Re: carring for a 5 year old that was cast for the first time

[Guest guest]

My son is the same age. I think in a few days he will adjust some. My son uses

the restroom independantly. He leans forward when standing at the toilet and

manages to complete the task:) Diapering shouldn't be needed. He can climb on

the toilet also. You may be able to trim the chin part of the cast. Does it look

like the end of a surf board?

As for the itching maybe keep an eye on that. He could be having an allergic

reaction???? I'm not sure it's normal to itch so much right away but I could be

wrong. I would take him in to be looked at if it continues. A lot of parents

floss their kids. You can floss him by taking a knee high and running it through

the cast the move it back and forth. Does your son have any skin conditions you

are aware of? Does the cast have a t shirt under it? We have never had a t

shirt. When our son was braced he wore a knit rite shirt once and it caused him

to have a rash and itch. Can you look down the cast yet? Or is he still to

swollen?

I am not sure about the pants.... His cast should resemble a bell shape at the

bottom and his pants should stay in place at the hip where the cast is anchored.

You can use suspenders, or maybe a smaller pants size? Are you using button or

elastic waist? Hmmm maybe you should send a pic of the cast to heather.

Remember to give him a few days to adjust. They just rocked his world and he has

to adapt. Think about it from the perspective of a pregnant woman;) our body was

different so tying shoes, going to the bathroom, and seeing our feet was hard!

It sounds like your son recieved good correction! 13 degrees is great! I hope

you settle into cast life in a timely manner! Welcome to the group! If you have

any more questions continue to post them. This group is great.

Tame

Mama to

4.11 yrs old

Sent from my iPhone

On Dec 26, 2011, at 8:21 AM, " Joy " <jll_mickey@...> wrote:

Our son Jaylin is almost 5 years old and was diagnosed with progressive

infantile scoliosis in August 2011. He was placed in an EDF (Mehta) type cast

for the first time on December 23, 2011 at Riley Hospital for Children in

Indianapolis, IN. We were not given any specific information about caring for

him after the cast, other than it would have no affect on his quality of life

other than he would not be allowed to go swimming. Now Jaylin is experiencing

very bad itching under the cast, which we are trying to control with Benadryl.

He also cannot reach his private areas to be able to use the bathroom by

himself. When the orthopedic resident on duty was contacted, he suggested

putting him in a diaper. Is this typical? Surely this is not what they meant

when they said it would not affect his quality of life? If anyone has advice,

please respond. Should the cast be that far under his arm pits so that he

cannot care for himself using the bathroom?

It also appears to go up so far under his chin that he cannot look down at his

feet. Also, how do we keep his pants from falling down constantly? His

original curve was 33 degrees; in the cast he is 13 degrees.

------------------------------------

[Guest guest]

PS how high is his curve? That could be the reason his cast comes up higher in

arms and under chin..... However, you should still be able to have it trimmed a

bit.

Sent from my iPhone

On Dec 26, 2011, at 8:21 AM, " Joy " <jll_mickey@...> wrote:

Our son Jaylin is almost 5 years old and was diagnosed with progressive

infantile scoliosis in August 2011. He was placed in an EDF (Mehta) type cast

for the first time on December 23, 2011 at Riley Hospital for Children in

Indianapolis, IN. We were not given any specific information about caring for

him after the cast, other than it would have no affect on his quality of life

other than he would not be allowed to go swimming. Now Jaylin is experiencing

very bad itching under the cast, which we are trying to control with Benadryl.

He also cannot reach his private areas to be able to use the bathroom by

himself. When the orthopedic resident on duty was contacted, he suggested

putting him in a diaper. Is this typical? Surely this is not what they meant

when they said it would not affect his quality of life? If anyone has advice,

please respond. Should the cast be that far under his arm pits so that he

cannot care for himself using the bathroom?

It also appears to go up so far under his chin that he cannot look down at his

feet. Also, how do we keep his pants from falling down constantly? His

original curve was 33 degrees; in the cast he is 13 degrees.

