Hi all, first post. Found this forum whilst searching anxiously for encouragment.

My wife and I have a daughter, Trisha, who has something called Angelmans syndrome, can't speak, has very limited understanding, doesn't follow orders very well, won't let others she doesn't know touch her - she will throw her arms and legs about violently if someone else is trying to adjust the leg brace for instance.
Ten days ago she fell whilst out with a carer (not unusual), had to be taken to hospital because she would not get up from the seat where she had been resting afterwards, although she had been walking around. She had the usual grazing on her knee and the hospital (Basidon) declared a fractured patella, threw a full length 'plaster cast' on her leg and said "go away and make an appointment at the fracture clinic in Southend", where we live, approximately.
Because she was very unhappy with the cast ( she has no idea about broken bones or why she has this thing on her leg) we persuaded the doc to give her one of the Genuflex type, is it ? which will allow a little movement. This, like the plaster (it isn't plaster it was some sort of fibreglass)  very quickly slides down her very ample thigh to her foot, so we can undo it and move it back up once or twice a day which we couldn't do with the cast.
This started 12 days ago (21st October),Trisha doesn't seem to be in any pain, she can lift her leg up straight off the bed even with the cast on (she did that on day two). She does seem to be  getting a bit more reluctant to get off the bed and urge herself off the camode though, wife says maybe that's since the open stabilizer went on - OOh err.
On the second day, we found her off the bed and walking towards the hallway, which was a shock. We now have an NHS all dancing bed, that makes life a lot easier. and has sides on it so she couldn't do that again without us knowing.
For the first week we were hoping that the break showing on the xray was really an old break that had not been realised at the time. There is no edge to be seen, I mean by that that the line of the fracture is just a little 'bendy' but no jaggy edge  or gaps but just a very smooth darker line about 2mm wide, doesn't look like anything is broken, just like it's been 'grouted' and all smoothed off.
What we are worried about most is how much strength she will lose during the six weeks or whatever it turns out to be before we can leave the brace off. Any sort of physio is going to be very difficult.
I'll stop this now, it's gone on too long.
Two weeks now. When we undo the brace to realign it, Trisha will lift the leg up nearly to vertical and let her lower leg fall to a ninety degree angle without any apparent pain or resistance. Is that normal ?
If this post gets shifted off to some bizarre backwater like the other one, we're off some place else.

Hello there!

I am currently recovering from knee realignment surgery and I have been fitted with a T-Scope Brace which has restricted my ability to bend my knee.  Over the course of the past 5 weeks it has been adjusted from 30 degrees to 90 degrees. 

It took about 2 weeks for my thigh (quad) muscle to disappear from not using my leg properly.  I am not saying that this will happen to Trisha, because her injury is different from mine, however you asked about how much strength she will lose.  For the past 3 weeks I have been having intensive physio (at St Peters in Maldon, Essex) to help me build up my quad muscle and to get me to lift my leg straight while lying on my back.  Its been tough and required lots of input from me, but I was able to manage it this week. 

I know how difficult it is to speak to any member of the NHS in Essex, I had to cry down the phone at the Physio Dept before I got my appointment, however have you called them to ask for some advice about what you can do to help with Trisha's leg strength before her next appointment at the fracture clinic?  Forgive me if I am teaching you to suck eggs a bit, but it might be worth a shot given the circumstances?

I wish Trisha a speedy recovery.

Thank you Chappers and DM, both very helpfull, I'm off round the chemist right now for some bandage !

Hi Chappers, we have got a physio coming in next week (20th Nov) to advise on movements Trisha should be attempting at the stage she is at. We have heard that the hydrotherapy pool is still working at the hospital so we will try to get her into that perhaps, life-savers and 'elth and safety permitting, of course.

Thanks for you kind words.

Hi ya!

Im glad you got the physio coming out on Monday - I wish you all the best!

Im still not brace free and im thinking I should get get some co-hesive bandage to stop it falling to my ankles!

Keep us updated

Chappers