Guest guest Posted September 13, 2004 Report Share Posted September 13, 2004 Hi, Sorry to hear about your baby's blisters. Is your doctor using the Ponseti method, and is he certified to do it? I'm asking because there are several warning bells in your mail. If the shoes have been fitted correctly, then your baby's feet are probably not fully corrected, which is why the shoes are giving him these awful blisters. There have been many people on this list who have experienced this. After changing doctors, and having the feet casted more, they didn't have any more problems with the shoes. The feet should be corrected to 70 degrees external angle and have good dorsiflexion (check by pushing gently with your hand flat against the sole of the foot to see if the foot flexes moving the toes slightly towards to the shin - I hope that that makes sense). If your baby has typical congenital clubfoot, then they should never be left without either casts or shoes at this early stage, as there is a risk of them relapsing and requiring further treatment. If his blisters are bad, the doctor will normally put the foot back in a cast to hold the correction of the feet until the blisters are healed. It sounds like your doctor wants him out of the shoes for almost 3 weeks, his feet will almost certainly move from their corrected position and you could have even more problems with the shoes. If you tell us where you live and who your doctor is, then you will get a lot of feedback from the group about the doctor that can help you with a second opinion. We live in South Africa, and we brought our son to Dr Ponseti for treatment last April, it's really important to get a properly qualified Ponseti doctor for good results. There are doctors out there who say they are doing the method, but they are not. I have a 'checklist' I put together on my website for parents to see what their doctor should be doing, and there's another one which I'm sure someone will give you the link for. www.clubfoot.co.za/checklist.htm I just wanted to give you some encouragement, you're at the right place. Many in this group have been in the same position as you and their babies are doing well in the brace now. and 24 Jan 2003, bilateral cf www.clubfoot.co.za ponseti braces my 3rd child was born with bilateral clubfeet. We sucessfully went through the casting treatments but ran into some problems with the brace/shoes. My baby hated the braces, which I knew he would, but he developed severe blisters the first day. The doctor suggested giving him a rest over a 4 day period and trying them again. The blisters got worse and did not seem to be healing. The doctor said to keep the braces off for 2 weeks and he would assess the heels at his next appointment. I am not looking forward to putting the braces/shoes back on. Has anyone else ran into this problem? The blisters do seem to be getting better but will putting the shoes back on cause them to come back? Are we putting them on wrong? We have been to the fitter/orthotist's twice and seem to be putting them on as he has instructed. Please share with me your story if you have gone through the same thing. Any words of encouragement will help! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted September 13, 2004 Report Share Posted September 13, 2004 Hi, Sorry to hear about your baby's blisters. Is your doctor using the Ponseti method, and is he certified to do it? I'm asking because there are several warning bells in your mail. If the shoes have been fitted correctly, then your baby's feet are probably not fully corrected, which is why the shoes are giving him these awful blisters. There have been many people on this list who have experienced this. After changing doctors, and having the feet casted more, they didn't have any more problems with the shoes. The feet should be corrected to 70 degrees external angle and have good dorsiflexion (check by pushing gently with your hand flat against the sole of the foot to see if the foot flexes moving the toes slightly towards to the shin - I hope that that makes sense). If your baby has typical congenital clubfoot, then they should never be left without either casts or shoes at this early stage, as there is a risk of them relapsing and requiring further treatment. If his blisters are bad, the doctor will normally put the foot back in a cast to hold the correction of the feet until the blisters are healed. It sounds like your doctor wants him out of the shoes for almost 3 weeks, his feet will almost certainly move from their corrected position and you could have even more problems with the shoes. If you tell us where you live and who your doctor is, then you will get a lot of feedback from the group about the doctor that can help you with a second opinion. We live in South Africa, and we brought our son to Dr Ponseti for treatment last April, it's really important to get a properly qualified Ponseti doctor for good results. There are