We're having a brace fitted soon. I know it's relatively common and not a huge deal, but I'm still fairly upset about it. Can people please share their experiences (good and bad) and info about hip dysplasia with me? Thanks lovely women
Did they say what grade hip dysplasia it is? what kind of brace is she going into?
My DD had grade 2 hip dysplasia, we had ultrasounds approx every month -2 months till she was 6 months and she didnt end up needing to go into a brace as she was borderline. By 6 months her hips had corrected themselves. I think it depends on the specialist on how cautious or aggressive the treatment he suggests is, as I know another baby who was in a brace who's hips were the same as my daughters.
Gluck with it all, I know it is scary when anything is "found and needs to be fixed"!
I can't remember the grade (will ask) but she said it was pretty obvious on the u/s, even I could see it. The brace (not on yet) goes on each leg and then around the bum at the back itms?
No personal experience, but 2 bubs out of the 10 in my mothers group had it.
They were both in braces, both were diagnosed at birth.
One was in the brace for 9 weeks, one was in it for about 3.5months,
They struggled with bathing, and dressing their little girls. As we had late April bubs, dresses weren't an option as it was getting quite cool, so jumpsuits etc were difficult but with the weather warming up, you shouldn't have that problem.
With bathing, they initially were doing sponge baths, so the brace wasn't off for too long, but in the end went back to quick normal baths.
One of the mums, eldest daughter had it also, but it wasn't picked up until 7+months, and it was a lot worse than this one, so she was in the brace for a lot longer.
They had regular checks with the ortho, physio and scans.
They both said, it was completely overwhelming to begin with, were upset as you no doubt are, but once they got used it, it was ok and manageable.
Big big hugs!
Sorry I'm not much help!
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Last edited by sahbear; November 2nd, 2011 at 10:41 AM.
Pop over to the hip dysplasia support group hun. Saved my sanity while DD was going through it.
DD's case was a bad one. Clicky hip at birth, tried to get an early ultrasound but got knocked back when she was two weeks old - told by the staff she was too little. Wish I had've been tough and insisted. She got officially diagnosed at seven weeks and into her first brace.
Going into the brace is hard. For the first couple of days she was really upset and unsettled. I walked up and down the hallway holding her at night as she cried because she couldn't stretch out her legs. And for me, it was so difficult and heartbreaking to have had this tiny baby who suddenly had these hard edges in a brace. We had to find a new b/f position, so be prepared for that. We ended up having DD straddled over my leg, her legs either side of mine with a pillow under my arm to hold her. It takes a bit to adjust. For sleeping, we put a small pillow under her legs from her knees down so her feet weren't stuck up in the air. We also got a beanbag so she could sit up in it. She loved playing on her playmat, with the arches that go over the top, kept her amused for ages. In the first brace she could fit into our bassinet, but not in the carrier (we had a baby bjorn). We weren't able to swaddle her either, so we tried to wrap her arms in and leave her legs free. After a few days she was happy to sleep unwrapped and in a sleeping bag. I've read things that say that swaddling isn't recommended for hip dysplasia.
DD's hips took a really long time to grow, but she was in the worst 3% of cases (as told to me by our surgeon on our last visit). In most instances, the brace works well. Take one day at a time. Stock up on some long socks, and cut the foot off. They will go under the bits that touch her legs and fold over them, working as a cushion/padding. It will stop sores forming. We weren't allowed to bath DD as the brace wasn't allowed to come off, so we worked around it by using the kitchen sink - lying her on the bench on a towel and washing her hair and giving her a sponge bath. It wasn't ideal, but it was doable. I'm not sure if you use cloth or disposable nappies - we used disposable and we had no problems with the brace, slipping them under the bar. There are a few different braces. We had the Denis Brown and then the Rhino. We could put her clothes over the Denis Brown, lots of jumpsuits and pants, one size bigger than she was in. The Rhino goes over their clothes. It sounds like you've described the DB brace. You'll probably have weekly adjustments - they want baby's legs to be as splayed as possible, but to do it in one hit will injure them further. We had to have three adjustments in the DB before her legs were in the correct position for the ball to remain in the socket.
