How to Find a Doctor to Treat Fibular Hemimelia and Other Congenital Limb Defects

Giving birth to a child with a congenital limb defect can be a scary experience. Finding a doctor who has experience with congenital limb defects such as Fibular Hemimelia can be difficult.

Difficulty: Moderately Challenging

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Internet access

1. Diagnosis
   Many orthopedic doctors don't see a single case of Fibular Hemimelia or other similar limb defects in all their years of practice. Getting an appropriate diagnosis can be difficult in and of itself. Asking your pediatrician too suggest someone is a good first step but may not get you far in terms of diagnosis or treatment. Local doctors may not have experience with rare limb deformities.

2. Once you have a diagnosis (or if you still need one) research treatment options (for limb defects in general if you do not have a diagnosis). If you have access to a college library in which you can read scholarly journals that is great (although they can be hard to navigate). Most of us do not have access to medical journals so the good old world wide web will do. In the case of limb defects like Fibular Hemimelia the treatment options may include amputation, limb lengthening and reconstructive surgery.

3. Once you have an idea of the treatment options available you are ready to find a doctor to consult with. I would suggest finding a doctor who has had success treating each individual option. It will not be hard to find a doctor familiar with amputation because that is still considered the standard treatment for many limb defects. Finding a doctor with experience in limb lengthening can be difficult. I suggest finding support groups or forums where parents who have a child with a condition like yours write about their experience. Hospitals web sites often have information on the treatments they offer and the experience they have in doing so.

Tips & Warnings

• While the process of finding an experienced doctor to treat your child can be difficult it is worth the search. Doctors often only suggest as treatment the surgeries they have experience doing. Finding a doctor who has had success and experience with each specific treatment is crucial.
• Having a child born with Fibular Hemimelia, I can tell you that he is doing great and living his life without limitations. I wish you success and peace in finding a doctor to treat your child.
• This information is not meant to replace advice from your doctor.
• It is based on personal experience and individual research.
• Information on web sites is not always current or accurate and can be quite biased.

[xrayness]

on 7/22/2009 Very good article...thanks for sharing.