Author: Foot Doc
Date: 5/16/2007 4:40 am PDT
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In my last post in this thread, I indicated that I would neither continue to respond to the unwarranted personal attacks on me by cj nor entertain the certain ramblings from trouble-maker poster(s)such as the one who couldn't resist, is well known to me and whose medical knowledge is abysmal. But it is important that the medical point at hand not to be left uncorrected. In response to the original poster's complaint regarding her post-operative swelling following bunion surgery, this self-described rehab nurse had incorrectly instructed her that the reason for the swelling was that she had been elevating her foot.
So, let's go into a brief discussion of what such swelling is all about. The body, as part of its repairative function, must bring both healing elements and protective elements,such as macrophages to the site of a trauma (in this case,surgery). These elements are brought to the trauma site by the blood supply. As is frequently the case, once the body has proceeded even on a just and needed course, the feedback mechanisms which tell it when enough is enough are not always all that fine-tuned, and the intended helpful process can sometimes become a complication. However, a competent venous circulatory and lymphatic system (as should be a pre-requisite for anyone undergoing elective extremity surgery), over time are capable of draining this excess fluid, but elevation of the part (in this case the foot and leg) are primary procedures which even the most novice among us understand to be appropriate. So, to suggest that such elevation is the cause of the problem, and representing that to a patient who is complaining of too much swelling, is totally irresponsible, whether one is a self-described rehab nurse with a dentist husband or not. Folks . . . it's just WRONG! The discoloration, often associated with bruising is a totally different matter, and such bruising will often migrate to dependent areas. But this is not a post-surgical problem, and should not be labeled as such, or thought to be in need of treatment. Perhaps cj was confusing this with postmortem levidity (livor mortis)where, after death, blood pigments stain the tissues as they are separated by gravity from the serum.
But this is not the first occasion when this very same poster has offered dubious information under the guise of her claimed medical expertise. Only recently she offered (even though in rehab she must encounter some folks with real major problems) that bunionectomies were major surgeries, that she was "freaked out" by the very thought of what was to be done to her foot and that she attributed her difficulties (who-da-thunk) to the fact that she was cared for in room 13 . . . this woman of "medical science" only not demanding to be moved because she "knew what a pain it would be for them to change." While she praises her doctor, and even said that she was sorry for the chap, she claimed to have had gross bleeding which totally saturated her bandages up to her ankles, had such severe pain that she should have been admitted to the hospital and placed on a morphine drip and never believed anything her podiatrist told her. I kid you not. All this can be found right here in this forum. In my opinion, this is not a person who should be giving advice regarding surgery of the foot, and she has adequately proved that on both occasions when she offered replies.
I'm sure she'll desire the last word, as she has previously offered that even her dentist husband who is far too busy to attempt to help patients for free in a forum such as this, "let's her talk." So talk on, cj, talk on. But don't confuse my desire to offer responsible facts with anger or rage. Perhaps a well-performed lotus position will soothe the beast within THEE. |
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