doctors out there who say they are doing the method, but they are not. I have a 'checklist' I put together on my website for parents to see what their doctor should be doing, and there's another one which I'm sure someone will give you the link for. www.clubfoot.co.za/checklist.htm I just wanted to give you some encouragement, you're at the right place. Many in this group have been in the same position as you and their babies are doing well in the brace now. and 24 Jan 2003, bilateral cf www.clubfoot.co.za ponseti braces my 3rd child was born with bilateral clubfeet. We sucessfully went through the casting treatments but ran into some problems with the brace/shoes. My baby hated the braces, which I knew he would, but he developed severe blisters the first day. The doctor suggested giving him a rest over a 4 day period and trying them again. The blisters got worse and did not seem to be healing. The doctor said to keep the braces off for 2 weeks and he would assess the heels at his next appointment. I am not looking forward to putting the braces/shoes back on. Has anyone else ran into this problem? The blisters do seem to be getting better but will putting the shoes back on cause them to come back? Are we putting them on wrong? We have been to the fitter/orthotist's twice and seem to be putting them on as he has instructed. Please share with me your story if you have gone through the same thing. Any words of encouragement will help! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted September 13, 2004 Report Share Posted September 13, 2004 Hi, Sorry to hear about your baby's blisters. Is your doctor using the Ponseti method, and is he certified to do it? I'm asking because there are several warning bells in your mail. If the shoes have been fitted correctly, then your baby's feet are probably not fully corrected, which is why the shoes are giving him these awful blisters. There have been many people on this list who have experienced this. After changing doctors, and having the feet casted more, they didn't have any more problems with the shoes. The feet should be corrected to 70 degrees external angle and have good dorsiflexion (check by pushing gently with your hand flat against the sole of the foot to see if the foot flexes moving the toes slightly towards to the shin - I hope that that makes sense). If your baby has typical congenital clubfoot, then they should never be left without either casts or shoes at this early stage, as there is a risk of them relapsing and requiring further treatment. If his blisters are bad, the doctor will normally put the foot back in a cast to hold the correction of the feet until the blisters are healed. It sounds like your doctor wants him out of the shoes for almost 3 weeks, his feet will almost certainly move from their corrected position and you could have even more problems with the shoes. If you tell us where you live and who your doctor is, then you will get a lot of feedback from the group about the doctor that can help you with a second opinion. We live in South Africa, and we brought our son to Dr Ponseti for treatment last April, it's really important to get a properly qualified Ponseti doctor for good results. There are doctors out there who say they are doing the method, but they are not. I have a 'checklist' I put together on my website for parents to see what their doctor should be doing, and there's another one which I'm sure someone will give you the link for. www.clubfoot.co.za/checklist.htm I just wanted to give you some encouragement, you're at the right place. Many in this group have been in the same position as you and their babies are doing well in the brace now. and 24 Jan 2003, bilateral cf www.clubfoot.co.za ponseti braces my 3rd child was born with bilateral clubfeet. We sucessfully went through the casting treatments but ran into some problems with the brace/shoes. My baby hated the braces, which I knew he would, but he developed severe blisters the first day. The doctor suggested giving him a rest over a 4 day period and trying them again. The blisters got worse and did not seem to be healing. The doctor said to keep the braces off for 2 weeks and he would assess the heels at his next appointment. I am not looking forward to putting the braces/shoes back on. Has anyone else ran into this problem? The blisters do seem to be getting better but will putting the shoes back on cause them to come back? Are we putting them on wrong? We have been to the fitter/orthotist's twice and seem to be putting them on as he has instructed. Please share with me your story if you have gone through the same thing. Any words of encouragement will help! