Topic: Dr. Rozbruch stryde 27th Jan 2021! (Read 4432 times)

Chemistryde · « **on:** January 28, 2021, 11:47:19 PM »

Hi guys!

Can't believe that I am posting on this thread, have always went through your diaries and finally after 10 years of convincing, I decided to get the surgery.

I am 27, 5 feet 1 inches; I also have(had) 15 degree femoral retroversion which Dr. Rozbruch corrected in the same surgery.

NYC is amazing and so is HSS. Everyone is so nice and friendly in here. My surgery was scheduled for Jan 27th 2021 at 12 noon EST. Pre surgery my blood work looked good apart from vitamin D levels which were at 18ng/ml. Dr rozbruch said it was okay to go ahead with the surgery if I continue to take 5000 IU Vitamin D3 for the next 6 months.

My surgery started a bit late, at around 2:30 pm. I was all shaved and set at 1130 but had to wait for some time since Dr. Rozbruch's previous surgery got extended. Once I reached the OR the anesthesiologist gave me a couple of injections and I was knocked out with epidural anesthesia. Next thing I remember was waking up in the OR with nurses moving me to the post op recovery unit. I couldn't feel my legs at first, but slowly regained sensation in my leg and was moved to a 2 bed ward.

I had 0 pain on 27th probably because there was some sorta epidural still flowing as IV and I was on oxycodone. I had some food and slept like a baby.

Today's (28th) PT session also went pretty smooth since I didn't have any pain due to the epidural IV and I was able to walk for about 10 feet. The PT asked me to not weight bear with my legs, but instead use 50 percent arm strength. That went well and they set me up for a CPM machine for both legs. I have to do that for about 90mins in each leg. They also gave me a couple of exercise bands to stretch my foot and toe.

After this session my epidural and catheter were removed, and this is when I started feeling some pain. It was about a 4 and then my PT guys helped me with moving again in the afternoon. This time it was way more challenging, but overall I did good and they said that it's not bad for a second day.

The pain did increase and it was about a 6 when my oxycodone had started to wear off. The typical half life of oxycodone is 4-5 hours and it reduces exponentially after that.

Then finally in the evening after having my food and the last dose of pain killers, I am feeling better and waiting for the pain to reduce further to start another session of CPM.

Vibes · « **Reply #1 on:** January 29, 2021, 01:21:27 AM »

Congratulations for taking this huge step and sharing your experience with us here! You are in the best of hands and I'll be following closely as I am considering Dr. R vs. Dr. Paley for my surgery personally.

Chemistryde · « **Reply #2 on:** January 29, 2021, 04:01:35 AM »

This is day 2 and I can't pee. Did you guys face the same issue?
Is this due to the catheter or could it be something major? I have had like 3 pitchers of water since morning.

Pain is also now up to 6-7 and I need 10mg oxycodone to manage it every 4 hours.

limbcllnea · « **Reply #3 on:** January 29, 2021, 04:08:17 AM »

Good luck on your journey!

How much did you pay and what are your living arrangements like?

Dirona · « **Reply #4 on:** January 29, 2021, 04:42:04 AM »

Good luck on this epic journey! Btw, how are you financing this surgery?

las vegas baby · « **Reply #5 on:** January 29, 2021, 07:23:08 AM »

congrats on starting your journey with a world class doctor!! you will do great!

can you ask the good doc about the stryde nail controversy? does he feel concern using it with nails being stopped from produced?

Chemistryde · « **Reply #6 on:** January 29, 2021, 02:04:31 PM »

I have about 100k in my bank account. Out of that I paid 30k, straight up. I think I'll have to wait for the insurance bills to get a better idea of how much more I can pay.

I am living in a hotel, Fairfield inn. The cost is about 72 dollars a night and I'm gonna spend 20 days here. 3 weeks post op I am planning to fly back to Redmond, Wa.

My brother is here with me, hes a student at San Jose State, and is studying remotely and helping me with th surgery.

