Hi Rozzie:

My husband was diagnosed for years with Idiopathic Peripheral Neuropathy. He is not now, nor has he ever been diabetic. His sugar reading is usually 84. Thats his number. Always has, probably has been. They ruled out anthing to do with Diabetes long long time ago and he had another test last year and again it was ruled out.

They did however order a spinal tap, discovered protein in his spinal fluid, and prescribed IVIG infusions once a month. Helps with his balance but does nothing for the pain between the toes. That's where his neuropathy is.

Two or so years ago he had a carotid blockage, did the stent thing, went into cardio rehab, joined a gym, went on a treadmill, AND BECAUSE HIS FEET ARE COMPLETELY NUMB, well he did not know he was developing a sore. He came home, all his socks were bloodied, I immediately took him to his podiatrist who diagnosed him with a foot ulcer.

He has had the same recurring foot ulcer for a good two years. He has been debrided more times than a fish has been gutted.

He has been prescribed orthotics, oft-loading shoes, shoe boot cam walker thingees, his ulcer would heal, then it would return.

His podiatrist would not shave down the bone. I found an orthopedic surgeon. Alan went to him (I could not go that day AND I CAN BOP MYSELF BECAUSE I WOULD HAVE LISTENED TO WHAT THE GUY SAID).

Alan came home and said "Oh, he's going to shave down the bone and take out something out of my calf". I said 'really??" and he said "Yeah, he says that if he does this calf thing, then when I walk, I won't put any pressure on the ulcer.

Well, yesterday, he has the operation, (and now you an re-read what I said about the doctor not shaving down the bone).

So next week, WHEN I WILL GO WITH HIM , I shall take notes, and you can read it right here on this thread.

That way you can compare your husband's feet with my husband's feet.
What's your husband's diagnosis by the way? My husband has never had a bone infection, never had an amputation, (thank god).
Is your hubby diabetic?

Good luck Melody and I hope Alan's foot heals fast! Tell him I'm off my crutches now And just be very very careful and don't get too confidant. Take it slow. Hope all goes well.

Billye

Hi Billye:

I know exactly what you mean by not getting too confident. I'm afraid he'll fall if he tries to do anything on the crutches without me next to him. He doesn't do this. This is how we communicate. I have a very long apartment. My living room dining room alone is 30 feet. So if I'm in the back of my apartment doing something on the computer or just cleaning up in the bathroom, how can he call me??

I gave him my cell phone. He calls the landline phone, I see it's him, I say "what's up tootsie" and he goes, "can you come and put in this cassette tape for me". I go inside and bop him on the head. We laugh.

I really don't mind because as soon as he's well, he's taking me around the corner for a nice Japanese dinner.

Next week I'm taking down the wheelchair and putting it down the stairs. Then he'll shimmy down and get into it. Then we'll access-a-ride down to the Doc's office. Don't know if they will take the cast off. Anybody have a clue??

Also, it's a hard cast. So here's my question. And underneath by the heel area, it's hard there too. So the cast is a hard cast everywhere (and the toes peek out). So what would be the bad thing if, let's say Alan wants to wheel himself ove to the bathroom, and then take one crutch, and put down his right foot (the one with the cast), and just gingerly puts the heel on the floor.??? Isn't that what a hard cast is for. To allow you to step on it for a moment so you can transfer from one object to another??

Like getting out of bed and just taking two steps to the wheelchair, or getting out of the wheelchair and taking two steps to the bathroom.

He really isn't supposed to put his cast on the floor at all??

Believe me, all the instructions say is to elevate the right foot at heart level.

They tried to show him how to walk with the crutches, but when I saw the hard cast was under the heel, the first thing I thought of was "can't he just put his heel down for a moment???"

I'm thinking, "maybe it has something to do with the muscle calf thingee??" I mean, maybe he is not supposed to do any walking on this hard cast because of the calf part of the operation?? I didn't know that it was a hard cast by the heel or I would have asked the doctor, and now it's too late to call anybody.

If he puts any weight on the heel, it's not going to disturb the ulcer because the heel is in the hard cast.

anyone know???

mel

Does he have pain?

Sounds like there isn't much because you don't mention it.

Hi Mrs. D.

No, he doesn't have pain (he does have discomfort), but no pain. He does have the neuropathy if he sits or lies down. NOt when he stands up. But he rarely stands up because he can't.