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted September 13, 2004 Report Share Posted September 13, 2004 Hi, and welcome, I'm sorry your little one had trouble with blisters! I hope he heals well and that you are able to get back on track. I'd imagine that after 2 weeks out of the brace he's likely to need more casting, before being able to go back in the shoes. I also agree with what told you.. this shouldn't be happening, and we hope you can resolve it. The brace might look miserable for the baby, but if everything has been done right in treatment, and the feet are totally corrected, the majority of babies adjust to it right away, with no problems, no major discomfort, no blisters, etc. Some babies take a few days or week or so to adjust, and a few who get blisters, but in my experience, MOST of the time, if a baby is having a very difficult time adjusting, it's a sign that the feet were not totally corrected before going into the brace, or that the brace was set up wrong. This scenario sets up a vicious cycle.. because the babies will of course be uncomfortable, they might get blisters, then they are kept out of the brace, or even are given AFOs, then they lose more correction, then it's impossible to wear the brace, and they shouldn't try, because more casting is needed. Then it seems it's the fault of the brace.. when it was not. If everything was corrected, the brace needs to be set up right too. The shoes need to be at the same angle as the last cast (which should have been 70 degrees out), and the bar should put the heels at shoulder width apart; if it's too narrow, or too wide, the baby will be uncomfortable, the feet will slip, and that cycle starts again. I'm NOT saying this is the situation you are in. But this does happen, and often, it seems, it's with doctors who are newer to the method, who will sometimes try to put babies in the brace before they're ready. I hope you can get to the bottom of it.. and if we can help here in any way, please keep posting. May we ask what part of the country you are in? best, and Claire born 6/29/00 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted September 13, 2004 Report Share Posted September 13, 2004 Hi, and welcome, I'm sorry your little one had trouble with blisters! I hope he heals well and that you are able to get back on track. I'd imagine that after 2 weeks out of the brace he's likely to need more casting, before being able to go back in the shoes. I also agree with what told you.. this shouldn't be happening, and we hope you can resolve it. The brace might look miserable for the baby, but if everything has been done right in treatment, and the feet are totally corrected, the majority of babies adjust to it right away, with no problems, no major discomfort, no blisters, etc. Some babies take a few days or week or so to adjust, and a few who get blisters, but in my experience, MOST of the time, if a baby is having a very difficult time adjusting, it's a sign that the feet were not totally corrected before going into the brace, or that the brace was set up wrong. This scenario sets up a vicious cycle.. because the babies will of course be uncomfortable, they might get blisters, then they are kept out of the brace, or even are given AFOs, then they lose more correction, then it's impossible to wear the brace, and they shouldn't try, because more casting is needed. Then it seems it's the fault of the brace.. when it was not. If everything was corrected, the brace needs to be set up right too. The shoes need to be at the same angle as the last cast (which should have been 70 degrees out), and the bar should put the heels at shoulder width apart; if it's too narrow, or too wide, the baby will be uncomfortable, the feet will slip, and that cycle starts again. I'm NOT saying this is the situation you are in. But this does happen, and often, it seems, it's with doctors who are newer to the method, who will sometimes try to put babies in the brace before they're ready. I hope you can get to the bottom of it.. and if we can help here in any way, please keep posting. May we ask what part of the country you are in? best, and Claire born 6/29/00 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted September 13, 2004 Report Share Posted September 13, 2004 Hi, and welcome, I'm sorry your little one had trouble with blisters! I hope he heals well and that you are able to get back on track. I'd imagine that after 2 weeks out of the brace he's likely to need more casting, before being able to go back in the shoes. I also agree with what told you.. this shouldn't be happening, and we hope you can resolve it. The brace might look miserable for the baby, but if everything has been done right in treatment, and the feet are totally corrected, the majority of babies adjust to it right away, with no problems, no major discomfort, no blisters, etc. Some babies take a few days or week or so to adjust, and a few who get blisters, but in my experience, MOST of the time, if a baby is having a very difficult time adjusting, it's a sign that the feet were not totally corrected before going into the brace, or that the brace was set up wrong. This scenario sets up a vicious cycle.. because the babies will of