Chemistryde · « **Reply #7 on:** January 29, 2021, 02:06:36 PM »

Vegas baby, since the nail is already inside me, I pretty much don't care about any controversies. Just want to get taller and remove this nail from my body, controversial or not.

permanentlybanned · « **Reply #8 on:** January 29, 2021, 09:32:59 PM »

good luck chemistry

rozbruch is one of my favorite doctors with definitely the best bedside manners

you will get a good result dont worry about the nail

i hope your retroversion makes them cover alot with insurance

Chemistryde · « **Reply #9 on:** January 29, 2021, 11:39:14 PM »

Thanks man! Yeah I hope insurance will be willing to help me lol.

So day 3 was actually better. I am still using oxycodone, every 5-6 hours. The pain has gone down, and I'm using ice packs to help with it too. Today morning I was finally able to pee on my own and they didn't have to catheterize me. After that I had breakfast and had a quick session of PT. We did some basic walking around the room and the PT instructor asked me to order a wheelchair since it's not recommended to walk large distances as of now. So I'll need the wheelchair to go back to hotel. Although I got stryde Dr rozbruch recommended to not fully weight bear, and use my arm strength to carry 50 percent of my body weight.

Once I'm off the bed things go pretty okay and I'm able to walk all right, the challenging part is getting in and out of bed. You need a lot of arm strength for that, and I don't have any. Pre surgery I didn't pay attention to working out and was only focussed on multivitamins and supplements. You should have real good arm strength if you want to make your life easy post surgery. Please don't repeat my mistakes damn.

I got on the CPM machine again and started wiggling my toes almost all the time so that I keep some muscles moving. If you don't move, everything gets stiff and PT becomes really challenging. I also had my lengthening demo today and the rep showed me how to use the device. My recommendation is 0.8 mm a day starting Wednesday. And it'll be in steps of 0.2mm 4 x a day.

Dr rozbruch told me that I don't have any swelling which is a good sign and I am hoping it stays that way once I go home. I ordered a personal wheelchair and walker today and will most likely get cleared by PT tomorrow after an early morning session, fingers crossed.

It's day 3 and I'm still not moving my bowels and that's why I'm q bit concerned. But I am assuming that'll only happen once I go back to my hotel room.

L8GrowthSpurt · « **Reply #10 on:** January 30, 2021, 01:14:05 AM »

Good luck, Chemistryde! Will be following your journey. Stay strong 💪👍

Dirona · « **Reply #11 on:** January 30, 2021, 05:29:27 AM »

Nice..Wouldn't it make more sense to do the distraction in NYC itself since Dr R can address any issues immediately?I guess it will also be more safe to do it that way..

Arcon · « **Reply #12 on:** January 30, 2021, 07:20:12 AM »

Quote from: Chemistryde on January 29, 2021, 11:39:14 PM

It's day 3 and I'm still not moving my bowels and that's why I'm q bit concerned. But I am assuming that'll only happen once I go back to my hotel room.

Congratulations on your surgery man, you are in good hands! Tell your doctors about your bowel problem, they may be able to help you with some medication.

Chemistryde · « **Reply #13 on:** January 30, 2021, 02:04:31 PM »

Realistic yeah I am planning to stay longer. At least a month, and it seems like I can easily work from home from the hotel, they have a good internet connection.

Arcon, Yesterday I tried to poop but no luck, will ask for some more stool softeners today. But I am looking forward to clearing PT and getting discharged, fingers crossed.

Everything has been okay so far on day 4. Only my pulse was a little too high, and they gave me an IV for that, they also asked me to do some deep breathing and lung excercises since the epidural can relax internal muscles and might take a toll on your lungs.

I am officially on 5 mg oxycodone, don't feel the need to take the full 10 mg anymore. One of Dr. Rozbruch's assistant visited in the morning and she said that the swelling is normal, and all sensation seems to be good. So I am relieved that everything is fine on the nerves part.

Today's Saturday and there are some trainee nurses in the hospital, and they are learning with me haha. So that feels good, at least I am able to help them professionally grow.

To be honest I feel like I can code and work all day now, and working from home should be perfectly okay. I just need to figure out a plan that includes work, PT and enough stretching to make something out of the following 6 months.

I definitely feel my arms are getting stronger as I'm able to lift and move my body much more compared to the first day. I am also focusing on eggs chicken and fish to do good to the biceps.