I found googling images before hand to help. As horrible as the images are, it was easier to prepare myself for what DD would look like.
I won't lie to you, it is so hard. Breaks your heart. I had a period where I didn't leave the house because people stare and comment. But I soon got my perspective back and knew that she was healthy and she would get through it. She took longer to learn to crawl and walk, she learned to roll over in the brace. Now she's 2 1/2 and you wouldn't know that there was anything at all. She runs, jumps, kicks, everything a normal 2 year old should do.
Anything you need to know, ask away. I got lost in the surgeon speak, about angles and percentages. All I wanted to know was whether there was improvement and if the brace could come off . We had a wonderful surgeon and the guys that do the brace (they were both in North Melbourne) and really friendly and gentle (with mummy too ). We were on this rollercoaster for 11 months.
My gf's DD had to wear a brace for Hip Dysplasia & she said leg warmers were helpful so the brace didn't rub on her DD legs. She also borrowed a highchair that didn't have the middle bit b/c her DD couldn't fit in it with her brace on but she was too young to not be in a highchair for eating..GL
PZ, i know i already posted on fb but just wanted to pop by & offer another
as i said, a friend from MG had to get a brace for her DD. that was just before she was 5 months i think. whilst it wasn't great for her DD, i think she suffered more than her DD. she was really emotional at first & had quite a tough time. but she got through it okay & felt better for having acted quickly & getting it sorted now rather than having to worry later. i think she also appreciated it all happening before her DD was old enough to remember & before she was mobile. she did say that bathing her DD was tough as they couldn't take the brace off but they got used to sponge baths pretty quickly.
her DD was in the brace for 6-8 weeks & in hindsight, it didn't seem like such a long time. her DD was a later walker than some of the others in our MG/playgroup - but at the same time her language is excellent so i don't think it was anything other than a typical case of one thing developing before another. her DD is a super jumper now (at 2 yrs 4 months), walks & runs like any of the others & you'd never know that there was ever a problem.
Hugs hun hear if you need to chat. She will adapt to it faster than you will.
My best friends DD was in a brace from a week of age for 7 months (started full time and decreased to 12 hrs a day) She couldn't roll in brace but rolled within a week of it coming off and walked at 12 months.
Hugs PZ - my DSs Hip Dyslasia was picked up at 5 months and he was in a brace from 7 months to 13 months of age
Its very very tough and emotional at first, but it was harder on us emotionally than it was for DS to adjust, fortunately our little people are much better at it than us. I used to get very annoyed when people would stare and wonder what was wrong with him, but it will get easier every day I promise.
I was very angry that my perfect little baby was in a brace, he wore a dennis brown abduction brace which is what it sounds like you have described for Isla - I have some pictures of DS in it, I can send them to you if you want to have a look so you know what to expect
Some practical advice - Put cut up socks around the brace cuffs (WYSIWYG gave me this tip), cut up some long tube socks and you can wrap the tube bit around the cuffs and this will help with avoiding the cuffs from rubbing on the skin, socks are good as they are stretchy and soft.
Depending on how big your DD is and how quick she grows and is in the brace, some things become difficult to use, prams, highchairs etc. A beanbag is great for propping a braced baby up. We also had to buy pants a few sizes up to accommodate the brace, might be easier with a girl as she can wear skirts which wont be so difficult to dress. Things like nappy changes were challenging, and we were luckily allowed 30 mins brace free time each day which we used for bathing or swimming in summer.
Have a good cry babe, it does suck, and its not how you imagine your babies first year to be. Definitely head over to the Hip Dysplasia support group, I found it invaluable and got lots of good ideas. We had to hack up our car seat a bit to widen it where DSs legs were spread out.
DS is now 2.5, he walked at 18 months, and learned to crawl in the brace about 9-10 months, milestones were a bit slower, but not too bad. He is a speedy little runner now!!
If you have any questions at all, don't hesitate to ask
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DD has just been diagnosed with Hip Dysplasia :(
. We had a wonderful surgeon and the guys that do the brace (they were both in North Melbourne) and really friendly and gentle (with mummy too
). We were on this rollercoaster for 11 months.
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