course be uncomfortable, they might get blisters, then they are kept out of the brace, or even are given AFOs, then they lose more correction, then it's impossible to wear the brace, and they shouldn't try, because more casting is needed. Then it seems it's the fault of the brace.. when it was not. If everything was corrected, the brace needs to be set up right too. The shoes need to be at the same angle as the last cast (which should have been 70 degrees out), and the bar should put the heels at shoulder width apart; if it's too narrow, or too wide, the baby will be uncomfortable, the feet will slip, and that cycle starts again. I'm NOT saying this is the situation you are in. But this does happen, and often, it seems, it's with doctors who are newer to the method, who will sometimes try to put babies in the brace before they're ready. I hope you can get to the bottom of it.. and if we can help here in any way, please keep posting. May we ask what part of the country you are in? best, and Claire born 6/29/00 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted September 13, 2004 Report Share Posted September 13, 2004 I almost think we could have an entire BB dedicated to bracing blister problems. There is much about it in the files section of our home-page here. It could be several things - the correction is not complete, the shoes the wrong size, a default in the shoe......but please don't give up! The DBB is the magic ingredient here to maintain the correction and avoid surgery!!!! One trick you might not know to help is to teach your baby to kick his legs together instead of separately. Hold the bar and help him learn by bending his legs in unison. s. ponseti braces my 3rd child was born with bilateral clubfeet. We sucessfully went through the casting treatments but ran into some problems with the brace/shoes. My baby hated the braces, which I knew he would, but he developed severe blisters the first day. The doctor suggested giving him a rest over a 4 day period and trying them again. The blisters got worse and did not seem to be healing. The doctor said to keep the braces off for 2 weeks and he would assess the heels at his next appointment. I am not looking forward to putting the braces/shoes back on. Has anyone else ran into this problem? The blisters do seem to be getting better but will putting the shoes back on cause them to come back? Are we putting them on wrong? We have been to the fitter/orthotist's twice and seem to be putting them on as he has instructed. Please share with me your story if you have gone through the same thing. Any words of encouragement will help! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted September 13, 2004 Report Share Posted September 13, 2004 I think we need to also give due consideration to user error. My daughter's foot was absolutely corrected, her foot was supple and she never needed a tenotomy. Yet I was not putting the shoes on properly and until I could see with my own eyes (through the window we cut) I figured I was doing it right. I caused my daughter's sore by not pushing her heel down into that shoe. True, I wasn't given good information about how to do that... but it was still user error and not uncorrected feet. Many feet are uncorrected, sure. But not all and without GOOD instructions from the orthotists (other than " make them tight and leave them on " ) more and more parents are going to put the FAB on incorrectly, baby gets a sore and they discard the brace. It's time for me to send the tips to the lists again methinks... Kori At 07:59 AM 9/13/2004, you wrote: >I almost think we could have an entire BB dedicated to bracing blister >problems. There is much about it in the files section of our home-page >here. It could be several things - the correction is not complete, the >shoes the wrong size, a default in the shoe......but please don't give >up! The DBB is the magic ingredient here to maintain the correction and >avoid surgery!!!! > >One trick you might not know to help is to teach your baby to kick his >legs together instead of separately. Hold the bar and help him learn by >bending his legs in unison. >s. > > ponseti braces > > > >my 3rd child was born with bilateral clubfeet. We sucessfully went >through the casting treatments but ran into some problems with the >brace/shoes. My baby hated the braces, which I knew he would, but he >developed severe blisters the first day. The doctor suggested giving >him a rest over a 4 day period and trying them again. The blisters >got worse and did not seem to be healing. The doctor said to keep >the braces off for 2 weeks and he would assess the heels at his next >appointment. I am not looking forward to putting the braces/shoes >back on. Has anyone else ran into this problem? The blisters do >seem to be getting better but will putting the shoes back on cause >them to come back? Are we putting them on wrong? We have been to >the fitter/orthotist's twice and