I'm still on the blood thinners and just want to start ambulating asap to reduce any risks of embolism. In terms of pain management, oxy and Tylenol help a lot, and spacing them out throughout the day reduces my dependency and need for opiods.

I will try to walk more in the PT session today and also get a good 2 hour dose of CPM on each leg. And then hopefully make it home by evening!

Dirona · « **Reply #14 on:** January 30, 2021, 03:07:00 PM »

Cool..Quick question that you do not have to answer..Do you work at Microsoft since you said that you are moving to Redmond and you are a coder:)?If you are working in a similar big tech company, did you face any discrimination based on your height?

Chemistryde · « **Reply #15 on:** January 30, 2021, 03:17:53 PM »

I do work at Microsoft yeah. Nope never really felt being discriminated against based on height.

Did you?

Dirona · « **Reply #16 on:** January 30, 2021, 03:42:30 PM »

Nope..I do not think swe folks would be discriminated based on appearance in most of the companies...All they care about is whether you are a good engineer producing great software

...Perhaps people in sales or other positions could be..It has affected me only in dating to some extent.. I was associated with a bunch of stupid people who would constantly talk about appearance back in my high school days that has affected my perception..And the Internet has kind of validated that..So whatever discrimination that short people experience is exaggerated in my brain and makes me feel bad..If I could just normalize that somehow, objectively, I should not have any major concerns with my height provided I get lucky with dating..I should NOT include height as a major thing in my idea of the "self" but I am struggling to make that shift in my thinking..

Chemistryde · « **Reply #17 on:** January 30, 2021, 04:30:51 PM »

Yeah I mean people will make judgements, it's up to you, how much of a damn you give

Personally for me LL has always been this exciting thing which will help me get out of the boredom of day to day life. But it's never felt like a need, more like an adventure.

Dirona · « **Reply #18 on:** January 30, 2021, 04:40:26 PM »

It is good to go with an adventurous mindset..Dr. Rozbruch is great and I am sure he would be handling all "corner cases"..I would be following and cheering you as you progress on this journey!

Chemistryde · « **Reply #19 on:** January 30, 2021, 05:12:07 PM »

Thanks man, yeah all corner cases. I think he has written a lot of "test cases" to be where he is lol.

So it think PT cleared me for discharge, and looks like I am scooting in and out of bed all right. All set to go home. Just getting a couple of CPM sessions in and my last dose of oxy at the hospital, and then the ambulate will pick me up in 2 hours from now.

badbuddy · « **Reply #20 on:** January 30, 2021, 10:31:40 PM »

Hey man. Congrats on your step! I had a question in regards to wfh.

1. How are you able to code with all the pain meds you will need/currently taking? I assume first 3 days you’re on narcs, and after release you will still be on narcs, right?
2. Reading other patients diaries they mentioned that at least for the first month they were mostly in bed, so are you planning on coding in bed or do you think you could pull off in a desk with a wheelchair?
3. How many days did you take off?

In general - I’d love to know as much as possible regarding your WFH situation and how you can code and make this work. This is the only drawback for me as I don’t want to take 1+ entire month off completely. I also feel like as much of my life is “normal”, ie incorporating stretch 3-5 times a day while working, the recovery process would be less boring/easier

Chemistryde · « **Reply #21 on:** January 31, 2021, 03:32:05 AM »

I have taken 15-20 days off work. 10 sick leaves + 2 floating leaves, 1 long weekend and a couple more weekends in between.

Oxy should not diminish your ability to work and I think I will have to code in bed for some time, until at least I am able to comfortably move in and out of my wheelchair. I am not starting work until atleast 15 th feb, although I feel healthy enough too, I mean in terms of mental strength.

Returning back home felt good initially but pooping today was probably the most challenging thing I have ever done in my life. The room is ADA compliant, but I have no idea why they have the pot so far down, it's almost as if it's buried inside earth to make life difficult for people with disabilities. I might have to order something that can extend above it so that I get a decent height.

It took me roughly 2 hours to get out of that hellhole, but I finally did manage to get out, thanks to the railings right next to it. It did feel better after pooping haha, I was able to get all the out of my system(literally).