------------------------------------

[Guest guest]

Hey....my Daughter Sierra has a high curve....she should probably be in an

over the shoulder cast, but Dr. K at Children's Hospital in B'ham, Alabama

does not do over the shoulder. Her cast has been way to high under the arms

and under her chin. It can be trimmed without affecting the integrity of

what the Dr. has done with the manipulation of the spine. We use to always

have the cast Tech.'s come back in the room and trim before we left the

hospital. Now we take a a cast with us..usually the one cut off last so the

cast Tech.'s will have something to go by. Sierra is short wasted so we

have to make sure it does not cut into her thighs when she sits down. We

make sure we know the cast Tech.'s by name and who will be trimming the

cast. We have the gray knit anti-...what I call " funk " T-shirt under her

cast. We have never had any skin issues at all. The T-shirt is a must

have. We live on the Gulf Coast and it is very hot & humid here....the cast

is doable..we have been casting since April of 2010...Sierra was 12 mo. on

her 1st cast. She is now 2 1/2 yrs. old. It has interfered with her potting

training some. Hope this helps!

Kristi mommy to Sierra..2 1/2 yrs. 34 degree curve, now down to 9 degrees

out of cast and -6 degrees in 9th cast...may be going to a brace in March

2012! P.S My husband cuts the cast off with tin snips the day before we get

the next cast....the cast saw is horrible that the cast Tech.'s use. Sierra

was terrified of it!

Re: carring for a 5 year old that was cast

for the first time

PS how high is his curve? That could be the reason his cast comes up higher

in arms and under chin..... However, you should still be able to have it

trimmed a bit.

Sent from my iPhone

On Dec 26, 2011, at 8:21 AM, " Joy " <jll_mickey@...> wrote:

Our son Jaylin is almost 5 years old and was diagnosed with progressive

infantile scoliosis in August 2011. He was placed in an EDF (Mehta) type

cast for the first time on December 23, 2011 at Riley Hospital for Children

in Indianapolis, IN. We were not given any specific information about

caring for him after the cast, other than it would have no affect on his

quality of life other than he would not be allowed to go swimming. Now

Jaylin is experiencing very bad itching under the cast, which we are trying

to control with Benadryl. He also cannot reach his private areas to be able

to use the bathroom by himself. When the orthopedic resident on duty was

contacted, he suggested putting him in a diaper. Is this typical? Surely

this is not what they meant when they said it would not affect his quality

of life? If anyone has advice, please respond. Should the cast be that far

under his arm pits so that he cannot care for himself using the bathroom?

It also appears to go up so far under his chin that he cannot look down at

his feet. Also, how do we keep his pants from falling down constantly? His

original curve was 33 degrees; in the cast he is 13 degrees.

------------------------------------

[Guest guest]

Time changes a lot of things. As the days go by, the padding in the cast will compact some and his movement should be easier. Can he just try sitting to urinate for a week or so? I think that would a lot better on his ego than a diaper. Sorry I don't have much more advice. My daughter was casted until she was almost 5 (and may start again) and it didn't stop her from anything after she broke the cast in for a few days. I find with most kids, if there is a will, there is a way.*hugs* Jane From: Tame Olson <dazies2001@...> infantile scoliosis treatment Sent: Monday, December 26, 2011 7:05 AM Subject: Re: carring for a 5 year old that was cast for the first time

PS how high is his curve? That could be the reason his cast comes up higher in arms and under chin..... However, you should still be able to have it trimmed a bit.Sent from my iPhoneOn Dec 26, 2011, at 8:21 AM, "Joy" <jll_mickey@...> wrote:Our son Jaylin is almost 5 years old and was diagnosed with progressive infantile scoliosis in August 2011. He was placed in an EDF (Mehta) type cast for the first time on December 23, 2011 at Riley Hospital for Children in Indianapolis, IN. We were not given any specific information about caring for him after the cast, other than it would have no affect on his quality of life other than he would not be allowed to go swimming. Now Jaylin is experiencing very bad itching under the cast, which we are trying to control with Benadryl. He also cannot reach his private areas to be able

to use the bathroom by himself. When the orthopedic resident on duty was contacted, he suggested putting him in a diaper. Is this typical? Surely this is not what they meant when they said it would not affect his quality of life? If anyone has advice, please respond. Should the cast be that far under his arm pits so that he cannot care for himself using the bathroom? It also appears to go up so far under his chin that he cannot look down at his feet. Also, how do we keep his pants from falling down constantly? His original curve was 33 degrees; in the cast he is 13 degrees.------------------------------------

[Guest guest]

Hi Kristi,Rich and I thank you for letting us know what you guys do with Seirra. We found out that when Jaylin gets playing around and starts sweating, thats when he really gets itching bad. We are hoping to talk to Jaylin's doctor tomorrow when he gets back in the office. we are going to talk to him about cutting back the cast a little because Jaylin can almost reach his pants and be able to use the restroom by himself. I really hope we can get these problems taken care of.Thank youJoy

