Dislocated Hip

We've just found out our 4 1/2 month old baby has a dislocated hip and will need to be put in a cast for 3-4 months next month. Has any other mum been through this???

My little sister went through a heap of ops for congenital hip disorders. I helped mum care for her cos there was only us two, all my other sisters had moved out of home, and no dad around.

she first got put in a cast at 9 months, then again at 2 and again at 3, her next op was at 7 up at starship, where they cut her hip socket in 4 places and placed fragments of bone from the back of her pelvis (you know3 those curvy bumps at the top at the back... they cut those off) they put those bits into the gaps and bolted them in. and again she was in a a hip spica cast. her last op was when she was 13, the same thing again but on the other hip.   she will eventually need a full hip replacement and in about 10 yrs tops they reckon she'll have arthritis in her hips.    BUT this is the worst worst case scenario. for her, once they went in to operate at 9 months, they found her hip joints were deformed, her femur was twisted in the joint and all manner of other probs. they thought they'd fixed it at age 3, but as she grew it became a prob again, hence the last 2 ops. please please do not think this will happen to your bub.

some practical options, for dealing with bub being in the cast include buying children's undies, cutting the sides adding a bit of velcro or fabric ties and using them as overpants for over the cast.. since it will more than likely have a bar that goes between the 2 legs, meaning nothing can be pulled up the leg, it all needs to be able to be put on like nappies are. we also got larger sized pants etc, and had velcro put down the sides so we could put them on. since they only leave a small gap in the bottom of the cast for baby to pee and poo out of, they can provide you with the plastic backed absorbant pads, but they don't do too much, we found that you could basically just get a nappy, and put in in the gap and push the edges up inside the cast at the top and bottom and it did the job. only othe thing i can say is, baby will be HEAVY so invest in a good buggy, or ask for a wheelchair like we did, cos if baby's legs are in the cast they will be spread right out so sitting in a small buggy is hard.. wheelchairs are better. beanbags are great to lie them on, on back or on tummy if baby likes it. also, cast can make them hot so more than likely you might not actually need anything major covering the legs obviously, lol.

last thing, just watch, if baby is old enough to have finger foods.. (maybe towards the end of the time in the cast), do not leave it semi-naked with food. my little sis was in her cast during summer once, and so had only a little t shirt on.. she dropped a piece of toast down the front of the cast...it was sooo hard to get out! lolol. hope this has helped you a bit... and not scared you. if you want any more tips about anything don't hesitate to ask!

I feel for you Emmie as it is a shock to be told that your child has this condition. I went through a very sad period for a little while after my daughter was diagnosed with dislocated hip,just before she was 4mths. It is also unfortunate that if they had of detechted your babys dislocated hip earlier, the chances are that your baby would have been put into a Pavlik Harness instead of being put into a cast.
Tara has been through the process of the Pavlik harness for 10weeks and then a black Pillow harness for another 10weeks and has caught up developmentaly really fast.
I have spoken to others who have gone through or are going through what you are going through on the Treasure website. Treasures is also bringing out an article on this subject in the Nov/Dec issue.
I think with the cast, some concerns are whether they will fit in the carseat still, also clothes to fit. But it is comming into summer soon so you can probably get away with a nappy and a big t-shirt. Another thing I suggest is write down all the questions you have and take it with you when you go to see the specialist. As I found for myself that you can be so overwhelmed with the situaiton that you forget to ask certain questions till you come home.
Also for your child, see if there is a toy library that you could hire a exercycer, as it helps for your child to have something else to sit in and play with, since they won't be able to sit on the floor. Also a beanbag is good too. It is just a matter of trial and error and your baby will take a little while to adjust but you will get there. Thinking of you and your family at this time of re adjustment.

that's exactly it emmie, you'll manage!
it can be a really rough time when you find out something is not right with your bubs. i remember bursting into tears the moment the doctor left the room after telling us jack would have to wear a harness for 3mths. i thought it was all my fault, i'd done something wrong, sat the wrong way or something when i was pregnant and had caused it. but it's just one of those things and trust me, the time will go by really fast!
you have us here for support whenever you need it, and the other site as well. i'm vanessa buick on that site by the way

don't worry too much about it, they seems to come back from it pretty quick. my little sis as i said was in a cast at age 9mths and 2yrs and then 3 yrs as well, and each time she just came back from it fine. at age 2 she had to re-learn to walk and weight-bear again, and at age 3 we had to re-toilet train her, and each time, it was actually pretty neat seeing her achieve those milestones again ... i can clearly remember after she got her cast off at age 3, and she was able to walk again, coming home from the hospital and her being so incredibly excited cos she could go outside and run around the yard....

for most, they just pick up where they left off and make up for lost time... once they can move again they're off!