Matthew's surgery date and information

On December 4th, 2008, Matthew will have surgery on his left leg.
The surgery is called "Femur Varus Osteotomy".

We will go to Albuquerque on 12/3/08 for his pre-op appointment. That day we are also trying to schedule an appointment with Child Life Services so they can meet us at the hospital and give Matthew a "kid tour" and kind of help him understand the process, see where he will be, and answer his questions on his level.

Matthew will be in the hospital, I believe for 2 days following his surgery and then will be able to go home.

Craig has explained the surgery to Matthew somewhat since he has been through hip surgery as well. So far Matthew's only question was on 11/18/08. As I dropped him off at school in the morning, he started to walk in and then turned around and with a worried look whispered, "Mom, when I have surgery on my hip do I have to stay in the hospital all by myself?" I responded, "Oh my gosh, no way. No, no way. We will be there the whole time." He smiled and walked to class.

Today I got....

....a little dose of reality. I had set Matthew's clothes for the day out. I woke him up. He whined a little bit about his leg hurting but I reassured him it was ok and then got in the shower. While I was in the shower, Matthew whined, "Mom, I can't put my jeans on." "What?", I replied. "Why not?"

"My leg hurts and I can't bend it to put my jeans on." I told him to wait and I'd be out shortly and would help him. 20 minutes later I got out of the shower to find him lying on the bed with his pants up only to his calves.

Those of you who know Matthew know he doesn't sit and wait on anyone. He is independent and does for himself. It must've really hurt. Worse than usual. He did limp a lot this past weekend. Plus, on Saturday, we had some friends over and had a bonfire in our backyard. Matthew, Wylie and Bryce ran around and played football for a couple hours. I'm sure that contributed.

Needless to say, I kept him home today. He is resting his leg.
Surgery and recovery kind of scare me to be honest.

However, I count my blessings. There is a little boy named Joseph who is 6 years old. He played on Matthew's soccer team just a month ago. He's a super goal-scorer. A few days ago he was diagnosed with Leukemia. This past weekend he had a bone marrow test, blood transfusion, and his first round of chemo. All in one weekend. He is a sweet little boy that loves soccer, running, and playing. He's got a cute little smile and a quiet demeanor.

PLEASE KEEP JOSEPH and MATTHEW IN YOUR PRAYERS!

Wildcats honor Seniors

The Deming High Wildcats honored their seniors last week before the Santa Teresa football game. The are (in no particular order): Ky Baeza, Wesley Beris, Orlando Cabrera, Kevin Cordova, Santiago Fernandez, Adrian A. Granillo, Matthew Granillo, Anthony Guillen, Austin Hilton, Carlos Holguin, Wry Hurt, Charles Jackson, Cody Keeler, Juan Lopez, Jose Mejia, Miguel Mirelas, Michael Morrison, Johnny Pacheco, Ronnie Pardue, James Poppenberg, Michael Pratt, Oscar Sandoval, Joshua Santana, Joshua Shaw, Chevy Teague, Ricky Uribe and Miguel Zizumbo. (Bill Armendariz/Headlight Photo)

http://www.demingheadlight.com/ci_10919802?IADID=Search-www.demingheadlight.com-www.demingheadlight.com

Michael is in the top row, 6th from the left.

UPDATE ON MATTHEW'S LEGS

Well, Matthew had a follow-up appointment on Friday and it was determined that his case is severe and will require surgery. His x-rays, ABOVE, (taken this past Wednesday) show that the ball of his left femur is almost completely gone and has also moved slightly outside of the hip socket. Given this new development, they feel surgery sooner (within the next 2 months) than later would be better for his prognosis. The surgery is described below.

In the x-ray above, you'll notice his left hip (on the right in the picture) has little to no ball because of the stage it's in and also that it sits a little bit outside of the hip socket. This is the problem they want to correct.

Matthew will either have surgery in Albuquerque, NM or Los Angeles, CA. He will be either on crutches or a walker for 4-6 weeks after along with physical therapy. They say as long as things go as planned, he may be playing soccer in the spring.

Please keep Matthew in your thoughts and prayers. He loves to run and play and we hope this will allow him that with less pain and save him from having to have a total hip replacement before he is 20.

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THE FOLLOWING INFORMATION WAS TAKEN FROM http://www.posna.org/. A WEBSITE RECOMMENDED BY THE ORTHOPAEDIC SURGEON AT UNM CARRIE TINGLEY HOSPITAL IN ALBUQUERQUE.

Perthes Disease

Perthes is a condition in children characterized by a temporary loss of blood supply to the hip. Without an adequate blood supply, the rounded head of the femur (the " ball " of the " ball and socket " joint of the hip) dies. The area becomes intensely inflamed and irritated.

Although the term 'disease' is still used, Perthes is really a complex process of stages. Treatment of Perthes may require periods of immobilization or limitations on usual activities. The long-term prognosis is good in most cases. After 18 months to 2 years of treatment, most children return to normal activities without major limitations.

Perthes disease usually is seen in children between 4 years and 10 years of age. It is five times more common in boys than in girls. It was originally described nearly a century ago as a peculiar form of childhood arthritis of the hips.

Symptoms

The child may show signs of limping and may complain of mild pain. The child may have had these symptoms intermittently over a period of weeks or even months. Pain sometimes is caused by muscle spasms that may result from irritation around the hip. Pain may be felt in other parts of the leg, such as the groin, thigh, or knee. When the hip is moved, the pain worsens. Rest often relieves the pain.

Diagnosis

X-rays usually diagnose the condition. The child with Perthes can expect to have several X-rays taken over the course of treatment, which may be two years or longer. The X-rays usually will look worse before gradual improvement is seen.