After that I had an oxycodone and was pretty much not in the state to stay up, and passed out. Woke up a few hours back and watching some TV. Trying not to think about my legs today since I have done enough exercise and I should just let my limbs rest. I ordered some food and might do some stretching later in the day, but as of now it feels like I have accomplished enough for the day.

Chemistryde · « **Reply #22 on:** January 31, 2021, 06:03:28 AM »

Took a quick walk for about 30 feet. Feels like I got some good exercise on my femurs and arms. My arms are getting stronger by the day and definitely learning how to make do with limited leg function.

I ordered some food too and got my daily dose of meds right after it. I think the more you stay in a hospital, the more you get dependant on 24*7 care. Even without any nurses being around, me and my brother have done really well for a day 1. Kudos to him for getting all my meds and other stuff.

For blood thinners, they have me on aspirin. Did anyone of you get a stronger med to prevent embolisms? Or does aspirin work fine. A little more concerned now since the both of us are by ourselves at the hotel in the event that anything happens. But generally my pulse and temperature feel okay today, as compared to last night at the hospital, where they had to put an IV to make it go down.

permanentlybanned · « **Reply #23 on:** January 31, 2021, 10:51:39 AM »

With stryde an aspirin is fine. Xalrelto was given with the old nails, but because there is more mobility allowed with stryde, an aspirin is suffice to reduce potential unneeded side effects of xalrelto. Some still give xalrelto with stryde. Paley does not rozbruch does not

Vibes · « **Reply #24 on:** February 01, 2021, 02:29:02 AM »

Quote from: Chemistryde on January 31, 2021, 06:03:28 AM

Took a quick walk for about 30 feet. Feels like I got some good exercise on my femurs and arms. My arms are getting stronger by the day and definitely learning how to make do with limited leg function.

I ordered some food too and got my daily dose of meds right after it. I think the more you stay in a hospital, the more you get dependant on 24*7 care. Even without any nurses being around, me and my brother have done really well for a day 1. Kudos to him for getting all my meds and other stuff.

For blood thinners, they have me on aspirin. Did anyone of you get a stronger med to prevent embolisms? Or does aspirin work fine. A little more concerned now since the both of us are by ourselves at the hotel in the event that anything happens. But generally my pulse and temperature feel okay today, as compared to last night at the hospital, where they had to put an IV to make it go down.

That is really great you have your brother for help! Do you know any other fellow patients there who don't have family with them? How do they make do?

Dirona · « **Reply #25 on:** February 02, 2021, 07:19:21 AM »

Chemistryde..What reason have you told your manager? Does MS have a leave of absence program just in case?

Chemistryde · « **Reply #26 on:** February 03, 2021, 05:30:08 AM »

Got it, thanks ghkid2021.

Realistic, I told my manager that I have an elective surgery and will need sick leaves to recover from it. I used up all my available sick leaves for the year and in addition to that I'm taking a couple floating leaves. This way I don't lose out on any vacation I have accumulated.

Sorry for not posting for these three days, Sunday, Monday and Tuesday. They were all pretty much the same. I woke up, brushed my teeth, used the washroom. I did all of this by myself from getting out of the bed and making it back. I was also able to take a shower all three days, again with the help of my walker. I also did the PT exercises they suggested and watched a lot of tv lying down.

Today I was able to turn 360 on my own and lie down on my stomach too. Apart from that I tried to keep my diet light and healthy and stalked up on some home breakfast from the store.

Pain was manageable at all times the past 3 days. I was also able to reduce my oxy from 4 to 2 to 1 tablet today. Same goes for Tylenol, 8 to 4 to 2. But I think the real challenge starts tomorrow when I start lengthening. Will post regularly everyday until I finish lengthening and keep you guys posted.

My lengthening is supposed to be 0.2mm 4 times a day starting 3rd Feb until I reach 8 cm.

L8GrowthSpurt · « **Reply #27 on:** February 04, 2021, 04:19:26 AM »

Go get it Chemistryde! Will be following your journey here and hopefully in reality soon; sent you a PM. Good luck and stay strong 💪

Vibes · « **Reply #28 on:** February 05, 2021, 12:59:13 AM »

Everything is going so smoothly for you

it makes me really consider Rozburchh over Paley

Chemistryde · « **Reply #29 on:** February 05, 2021, 03:59:03 AM »

Thanks (GOOD) Vibes!

