad after they confirm it is safe. As you said Dr. Paley is the first surgeon in the world who uses every most updated PRECICE nail. So it is not possible to use it in Korea beforehand. The information about version we know is double checked by the company and we think it is the most updated version of PRECICE nail which is same as used in USA. But it seems that whether the nail is 2.1 or 2.3 is not that important matter at the moment, so we don’t think it is not necessary to confirm it again to the company. For your reference, we attach the email from the company about the version. Personal information is blotted out.
Here is the image. Sorry, I just found out that previeous image doesn't work.
(http://preview.ibb.co/cFxLQk/1.jpg) (http://ibb.co/b5WfQk)
free image hosting (http://ko.imgbb.com/)
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Hi Dr Donghoon asistant. If a patient is 180 lbs or heavier, would he need help for moving him from the bed to chair or he could do It alone?
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Thanks again for your advice. It's hard being short, seeing people treat you differently, and having the feeling that you were meant for more in this world than to be short. If possible do you mind writing about your experiences from time to time such as how people treat you differently, do family members or friends look at you different and your own personal thoughts now that you are taller? Thanks again for writing these posts as they really do help. Good luck in the future an congrats!
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Hi Iamprepared, how are you now? Is everything going fine?
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What a great diary!
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any update
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2 minutes of searching on google finds a study that claims there is a Precice 2.3
Some people in this forum are just paranoid and cant believe someone actually had a normal CLL procedure.
https://www.hindawi.com/journals/bmri/2017/8032510/
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2 minutes of searching on google finds a study that claims there is a Precice 2.3
Some people in this forum are just paranoid and cant believe someone actually had a normal CLL procedure.
https://www.hindawi.com/journals/bmri/2017/8032510/
It’s mainly because Paley’s secretary never update the version number on their documents after 2.2.