I hope someone can answer my question about walking on the heel of the cast.

Thanks much

no expert here...but if the cast doesn't have the rubber bumper on the bottom..it's normally not meant to walk on. which means the dr didn't want it walked or he would have ordered a walking cast.

Melody,
if they mean for him to walk or put weight on it, he'd have a heel built into the bottom of the cast. No heel means no weight in my experience and believe me I've had a lot of it. I tore tendons loose from my ankle, they took a tendon from the back of my calf and spliced the tendon in my ankle. No heel, no weight was what I was told. And tell him NOOO coathangers inside it to scratch. (yes it will get itchy) He needs to support his weight on his good leg and the crutches. Yes, it will be difficult. He's a strong man. If I can do it he can, let him do it, don't hurt yourself.

You can call your doctor on Monday to see how much if any weight he can put on it.

Billye

Alan just made the video.

It's amazing, how one can be in so much pain (even after a percocet), and then when he gets up in the morning, he can sit in the wheelchair and be laughing.

I don't know if the endorphins, or it's the weather, (he does not take any pain meds during the day, only before bedtime), and only since he had the operation. Normal pain meds don't work on his neuropathy. I think the Alprazolam works better at his going to sleep. I don't think tonight he'll need a percocet. Just the alprazolam.

Anyway, here is my Alan, in fine form, saying HI!!! to all of you!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EPrhlrGJ7co

Hi MelodyL

My husband, David, started about 12 years ago when he was approx. age 40 of having some numbness in his toes. At some point he got a cut on the bottom of his foot that bacause he couldn't feel all that much it got infected. Several doctors later, they diagnosed it as peripheral neuropathy. Eventually his foot got infected to the bone (has had multiple bone scans-forget the medical name) and he had one or two toes on his left foot taken off (it all blurs on whether they did his second & third toe together, bottom line both were gone). he got some orthotics for his shoes that he says really helps keep pressure points off certain areas of his feet. Now after multiple surgeries (debredments too many to remember) he has his big toes remaining on his left foot. He has had some problems with his right foot but so far has lost no toes. He has really high arches & his toes draw up so that seems to put pressure on his toes & of course makes the way he walks put pressure on the bottom where he gets callouses. He also about 5 years or so ago has noticed tingling, pain, loss of feeling in his hands.
This seems to be genetic as his older brother (17 years older) just last week had all of his toes taken off plus part of his foot due to unhealed infected bone. (he doesn't listen to the doctors). A younger nephew (age 40-son of the one who doesn't listen) has begun having some numbness in his feet and I think another nephew has begun also with numbness. So far none of the women in David's family (he has 6 brothers & 4 sisters) has had any problems. The doctors don't have much of an answer as to why for any of this. He is having more bone "shaving" next Wednesday. Hope it's just that & not the remaining toe. (I think we have helped his doctor-podiatrist-put his kids thru college!)

For your husband, make sure to keep careful watch on any sore on his feet as infection is impossible to get rid of once it gets a stronghold. Any signs of redness, red streaks, swelling is a sign that there is infection. Xray shows some of this but the bone scan shows up with more definition.

RozzieM

Rozzie:

Yeah, I know all about the infection thing with the foot ulcers. He's been there, done that. The very last time he got an infection was many many months ago, Might have been a year. Oh, I remember what happened. He was bleeding and because he has absolutely no feeling in his feet, he just started taking out the skin around the ulcer. There was an actual bigger hole than there was before.

I looked at him and said "are you out of your mind, you have an infection, you don't go putting your hands in there and taking out the remaining area."

I had to literally drag him to the podiatrist who yelled at him. The podiatrist debrided it and I have never seen a hole so big in my life. He told us to come back in three days. You would not believe how fast this man heals (because he is not a diabetic). His hole was almost closed.

The doctor marveled and said "look at this, you would never know that three days ago, he had a whole bigger than a quarter"!!!! The doc had put him on antibiotics at that time.

But thankfully there has been no infections since. Just his darn ulcer and debridement after debridement, shoe boot after shoe boot.

Oh, my husband just made a video and we are uploading it onto youtube. I'll post it right on this thread.

You'll get to see him and his humor and his cast and his wheelchair. We find it very helpful in his recovery.

Take care,

Melody