The Incredible Shrinking Splints

On Thursday my mom went to the surgeon so he could check on her progress.  He took x-rays and said everything looked really good.  All the bones were in alignment and the plates/pins were in the correct places.  The incisions still have dissolvable stitches inside and there is still glue holding things together on the outside.  The surgeon said she should start physical therapy right away and gave her smaller black braces with velcro so they could be removed when necessary.  On Friday morning she had her first physical therapy session.  Mainly it consisted of making another set of braces that were a little less cumbersome, but not very comfortable.  These were supposed to replace the black ones and they can get wet, but they are just really irritating.  He also gave her some exercises to do at home 3-5 times per day.  The bones won't be healed for 6-8 weeks, but she will be having therapy 3 times a week for a couple weeks and then only 2 times a week thereafter.  He is pretty positive that after about 3 months she will be able to do most of what she was doing before, but the last 5 percent of range of motion/strength/flexibility will take another several months to get that last little bit done.  We think we have figured out a way to open the fridge/microwave/etc. by taking a strap and putting it around the handle and her upper arm so she can pull the strap to open them up.  No strenuous movement for a while.  We have arranged meals, rides, and other necessities for a while so hopefully things will be taken care of until she can do more for herself.


Original splints

No splints

Black splints