Our son Jaylin is almost 5 years old and was diagnosed with progressive

infantile scoliosis in August 2011. He was placed in an EDF (Mehta) type

cast for the first time on December 23, 2011 at Riley Hospital for Children

in Indianapolis, IN. We were not given any specific information about

caring for him after the cast, other than it would have no affect on his

quality of life other than he would not be allowed to go swimming. Now

Jaylin is experiencing very bad itching under the cast, which we are trying

to control with Benadryl. He also cannot reach his private areas to be able

to use the bathroom by himself. When the orthopedic resident on duty was

contacted, he suggested putting him in a diaper. Is this typical? Surely

this is not what they meant when they said it would not affect his quality

of life? If anyone has advice, please respond. Should the cast be that far

under his arm pits so that he cannot care for himself using the bathroom?

It also appears to go up so far under his chin that he cannot look down at

his feet. Also, how do we keep his pants from falling down constantly? His

original curve was 33 degrees; in the cast he is 13 degrees.

------------------------------------

[Guest guest]

Joy,

My daughter is almost 4, and in cast

#7. She is almost completely potty trained but has trouble pulling her

pants up and down, and wiping herself. She let’s one of us know

when she needs help. She only wears a diaper to bed (I tell her it is

more absorbent and we don’t want her cast getting wet if she has an

accident), but then again, she just “finished” potty training

within the last few months. She comes into our room first thing (7am) to get the diaper off

and change into underwear.

Her pants also fall down a lot, too.

Close-fit leggings for girls stay up well. Also pants with good elastic that

are deep enough from waist to seat of the pants should also stay up.

carring for a 5 year old that was cast for the first time

Our son Jaylin is almost 5 years old and was diagnosed

with progressive infantile scoliosis in August 2011. He was placed in an EDF

(Mehta) type cast for the first time on December 23, 2011 at Riley Hospital for

Children in Indianapolis, IN. We were not given any specific information about

caring for him after the cast, other than it would have no affect on his

quality of life other than he would not be allowed to go swimming. Now Jaylin

is experiencing very bad itching under the cast, which we are trying to control

with Benadryl. He also cannot reach his private areas to be able to use the

bathroom by himself. When the orthopedic resident on duty was contacted, he

suggested putting him in a diaper. Is this typical? Surely this is not what they

meant when they said it would not affect his quality of life? If anyone has

advice, please respond. Should the cast be that far under his arm pits so that

he cannot care for himself using the bathroom? It also appears to go up so far

under his chin that he cannot look down at his feet. Also, how do we keep his

pants from falling down constantly? His original curve was 33 degrees; in the

cast he is 13 degrees.

[Guest guest]

My son too was casted at Riley. His first cast was applied in October of this year. He was seven and just recently turned eight. I know that the first couple of days were absolute hell. I and I don't normally describe things in that way!! His cast too went very high in the armpits. So high that he could barely reach to use the bathroom and his arms kept falling asleep. We had his cast trimmed a couple of days later and it made a world of difference. After a few days things got better and believe it or not that in about two weeks he was doing about 95% of what he did before (minus swimming and soaking in the tub). I was so amazed and still am about how "normal" things are for him. Just hang in there!! I would recommend not diapering. If you need to help him clean up or

change how he goes to the bathroom (like sitting), I would think that would be better for his self esteem. It will all come together. I know you are exhausted and probably you guys are not sleeping well yet. Try not to limit him and he will figure out that he can do this. I know it is hard, but it will get better.Also, for the itching we use baby wipes. They are cool, moist, and have a bit of moisturizer in them. I also keep the house cool and run a humidifier to keep the air in the house from being to dry from the furnace running. Feel free to private message me if you would like. More that happy to share info!!Best wishes to you, From: Joy <jll_mickey@...> infantile scoliosis treatment Sent: Monday, December 26, 2011 9:21 AM Subject: carring for a 5 year old that was cast for the first time

Our son Jaylin is almost 5 years old and was diagnosed with progressive infantile scoliosis in August 2011. He was placed in an EDF (Mehta) type cast for the first time on December 23, 2011 at Riley Hospital for Children in Indianapolis, IN. We were not given any specific information about caring for him after the cast, other than it would have no affect on his quality of life other than he would not be allowed to go swimming. Now Jaylin is experiencing very bad itching under the cast, which we are trying to control with Benadryl. He also cannot reach his private areas to be able to use the bathroom by himself. When the orthopedic resident on duty was contacted, he suggested putting him in a diaper. Is this typical? Surely this is not what they meant when they said it would not affect his quality of life? If anyone has advice, please respond. Should the cast be that far under his arm pits so that he cannot care for himself using the

bathroom? It also appears to go up so far under his chin that he cannot look down at his feet. Also, how do we keep his pants from falling down constantly? His original curve was 33 degrees; in the cast he is 13 degrees.

