OCD - No, Not THAT Kind

Savannah's been complaining that her knee hurts for some time. Being the awesome, caring mother I am, I told her to suck it up and rub some dirt on it. Honestly, I figured the pain was coming from the fact that she (and all my other kids) are growing so darn fast! But when the pain hadn't subsided after a couple months, I took her to the orthopedic doctor. Yes, I know I waited a long time to take her in, but she only complained about the pain once in a while. She was still able to walk and run and it wasn't affecting her too much, so I really thought it wasn't a big deal and would go away on its own in time.

So, we get to the doctor's office where they took her for an xray right away. When the doctor came in the room, he asked her a bunch of questions. "Does it hurt when you walk? Go up stairs? Bend it like this? Does this hurt? How about this? How about if I take your leg and put it behind your head while balancing a stack of bricks on it? Does it ever give out on you? Does it click? Does it lock?

Savannah told him that it wasn't that bad (more annoying really) and only hurt when she tried to lift her leg too high and sometimes when she walked. He looked puzzled and said, "Huh? I'm kinda surprised because your complaints don't fit what the xray showed." He said her complaints were suggestive of a little tendonitis and she should do some stretches because her left quad was a little tight and that was probably causing the pain. No biggie. Her xray, however, showed that Savannah has Osteochondritis Dissecans (OCD, for short. No, not that OCD.) Basically, part of her bone and cartilage is peeling away. Unfortunately it's a pretty big chunk and it's primarily on a weight bearing area. Because the xray, of course, didn't show the cartilage, the doctor ordered an MRI to get a better picture of whether this was an old injury that was healing on its own, or a new injury that needs repair.

We went to the hospital Monday for the MRI. After waiting fifteen hours, she was finally called back. I can't even count how many people we saw wearing masks at the hospital. I'm sure we'll both come down with tuberculosis in a matter of days. Anyway, she was stuck lying there for a half-hour MRI with no cell phone to text her friends! The horror! I was stuck watching CNN the whole time. (I know more about the health care law that I care to.) When she finished, the technician asked, "It was the left leg I was supposed to scan, right?"

"Umm, shouldn't you have asked that, oh say, before the test?!" Given his question, I figured he didn't see anything on the scan so he thought he'd double-check. I was fully expecting the doctor to call and say, "It's nothing." Wrong. It's a sizable piece that's peeling up. There's fluid behind it. If we don't get it fixed, her chances of developing problems and arthritis later in life are greatly increased. Although the doctor is certain her symptoms are just from a little tendonitis and not the Osteochondritis Dissecans. It was just fortuitous that the little pain she was experiencing brought us in for an xray which showed a greater problem that was arising.

So, we go back to the doctor next week to find out the details of the procedure and how long she'll be out of commission. I would've asked the doctor more questions over the phone except I had to go abruptly. As he was explaining the problem with Savannah's knee, I cut him off, "I smell gas! Not that kind of gas (although with three boys, I do smell my fair share of that gas.) There's a gas leak or something. Oh man, it's really strong! Get out of the house everyone! Go in the backyard! Oh my gosh, I think I have a gas leak! Oh, you're still on the phone, aren't you? I'm sorry. I need to go. I'll call back to make an appointment tomorrow."

Before heading outside myself, I looked at my stove to make sure it was off. It was. But the gas smell was dissipating already. Hmmm, I wonder. "Clayton! Did you try to turn on the stove a minute ago? You'd better tell me the truth because I'll find out and hunt you down, boy!" Yep, he did. Whatever possesses that boy to do what he does, prompted him to turn on the stove for no particular reason. Only he didn't light it. He turned the gas on, let it flood the house a bit and then turned it off.

So, anyway, Savannah and I go next week to get details. Savannah's not too upset about the surgery itself, but was in tears because she'll miss softball season. She looks forward to it all year. I feel awful for her, but on the other hand, that's one less kid I have to get to games by myself this spring! But mostly, I really do feel bad she's going to miss out.

I'd love to surprise her with some get well cards. This is where you come in! If you want to send Savannah a get well card, you can mail it to my PO Box:

Savannah Meehan
836 S. Arlington Heights Rd.
#230
Elk Grove Village, IL 60007

I'll save them and give them to her when she has the surgery (probably in a couple weeks).

Oh yeah, it's not too late to enter my contest to win a $200 Visa gift card from BlogHer and Arm & Hammer with Oxi Clean! Go HERE!

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Edited - I changed the address to 836 SOUTH Arlington Heights Rd. I accidentally had WEST before. I had a "duh" moment. I'm sorry.