Our plan with Shriner's

Well, where do I start...so much has happened. I will start by saying we ALL ended up with the flu. So our weekend was full of trying to disinfect the house and do LOADS of soiled laundry all while being sick and taking care of 2 sick girls. In fact Michael didn't even get to go to Shriner's with us on Monday because he was still sick (as was Mackenzie). So Mackenzie and Daddy stayed home, while Delaney and Mommy headed to PA. Our appointment was for 12:45, we got there at 12:15 and were told it would be a 2-4 hour wait...ugh! But I wasn't about to go anywhere! So we waited. Delaney was an angel and it really wasn't so bad. We got called back at about 3. Then everything seemed to happen very fast.

I preface this by saying the other 2 doctors we had seen (Crystal Clinic & Cleveland Clinic) only see 1 or 2 cases of PIS every 3-5 years. Shriner's sees about 400 cases a year from children all over the world. So they know what they are doing. The first thing they said was that you can't get a true angle reading on the x-ray if the child is sitting. And of course that was how the other drs had done it...so this doctor had us do more x-rays first. That's when all the good news started happening. Her previous diagnosis was COBB angle (angle of the spine) was 40 degrees with the RVAD (Rib angle from the spine) was 50 degrees. Which is pretty bad. Well, with the new x-ray and doctors who know what they are doing her actual COBB angle is 23 degrees and her RVAD is 18 degrees. WOW WOW WOW!!!! SO much better than we thought. Seems all the prayers for our little Delaney are working some big miracles! They believe she is a good candidate for the casting and that they can completely correct her curve.! Hurray!! THANK GOD!!!

After the appointment, I was introduced to Delaney's "team". Aside from her Ortho Surgeon and her Certified RN, I was introduced to 2 other ladies, her Certified Physical Assistant, and a Care Coordinator who basically takes care of your every need through it all. These 4 people make up the team of professionals we will be working closely with over the course of our journey. I was then shown a video on casting and given a short tour of the surgery wing. They were amazing. They made us feel welcome and comfortable and you could really tell they knew what they were doing. I had such peace about the whole thing. It was such a relief after all these weeks of stress, worry and fear.

Her casting is scheduled for March 4th...3 weeks from today. I am so thankful for this opportunity. What a whirlwind this has been. In 3 (long) weeks, we have come so far. If any of you watched the video (see sidebar), you know that to cast her they have to put her under anaesthetic. Which is the only part that scares me. It's so scary that so many things can go wrong from that. Some of the moms I have been in contact with who's child had casting reported vomiting and or asthma anywhere from a couple days to 2 weeks. So hopefully she won't have any of those reactions. Then they will put her on this special table, and using the table and their hands manipulate her spine and ribs as straight as they can and then apply the cast. So I am sure she will be a little sore after, and I know it can irritate her delicate skin. Dr. Schrantz seems to think that she will need to be in a cast for about 1 year. We will be traveling to PA every 2 months for a new cast to be put on until her spine is straight. So we have a long road and lots of issues that are bound to pop up, but the end result is totally worth it. Our baby girl will be healed!!