[Guest guest]

Joy,We use a cast cooler with Kylie it can be seen at www.castcooler.com.The blue part doesnt quite reach around the body of the cast but as long as we can get the area where the vacuum hole is to get a decent (not perfect) seal against the cast, it circulates the air GREAT!Kylie asks for the cast cooler more often in the summer but now that it's winter, it's just after a good hard time playing where she starts to sweat a bit. She gets immediate relief.Our friend gave it to us after using it with a sipca cast.BEST 30.00 spent!BeckyOn 2011-12-26, at 9:21 AM, Joy wrote:

Our son Jaylin is almost 5 years old and was diagnosed with progressive infantile scoliosis in August 2011. He was placed in an EDF (Mehta) type cast for the first time on December 23, 2011 at Riley Hospital for Children in Indianapolis, IN. We were not given any specific information about caring for him after the cast, other than it would have no affect on his quality of life other than he would not be allowed to go swimming. Now Jaylin is experiencing very bad itching under the cast, which we are trying to control with Benadryl. He also cannot reach his private areas to be able to use the bathroom by himself. When the orthopedic resident on duty was contacted, he suggested putting him in a diaper. Is this typical? Surely this is not what they meant when they said it would not affect his quality of life? If anyone has advice, please respond. Should the cast be that far under his arm pits so that he cannot care for himself using the bathroom? It also appears to go up so far under his chin t

hat he cannot look down at his feet. Also, how do we keep his pants from falling down constantly? His original curve was 33 degrees; in the cast he is 13 degrees.

[Guest guest]

Thank you so much for sharing that info, I will check that out. I really love this chat room it's helped us so much over the last couple of days :)Live, laugh, and loveJoyOn Dec 27, 2011, at 4:16 PM, Doug & Becky Reimneitz <dougandbecky@...> wrote:

Joy,We use a cast cooler with Kylie it can be seen at www.castcooler.com.The blue part doesnt quite reach around the body of the cast but as long as we can get the area where the vacuum hole is to get a decent (not perfect) seal against the cast, it circulates the air GREAT!Kylie asks for the cast cooler more often in the summer but now that it's winter, it's just after a good hard time playing where she starts to sweat a bit. She gets immediate relief.Our friend gave it to us after using it with a sipca cast.BEST 30.00 spent!BeckyOn 2011-12-26, at 9:21 AM, Joy wrote:

Our son Jaylin is almost 5 years old and was diagnosed with progressive infantile scoliosis in August 2011. He was placed in an EDF (Mehta) type cast for the first time on December 23, 2011 at Riley Hospital for Children in Indianapolis, IN. We were not given any specific information about caring for him after the cast, other than it would have no affect on his quality of life other than he would not be allowed to go swimming. Now Jaylin is experiencing very bad itching under the cast, which we are trying to control with Benadryl. He also cannot reach his private areas to be able to use the bathroom by himself. When the orthopedic resident on duty was contacted, he suggested putting him in a diaper. Is this typical? Surely this is not what they meant when they said it would not affect his quality of life? If anyone has advice, please respond. Should the cast be that far under his arm pits so that he cannot care for himself using the bathroom? It also appears to go up so far under his chin t

hat he cannot look down at his feet. Also, how do we keep his pants from falling down constantly? His original curve was 33 degrees; in the cast he is 13 degrees.

