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Thankful For A Jammed Toe!

nunnnunn Forums Admins, Member, Moderator Posts: 35,988 ******
edited September 2012 in General Discussion
Dawnie's that is. If you recall, about a year ago, she had surgery on both feet that left screws in her big toes. The other day, she accidently whacked her left big toe against the dresser. Just a jammed toe, but it started to swell and discolor.

She went to her regular doctor, and he pulled some fluid off, and it was pus. So he opened it and drained it. The toe was badly infected, and it had not had time to become that badly infected after the collision with the dresser. That doc recommended she see the podiatrist who did the surgery. So she did.

She went to the podiatrist's office yesterday. This doc is Dawnie's friend, and did practice in Greenville, but has since moved to Denton, so Dawnie drove all the way to Denton. Doc did X-rays of both big toes. Didn't like the look of the left one, the injured one. She put Dawnie in the hospital, and scheduled surgery for this morning.

She had not planned to stay, so the kids and I drove over to see her yesterday, took her some necessities, and picked up her car. She had surgery this morning. The toe bone was badly infected and doc said it smelled bad. Doc scraped away the corruption and a big part of the toe bone with it.

Jamming the toe had cracked the bone and let some of the nastiness leak out into the soft tissue, causing a lot of pain and swelling.

She have to go back Tuesday and have a sort of a splint installed that will hold what's left of the bone in place. Then, after the infection is gone, she will go back yet again and have a bone graft done.

In the meantime, Dawnie has a home health nurse visiting to oversee the administration of IV antibiotics and manage the wound. Dawnie will be on IV antibiotics twice a day for at least six weeks. She has a PICC line (Peripherally Inserted Central Catheter) for administering the drugs and for pulling blood if need be. Her meds go directly into the superior vena cava.

The infection is in the bone of the big toe. There is no telling how long it had been there; maybe since the placement of the screw a year ago. Had Dawnie not jammed her toe and broken some of it loose, it might have continued to fester for several more months before she noticed it, and she could have lost the toe or maybe even the foot.

So, I thank God for a jammed toe!

Comments

  • dheffleydheffley Member Posts: 25,000
    edited November -1
    David, is she still in the Denton hospital? If so, let me know which one via email.

    Ignor that, I just read the "home nurse" part.
  • dreherdreher Member Posts: 8,777 ✭✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    The Lord works in mysterious ways!
  • nunnnunn Forums Admins, Member, Moderator Posts: 35,988 ******
    edited November -1
    She was in the North Texas Hospital. I don't remember the street it's on, but you turn off Mayhill Road to get there. It is a very small hospital with only 14 rooms. It is primarily for minor procedures, but it is open 24 hours a day.

    Her podiatrist is Dr. Lesley Richey-Smith. She practices in Denton now, and if you have a foot or ankle issue, I highly recommend her.

    Poor Jake didn't know how to act without Dawnie here. She has not been away from him overnight since he has been here, and he is totally devoted to her. When I came home without Dawnie, he looked puzzled, but he ate his dinner and did his outdoor chores all right. Then when it was time for bed, I told him so, and I went to bed. He trotted down the hall, looked around the bedroom, and not seeing Dawnie, he went back to the living room. He spent the night in the living room, waiting for Dawnie to come home.
  • dav1965dav1965 Member Posts: 26,543 ✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    Glad things worked out for the best. Even though it still is bad. Hope she gets better soon.
  • CS8161CS8161 Member Posts: 13,595 ✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    Hope everything goes well!
  • montanajoemontanajoe Forums Admins, Member, Moderator Posts: 57,892 ******
    edited November -1
    Sorry to hear about the infection. Glad to hear she jammed her toe. Get well soon Dawnie. Prayers and well wishes.[:)][:)][:)]
  • 1911a1-fan1911a1-fan Member Posts: 51,193 ✭✭
    edited November -1
    that hurt just reading it, i wish her well
  • nunnnunn Forums Admins, Member, Moderator Posts: 35,988 ******
    edited November -1
    You ought to see it now. Actually, you can't. It's all bound up. I have a feeling this is going to be expensive.
  • JamesRKJamesRK Member Posts: 25,670 ✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    I hope you have good insurance.

    It sounds like that was about the only way she could have found the problem before it was too late to do anything about it. I guess that's what you call a lucky break.

    I hope she heals quickly.
    The road to hell is paved with COMPROMISE.
  • dawniedawnie Member Posts: 1,213 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    Thank You for all the prayers and Good wishes. Both my doctor and I are puzzled about this,she feels bad thinking it was something she did,but then we would of seen some kind of sign shortly after surgery,so who knows.
    THe nerve block wore off at 1 am,thankfully I had been taking pain pills so its not that bad,I have to start and IV every 12hour which last about and 1 hour 15min..not bad cause i can hold it and do what i need to.

    people talk about the golden ticket,after this I will have the golden toe.
  • CDMeadCDMead Member Posts: 2,141 ✭✭
    edited November -1
    Wow! I hope Dawnie feels better soon.
  • woodshed87woodshed87 Member Posts: 25,785
    edited November -1
    We are Praying For You Dawnie
    Everything Happens For a Reason
    This Time The reason is to Make You well again to Take Care of
    David[^]
    Hang in there
    Woody & Dori[;)]
  • TooBigTooBig Member Posts: 28,560 ✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    Hope you heal fast and watch that infection
  • nunnnunn Forums Admins, Member, Moderator Posts: 35,988 ******
    edited November -1
    She just finished her morning IV infusion. Takes a little over an hour.

    We have insurance through Texas Municipal League/Intergovernmental Employee Risk Pool. (TMP/IEBP) It is crap. On a good day, they will cover 70% of allowed charges. If they claim that Dr. Richey-Smith and the North Texas Hospital is "out of network," it drops to 50%.

