I'm not a candidate

I just got back from Duke, meeting with a trauma specialist.

The doctor I met last week was unhappy with my surgeries and said I won't heal.  He referred me to a trauma specialist to see if he thought I could be repaired.

The doctor today said he was excited to read the notes from last week because he looks at this kind of operation as a challenge and one that rewards him because he can get someone back on their feet with their own bones.

He took lots of x-rays and we sat and talked for a long while.  I had heard good things about this guy from his own staff and they were right.  I've never had so much personal time with a senior doctor like this.  We went over everything, from the original surgeries to the current prognosis.

I'll cut to the chase and repeat that he said I'm not a candidate to salvage my bone.  The problem is that the femoral neck has shortened to the point that even if it were to be operated on, there's not enough neck for the joint to function properly.  My leg is already much shorter than it should be, and even though the operation could take a wedge out of my femur to make it straighter, it still wouldn't be long enough.  So, taking the reduced neck, shortened leg, the fracture site has shifted and what isn't in contact with bone would have to be reworked.  So he summarized that it just wouldn't work.  He said he'd also get a referral from the senior doctor in the practice (joking that it meant he had more gray hair).  I got the followup call this afternoon, and it was as he expected- that neither of them thinks it can be saved.

I've now had six MDs tell me it won't heal, with a couple more by the end of the week.  I haven't heard a dissenting opinion other than those who did my surgeries.   Which means a hip replacement.  I've been reading on them for a while,lots of options out there- and it's not surprising because there are 400 thousand of them done a year.   Next week I plan on researching doctors and their availability.