Thanks L8GrowthSpurt =) I'll checkout your PM, and all other PMs tomorrow once I have laptop access.

Lengthening Day1 and Day2 Update:
Total Lengthened 0.2*4 + 0.2*4 = 1.6mm

Both yesterday and today have been okay so far. I had to take 2 oxys yesterday and zero oxys today (Note that I am also on meloxicam 1x a day which helps with pain)
Same routine: was able to shower, move in out of bed, move in out of wheelchair and use the restroom independently. (However I needed my brothers help to get me up on the bed the last time, my legs were too tired).

I signed in to my work account and cancelled my vacation, yes I am planning to start work tomorrow. I have realized that I am watching Shameless for more than 9 hours a day in a single position, so I am just going to work for those 9 hours instead in the same position, nothing changes. The other 15 hours shall be used for PT, moving, sleeping, cribbing (

)

I did have some pain on my upper left femur yesterday due to rotating yesterday, so I have not rotated yet and I am planning to defer that exercise to mornings 9:00 am so that meloxicam (10am) helps take care of that pain.

On 2/3 I lengthened at 2:00 pm, 5:00 pm, 8:00 pm and 11:00 pm.
On 2/4 I lengthened at 12:00 pm, 3pm, 6pm and 11:30pm(pending)
Pain after lengthenting was Nil, but I am assuming that this is just the beginning and as lengthening increases so will the pain.

I have decided to fly from NYC back to Redmond on 2/18 after my first post op appointment on 2/16. The plan after that is to have alternate appointments (virtual and in-person) for the next 3 months. The hospital next to my house in redmond as reasonable employee discounts for radiology. I am also planning to buy some sort of special chair which will allow me to orient my legs in whichever way I want while working once I reach back. You guys can save a lot of money by not staying in a hotel in NYC and also having someone to help you here. The rates for everything are crazy and I just order food worth 40 bucks everyday for me and my brother. Once I move to redmond I'll save a lot of money, have more room to move around and not be stuck in a hotel room, have 3 monitors to work on and do justice to the eye, and will also have much comfortable mattresses and chairs to live on.

Right now, one minor hiccup is that I am not able to flex my knee to 90 degrees -- sitting (which Dr. Rozbruch says I should be able to) so I am constantly working on that. The hope is that with more work, and more chair time this will improve.

The other issue is my constipation

I need the regular dose of senna that HSS ordered + Miralax -- 1 adult dose which the hospital recommended in case the senna is not enough. I hope this will improve once I move around more and sit up more during work.

I spent roughly 2 hours on a wheelchair today, trimmed my beard, shaved, and just moved around in the hotel room trying to arrange my stuff/make coffee without my brothers help. My plan is to not walk unaided and not even try until my first post op appointment i.e. 2/16.

Regarding money, I see a charge on my insurance but the claim has not been processed yet. Will let you guys know asap regarding my resposibility + insurance cover. So far 30K has gone out of pocket which was the initial deposit for the surgery.

Chemistryde · « **Reply #30 on:** February 05, 2021, 04:04:25 AM »

I had some questions for the fellow senior members:

Question 1: I have not started any formal PT and am planning to see how I progress with self PT till 2/16. Will post an update if dr. Rozbruch feels my PT was not good enough and recommends professional help. My discharge summary does not say "I need professional PT, and just says the exercises I should do (these are all available on Dr. Rozbruch's website)". So I am going with that for now, In case any of you feel professional PT is better, please reply here on how and why.

Question 2: When I use the ERC, i don't feel a thing till 0.15mm, but at 0.16mm - 0.20mm I feel a weird click in my legs is that normal? Should this be happening throughout the 0.2mm, just want to make sure that magnets are oriented correctly.

Question 3: Can we take the ERC in a flight?

Limb Lengthening Forum

Author Topic: Dr. Rozbruch stryde 27th Jan 2021! (Read 4432 times)