    These are the same boneheads who denied a surgical claim for Gabby. It was emergency surgery for acute appendicitis, and TML/IEBP claimed it was a "pre-existing condition." When I asked the rep about the denied claim, she said with a straight face, "She already had an appendix, didn't she?" They ended up paying the claim after the fight.

    We shall see.
  • pwilliepwillie Member Posts: 20,253 ✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    Dawnie,you can still kick Nunn in the seat of his pants...with your other foot!LOL! Hope all goes well![:D]
  • bpostbpost Member Posts: 32,664 ✭✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    Osteomyelitis

    Osteomyelitis is an infection of the bone. It can be caused by a variety of microbial agents (most common in staphylococcus aureus) and situations, including:

    An open injury to the bone, such as an open fracture with the bone ends piercing the skin.
    An infection from elsewhere in the body, such as pneumonia or a urinary tract infection that has spread to the bone through the blood (bacteremia, sepsis).
    A minor trauma, which can lead to a blood clot around the bone and then a secondary infection from seeding of bacteria.
    Bacteria in the bloodstream bacteremia (poor dentition), which is deposited in a focal (localized) area of the bone. This bacterial site in the bone then grows, resulting in destruction of the bone. However, new bone often forms around the site.
    A chronic open wound or soft tissue infection can eventually extend down to the bone surface, leading to a secondary bone infection.

    Osteomyelitis affects about two out of every 10,000 people. If left untreated, the infection can become chronic and cause a loss of blood supply to the affected bone. When this happens, it can lead to the eventual death of the bone tissue.

    Osteomyelitis can affect both adults and children. The bacteria or fungus that can cause osteomyelitis, however, differs among age groups. In adults, osteomyelitis often affects the vertebrae and the pelvis. In children, osteomyelitis usually affects the adjacent ends of long bones. Long bones (bones of the limbs) are large, dense bones that provide strength, structure, and mobility. They include the femur and tibia in the legs and the humerus and radius in the arms.

    Osteomyelitis does not occur more commonly in a particular race or gender. However, some people are more at risk for developing the disease, including:

    People with diabetes
    Patients receiving hemodialysis
    People with weakened immune systems
    People with sickle cell disease
    Intravenous drug abusers
    The elderly

    Symptoms of osteomyelitis

    The symptoms of osteomyelitis can include:

    Pain and/or tenderness in the infected area
    Swelling and warmth in the infected area
    Fever
    Nausea, secondarily from being ill with infection
    General discomfort, uneasiness, or ill feeling
    Drainage of pus through the skin

    Additional symptoms that may be associated with this disease include:

    Excessive sweating
    Chills
    Lower back pain (if the spine is involved)
    Swelling of the ankles, feet, and legs
    Changes in gait (walking pattern that is a painful, yielding a limp)
  • SCOUT5SCOUT5 Member Posts: 16,182 ✭✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    These things have the potential to get very bad. I'm glad it was caught and treatment is in place. Best wishes and take very good care of this, David and Dawnie
  • grumpygygrumpygy Member Posts: 53,466
    edited November -1
    Dawnie, just have to ask with you and the animals did any of them act strange to you just before this. Maybe just towards your foot.

    PS Praying it heals fast.
  • dawniedawnie Member Posts: 1,213 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    none of them acted strange,jake has been a little more wanting attention maybe he knew something

    the home health nurse came out tonight and changed the bandage and i was not expecting to see what i saw..the whole toe is laid open,from where she had to cut the infection and bone out,leaving it open so the infection can drain out..I can handle alot but the pain of taking off the bandage made me get sick,the nurse said i would rather u throw up then pass out,at that moment I would of loved to have passes out and not felt the pain
  • grumpygygrumpygy Member Posts: 53,466
    edited November -1
    quote:Originally posted by dawnie
    none of them acted strange,jake has been a little more wanting attention maybe he knew something

    the home health nurse came out tonight and changed the bandage and i was not expecting to see what i saw..the whole toe is laid open,from where she had to cut the infection and bone out,leaving it open so the infection can drain out..I can handle alot but the pain of taking off the bandage made me get sick,the nurse said i would rather u throw up then pass out,at that moment I would of loved to have passes out and not felt the pain


    Hate to say it but you just left me in pain. When I was 12 I went in for my Appendix. After a week of high fever the doctor could only think of one thing. Cut me back open he must have missed some of the poison.
    Yep he did and they did it while I was wide awake said there were no nerves there since they were just cutting scar tissue(WRONG) I bent the bars on the bed which they told me to hold just in case it hurt some.

    The Smell was like rotten potatoes. They left it open to drain, never did sew it back up just left it to drain and heal on its own.

    So I do know how you feel and I can say I wished I had passed out.

    But he was right very next day my fever dropped and 2 days later they let me go home. Spent over 2 weeks in the hospital. What do they spend now about a day.
  • retroxler58retroxler58 Member Posts: 32,693 ✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    Hope you get to feeling better Dawnie... and soon.
  • dawniedawnie Member Posts: 1,213 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    oh no way would they have try to cut me open without knocking me out or numbing it
    the home health nurse was going to ask my dr to call in some numbing spray for my bandage removal.
    oh and good ol Nunn was sitting there taking pictures of my toe
  • nutfinnnutfinn Member Posts: 12,804 ✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    quote:Originally posted by dawnie
    oh no way would they have try to cut me open without knocking me out or numbing it
    the home health nurse was going to ask my dr to call in some numbing spray for my bandage removal.
    oh and good ol Nunn was sitting there taking pictures of my toe
    [:D] Hope you get to feeling better, I don't wanna see those pics either [:I]
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