seem to be putting them on as he has >instructed. Please share with me your story if you have gone through >the same thing. Any words of encouragement will help! > > > > > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted September 13, 2004 Report Share Posted September 13, 2004 Sorry to hear of your difficulties... I've just been through the identical thing. got dreadful blisters within a day. I took him back to the doctor and he decided that his feet were not fully corrected, and is going to recast them tomorrow. He has however, been out of casts for 2 weeks now, and I have seen his feet relapse before my eyes. It has been 2 weeks of bliss though. You must get further correction on his feet. If you are putting his feet in correctly and they still come out, chances are they are not fully corrected. Hope you soon have success, cherilobato cdlobato@...> wrote: my 3rd child was born with bilateral clubfeet. We sucessfully went through the casting treatments but ran into some problems with the brace/shoes. My baby hated the braces, which I knew he would, but he developed severe blisters the first day. The doctor suggested giving him a rest over a 4 day period and trying them again. The blisters got worse and did not seem to be healing. The doctor said to keep the braces off for 2 weeks and he would assess the heels at his next appointment. I am not looking forward to putting the braces/shoes back on. Has anyone else ran into this problem? The blisters do seem to be getting better but will putting the shoes back on cause them to come back? Are we putting them on wrong? We have been to the fitter/orthotist's twice and seem to be putting them on as he has instructed. Please share with me your story if you have gone through the same thing. Any words of encouragement will help! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted September 14, 2004 Report Share Posted September 14, 2004 is right, it doesn't sound like your son's feet are fully corrected. We are going through the same thing. My daughter didn't fit into her shoes correctly and got horrible pressure sores on her heels. We emailed pics of her feet to Dr Ponseti and he diagnosed her w/ BL Atypical CF. So we are on our way out to Iowa the end of next week. You should send some pics to him as well, he will be able to tell you more about his feet. He is really good about contacting you quickly. If you need any info to contact him let me know! Good luck. Mia Moss karen@...> wrote: Hi, Sorry to hear about your baby's blisters. Is your doctor using the Ponseti method, and is he certified to do it? I'm asking because there are several warning bells in your mail. If the shoes have been fitted correctly, then your baby's feet are probably not fully corrected, which is why the shoes are giving him these awful blisters. There have been many people on this list who have experienced this. After changing doctors, and having the feet casted more, they didn't have any more problems with the shoes. The feet should be corrected to 70 degrees external angle and have good dorsiflexion (check by pushing gently with your hand flat against the sole of the foot to see if the foot flexes moving the toes slightly towards to the shin - I hope that that makes sense). If your baby has typical congenital clubfoot, then they should never be left without either casts or shoes at this early stage, as there is a risk of them relapsing and requiring further treatment. If his blisters are bad, the doctor will normally put the foot back in a cast to hold the correction of the feet until the blisters are healed. It sounds like your doctor wants him out of the shoes for almost 3 weeks, his feet will almost certainly move from their corrected position and you could have even more problems with the shoes. If you tell us where you live and who your doctor is, then you will get a lot of feedback from the group about the doctor that can help you with a second opinion. We live in South Africa, and we brought our son to Dr Ponseti for treatment last April, it's really important to get a properly qualified Ponseti doctor for good results. There are doctors out there who say they are doing the method, but they are not. I have a 'checklist' I put together on my website for parents to see what their doctor should be doing, and there's another one which I'm sure someone will give you the link for. www.clubfoot.co.za/checklist.htm I just wanted to give you some encouragement, you're at the right place. Many in this group have been in the same position as you and their babies are doing well in the brace now. and 24 Jan 2003, bilateral cf www.clubfoot.co.za ponseti braces my 3rd child was born with bilateral clubfeet. We sucessfully went through the casting treatments but ran into some problems with the brace/shoes. My baby hated the braces, which I knew he would, but he developed severe blisters the first day. The doctor suggested giving him a rest over a 4 day period and trying them again. The blisters got worse and did not seem to be healing. The doctor said to keep the braces off for 2 weeks and he would assess the heels at his next appointment. I am not looking forward to putting the braces/shoes back on. Has anyone else ran into this problem? The blisters do seem to be getting better but will putting the shoes back on cause them to come back? Are we putting them on wrong? We have been to the fitter/orthotist's twice and seem to be putting them on as he has instructed. Please share with me your story if you have gone through the same thing. Any words of encouragement will help! