Oct 30, 2006
Today I took Gary back to the podiatrist. We asked what would happen if Gary was only treated with antibiotics and didn’t have the procedure done, and the doctor thought it was likely the infection would come back, because the nail would still be pressing in there. So Gary decided to have the procedure done. The doctor had said he planned to “numb” the toe, and we made sure that he knew he should use the same amount as if Gary had feeling there (to avoid setting off dysreflexia – we’re hoping Gary never experiences that). Because it was Gary’s toe and not mine
;-), I watched the procedure. I think looking at that great big needle containing the anesthetic going into my own toe might have made me faint! Interestingly, Gary’s foot knew something was going on, because it did some twitching. Gary didn’t feel a thing though. Then I watched the doctor cut a vertical strip of toenail off down the side of the toe – he said he was taking out a bigger strip than he normally would, because of the swelling of the feet that Gary has. I winced in watching him cut the nail down all the way – Gary said he watched part of the procedure, but not all of it. After this was done, the doctor applied phenol at the base of where the nail had been, the idea being that this would prevent the nail from regrowing there.
The procedure took about ten minutes. The paperwork took about double that. And the wait to get into the treatment room took double that. My pet peeve about doctors is their scheduling.
To finish, the doctor wrapped Gary’s toe up good, then put him in a “goofy shoe.” Since Gary has been wearing his own version of a goofy shoe, he didn’t mind too much. He is still taking the antibiotic, and tomorrow I will take the bandage off. After that we go back to soaking his foot twice a day, and Gary will continue to wear the goofy shoe the doctor gave him, along with his regular t.e.d. hose and sock. We go back for a follow-up on Thursday.
We discovered the doctor has a little wooden portable ramp that enabled me to get Gary in the door much easier (i.e., without giving myself a hernia!). Gary would still not be able to do it alone. He’d need someone to hold the door on the way in. On the way out, there is hardly any distance from the end of the ramp to the curb of the sidewalk, so if he did it himself, there would be a danger of him going off the ramp and continuing on flying off the sidewalk. Needless to say, I held onto the handles of his chair.
Speaking of the foot twitches, one thing that started happening after we got home from Shepherd that never happened there are all these leg spasms Gary now has. Fortunately they don’t interfere with his activity (if there ever comes a time they do, the standard procedure is to put him on medication to stop them). They mostly come after he transfers into bed at night, and after I stretch one leg and am about to start the other. We joke that his legs are trying to run away. None of the movement is voluntary.
We finished the Brooke Ellison story tonight. Both of us cried through the ending – of course, we are saps ;-) Gary is even worse than me when it comes to crying during movies – and TV shows, for that matter. I have always found that endearing.
Today I took Gary back to the podiatrist. We asked what would happen if Gary was only treated with antibiotics and didn’t have the procedure done, and the doctor thought it was likely the infection would come back, because the nail would still be pressing in there. So Gary decided to have the procedure done. The doctor had said he planned to “numb” the toe, and we made sure that he knew he should use the same amount as if Gary had feeling there (to avoid setting off dysreflexia – we’re hoping Gary never experiences that). Because it was Gary’s toe and not mine
;-), I watched the procedure. I think looking at that great big needle containing the anesthetic going into my own toe might have made me faint! Interestingly, Gary’s foot knew something was going on, because it did some twitching. Gary didn’t feel a thing though. Then I watched the doctor cut a vertical strip of toenail off down the side of the toe – he said he was taking out a bigger strip than he normally would, because of the swelling of the feet that Gary has. I winced in watching him cut the nail down all the way – Gary said he watched part of the procedure, but not all of it. After this was done, the doctor applied phenol at the base of where the nail had been, the idea being that this would prevent the nail from regrowing there.
The procedure took about ten minutes. The paperwork took about double that. And the wait to get into the treatment room took double that. My pet peeve about doctors is their scheduling.
To finish, the doctor wrapped Gary’s toe up good, then put him in a “goofy shoe.” Since Gary has been wearing his own version of a goofy shoe, he didn’t mind too much. He is still taking the antibiotic, and tomorrow I will take the bandage off. After that we go back to soaking his foot twice a day, and Gary will continue to wear the goofy shoe the doctor gave him, along with his regular t.e.d. hose and sock. We go back for a follow-up on Thursday.
We discovered the doctor has a little wooden portable ramp that enabled me to get Gary in the door much easier (i.e., without giving myself a hernia!). Gary would still not be able to do it alone. He’d need someone to hold the door on the way in. On the way out, there is hardly any distance from the end of the ramp to the curb of the sidewalk, so if he did it himself, there would be a danger of him going off the ramp and continuing on flying off the sidewalk. Needless to say, I held onto the handles of his chair.
Speaking of the foot twitches, one thing that started happening after we got home from Shepherd that never happened there are all these leg spasms Gary now has. Fortunately they don’t interfere with his activity (if there ever comes a time they do, the standard procedure is to put him on medication to stop them). They mostly come after he transfers into bed at night, and after I stretch one leg and am about to start the other. We joke that his legs are trying to run away. None of the movement is voluntary.
We finished the Brooke Ellison story tonight. Both of us cried through the ending – of course, we are saps ;-) Gary is even worse than me when it comes to crying during movies – and TV shows, for that matter. I have always found that endearing.
posted by Peg Daniels at 8:15 PM
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