[Guest guest]

I'm with Becky on the Cast Cooler! I got that tip from this site a few months ago when my seven year old was in her cast and would always get itchy when she sweated in the hot weather here in South Florida. The cast cooler takes the edge off that horrible itch!Ursula From: Doug & Becky Reimneitz <dougandbecky@...> infantile scoliosis treatment Sent: Tuesday, December 27, 2011 4:16 PM Subject: Re: carring for a 5 year old that was cast for the first time

Joy,We use a cast cooler with Kylie it can be seen at www.castcooler.com.The blue part doesnt quite reach around the body of the cast but as long as we can get the area where the vacuum hole is to get a decent (not perfect) seal against the cast, it circulates the air GREAT!Kylie asks for the cast cooler more often in the summer but now that it's winter, it's just after a good hard time playing where she starts to sweat a bit. She gets immediate relief.Our friend gave it to us after using it with a sipca cast.BEST 30.00 spent!BeckyOn 2011-12-26, at 9:21 AM, Joy wrote:

Our son Jaylin is almost 5 years old and was diagnosed with progressive infantile scoliosis in August 2011. He was placed in an EDF (Mehta) type cast for the first time on December 23, 2011 at Riley Hospital for Children in Indianapolis, IN. We were not given any specific information about caring for him after the cast, other than it would have no affect on his quality of life other than he would not be allowed to go swimming. Now Jaylin is experiencing very bad itching under the cast, which we are trying to control with Benadryl. He also cannot reach his private areas to be able to use the bathroom by himself. When the orthopedic resident on duty was contacted, he suggested putting him in a diaper. Is this typical? Surely this is not what they meant when they said it would not affect his quality of life? If anyone has advice, please respond. Should the cast be that far under his arm pits so that he cannot care for himself using the bathroom? It also appears to go up so far under his chin t

hat he cannot look down at his feet. Also, how do we keep his pants from falling down constantly? His original curve was 33 degrees; in the cast he is 13 degrees.

[Guest guest]

We fall in line with the same routine as JR Clancy..Abigail is almost 5 and her

curve is high up. She can never reach to wipe herself and needs help pulling her

pants up and down (regular pants never stay up, we use elastic waist leggings

mostly). We use Pull Ups Goodnites at night (which your doctor can get you a

prescription for) to protect the cast, we had an accident once!

>

>  

> >Our son Jaylin is almost 5 years old and was diagnosed with progressive

infantile scoliosis in August 2011. He was placed in an EDF (Mehta) type cast

for the first time on December 23, 2011 at Riley Hospital for Children in

Indianapolis, IN. We were not given any specific information about caring for

him after the cast, other than it would have no affect on his quality of life

other than he would not be allowed to go swimming. Now Jaylin is experiencing

very bad itching under the cast, which we

> are trying to control with Benadryl. He also cannot reach his private areas

to be able to use the bathroom by himself. When the orthopedic resident on duty

was contacted, he suggested putting him in a diaper. Is this typical? Surely

this is not what they meant when they said it would not affect his quality of

life? If anyone has advice, please respond. Should the cast be that far under

his arm pits so that he cannot care for himself using the bathroom? It also

appears to go up so far under his chin t

> hat he cannot look down at his feet. Also, how do we keep his pants from

falling down constantly? His original curve was 33 degrees; in the cast he is

13 degrees.

> >

> >

>

[Guest guest]

Sorry, for the very delayed reply on this one. Im sure you've gotten

great replies on this issue as there are quite a few families here on CAST

experiencing EDF/Mehta casts with their older kiddos. I think the first

thing to do is to floss the cast with a pr. of nylons to remove any

potential plaster debris which may be causing the itching...Also, call the

ortho and request a bit of a cast trimming. Im sure youv'e done both

already. Please keep us posted on this.

HRH

> Our son Jaylin is almost 5 years old and was diagnosed with progressive

> infantile scoliosis in August 2011. He was placed in an EDF (Mehta) type

> cast for the first time on December 23, 2011 at Riley Hospital for

> Children in Indianapolis, IN. We were not given any specific information

> about caring for him after the cast, other than it would have no affect on

> his quality of life other than he would not be allowed to go swimming.

> Now Jaylin is experiencing very bad itching under the cast, which we are

> trying to control with Benadryl. He also cannot reach his private areas

> to be able to use the bathroom by himself. When the orthopedic resident

> on duty was contacted, he suggested putting him in a diaper. Is this

> typical? Surely this is not what they meant when they said it would not

> affect his quality of life? If anyone has advice, please respond. Should

> the cast be that far under his arm pits so that he cannot care for himself

> using the bathroom? It also appears to go up so far under his chin that

> he cannot look down at his feet. Also, how do we keep his pants from

> falling down constantly? His original curve was 33 degrees; in the cast

> he is 13 degrees.

>

>