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted September 14, 2004 Report Share Posted September 14, 2004 Could someone give a brief layman's description of what the Atypical means here? thanks. s.]] ponseti braces my 3rd child was born with bilateral clubfeet. We sucessfully went through the casting treatments but ran into some problems with the brace/shoes. My baby hated the braces, which I knew he would, but he developed severe blisters the first day. The doctor suggested giving him a rest over a 4 day period and trying them again. The blisters got worse and did not seem to be healing. The doctor said to keep the braces off for 2 weeks and he would assess the heels at his next appointment. I am not looking forward to putting the braces/shoes back on. Has anyone else ran into this problem? The blisters do seem to be getting better but will putting the shoes back on cause them to come back? Are we putting them on wrong? We have been to the fitter/orthotist's twice and seem to be putting them on as he has instructed. Please share with me your story if you have gone through the same thing. Any words of encouragement will help! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted September 16, 2004 Report Share Posted September 16, 2004 Atypical is when the feet have deep creases on the base of the foot, are short and fat, and usually take more than one tenotomy to increase dorsiflexion. They are harder to treat with the typical casting method, that is why most of us are going to Dr P. for his expertise instead of going the surgery route. Mia Addisyn (6/24/04 BL Atypical CF) Cody 2/6/01 Number23 number23@...> wrote: Could someone give a brief layman's description of what the Atypical means here? thanks. s.]] ponseti braces my 3rd child was born with bilateral clubfeet. We sucessfully went through the casting treatments but ran into some problems with the brace/shoes. My baby hated the braces, which I knew he would, but he developed severe blisters the first day. The doctor suggested giving him a rest over a 4 day period and trying them again. The blisters got worse and did not seem to be healing. The doctor said to keep the braces off for 2 weeks and he would assess the heels at his next appointment. I am not looking forward to putting the braces/shoes back on. Has anyone else ran into this problem? The blisters do seem to be getting better but will putting the shoes back on cause them to come back? Are we putting them on wrong? We have been to the fitter/orthotist's twice and seem to be putting them on as he has instructed. Please share with me your story if you have gone through the same thing. Any words of encouragement will help! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted September 16, 2004 Report Share Posted September 16, 2004 Atypical is when the feet have deep creases on the base of the foot, are short and fat, and usually take more than one tenotomy to increase dorsiflexion. They are harder to treat with the typical casting method, that is why most of us are going to Dr P. for his expertise instead of going the surgery route. Mia Addisyn (6/24/04 BL Atypical CF) Cody 2/6/01 Number23 number23@...> wrote: Could someone give a brief layman's description of what the Atypical means here? thanks. s.]] ponseti braces my 3rd child was born with bilateral clubfeet. We sucessfully went through the casting treatments but ran into some problems with the brace/shoes. My baby hated the braces, which I knew he would, but he developed severe blisters the first day. The doctor suggested giving him a rest over a 4 day period and trying them again. The blisters got worse and did not seem to be healing. The doctor said to keep the braces off for 2 weeks and he would assess the heels at his next appointment. I am not looking forward to putting the braces/shoes back on. Has anyone else ran into this problem? The blisters do seem to be getting better but will putting the shoes back on cause them to come back? Are we putting them on wrong? We have been to the fitter/orthotist's twice and seem to be putting them on as he has instructed. Please share with me your story if you have gone through the same thing. Any words of encouragement will help! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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