Perthes disease involves the patient's left hip. The other side is normal.
(Courtesy of Texas Scottish Rite Hospital for Children)

Treatment

Girls tend to have more extensive involvement; therefore, the expectations (prognosis) are generally poorer than with boys.

For very young children (those 2 to 6 years of age) who show very few changes on their initial X-rays, treatment is usually simply observation.

The older child is treated in order to improve the hip's range of motion.
Nonsurgical Treatment

Anti-inflammatory medications, such as ibuprofen, are used to lessen inflammation of the hip joint or synovium (sleeve of tissue surrounding the hip joint). These medicines are often used for months. The medications will be adjusted or discontinued, depending on the healing stage.
A child with Perthes disease may tend to walk with a limp due to a stiff hip. To help restore hip joint range of motion, the child may be encouraged to walk with crutches and participate in physical therapy. Bed rest in traction may be needed in some cases, however.

With physical therapy, the child will be shown some simple exercises to do until the final stage of healing has occurred.

Hip abduction

The child will lie on his or her back, keeping knees bent and feet flat. With the parent's hands on the child's knees, assist the child as he or she pushes the knees out and as squeezes the knees together.

Hip rotation

With the child on his or her back and with the legs out straight, roll the entire leg inward and outward.

If range of motion becomes limited or if X-rays or MRIs indicate that a progressive deformity is developing, a cast may be used to keep the head of the femur within the acetabulum, or hip socket.

Petrie casts are two long leg casts with a wooden bar that hold the legs spread apart in a position similar to the letter "A." The application of the initial Petrie cast usually is performed in the operating room. During the procedure, the surgeon usually will place a small amount of dye into the hip joint (arthrogram) to aid in evaluating the degree of "flattening" of femoral head. Occasionally, the adductor longus muscle in the groin must be lengthened through a small incision to permit the hip to rotate into a more favorable position.

Petrie casts keep the legs spread far apart in an effort to maintain the hips in the best position for healing.
(Courtesy of Texas Scottish Rite Hospital for Children)

After the cast is removed, usually after four to six weeks, exercises are reinstituted. This treatment may be continued until range of motion is returned or the hip enters the final stage of the healing process.

Surgical Treatment

An osteotomy to the left hip puts the femoral head in a better position to heal.
(Courtesy of Texas Scottish Rite Hospital for Children)Surgical treatment re-establishes the proper alignment of the bones of the hip. The head of the femur is placed deep within the socket, or acetabulum. This alignment is kept in place with screws and plates, which will be removed at a later time. In some cases, the socket must also be made deeper because the head of the femur has actually enlarged during the healing process and no longer fits snugly within. After either procedure, the child is often placed in a cast from the chest to the toes for 6 to 8 weeks.
After the cast is removed, the child will again participate in physical therapy. Activities will be designed so that the child only partially bears weight on the affected hip. X-rays will show when the final stages of the healing are under way.

Father and son talk about stuff...

Phone conversations...

Matthew: Dad...my football got stuck in a tree today. Darren throws really far and he threw it in the tree. Mrs. Otero tried to get it out, but couldn't. Her ball got stuck up there too.

Craig: Oh no, are you going to try and get it tomorrow.

Matthew: No. Mom and Michael are going to go to school with me to get it now.

Craig: It's dark.

Matthew: I know.

Craig: Ok Matt...call me after.

An hour later.......
Matthew: Dad, I got my football out of the tree.

Craig: You did? That's good. Im glad. I know it's your favorite.

Matthew: How'd you know I love football?

Craig: Cuz you told me and I know we like playing together.

Matthew: Remember when the Steelers beat the Green Bay?

Craig: Yes.

Matthew: And when the Giants beat the Dallas Cowboys?

Matthew: I wanted Green Bay and Dallas to win, but Grans team ALWAYS wins.

Craig: Yeah, she's crazy ha...

Matthew: Yeah. Her team always wins.

Craig: Yeah.

Matthew: I love football more than you do.

Craig: NO.

Matthew: Yeah.

Craig: Okay. I'll see you in two days. I'm excited for that!

Matthew: Me too.

Craig: Love you Bubba.

Matthew: Love you too.

Craig: Bye.

Matthew: Bye.

Field trip to the Corn Maze!

The first graders at Chaparral Elementary school went on a field trip to the Corn Maze in Las Cruces. They had a lot of fun. Here are a few pictures...

Matthew & Ernesto


Matthew & Ernesto

Matthew & Ernesto

Pumpkin Heads!

How handsome is he!?!?!?!

Giraffe Matthew

Racing a duck!

A ghost & a pumpkin. Face painting was one of the highlights!

Gettin' his face painted.

This one is the "fast" slide!

This one was the "cool, creepy" slide!

WILDCAT FOOTBALL...Deming vs. Santa T

Deming crushed Santa Teresa 56-20.
Michael was #67.

OK, OK....the last picture is goofy, but...Michael's number is 67 and when we left the game, the temperature was 67 degrees! C'mon!

Happy Halloween!

Trick or Treating at Grandma Katy's.


BOO! Grandma Katy...

Out gettin' some loot!

Mom & Matt had fun together!

OOOOOOOoooooOOOOOOO!

An early morning call to Daddy...

This morning Matthew called Dad on the way to school to say "hi", and tell him to have a good day...

Craig: Hello.

Matt: Hi Dad.

Craig: Hi Bubba, are you on your way to school?

Matt: Ya.

Craig: Are you taking your football again?

Matt: Ya. And I'm wearing my Dallas Cowboys jacket.

Craig: Cool. Today's probably not the best day to wear that though. The cowboys lost.

Matt: Ya. I know. They lost to the Giants. But I'm wearing it anyway cuz it's cool.

Craig: Okay Bubba, I think so too. Have a good day.

Matt: K, love you Dad. Bye.