I couldn’t walk, I couldn’t even sit or sleep

The pain was agonizing; I couldn’t walk, I couldn’t even sit or sleep. My wife, Carolyn, and I visited doctor after doctor and finally by the grace of God we ended up at Northwest Hospital. Dr. Ian Weiner, Orthopedic Surgeon and Dr. Norbert Zemankiewicz, Vascular Surgeon, took Herbert Hareone look at my foot and immediately rushed me into emergency surgery to clean out the infection. When I woke from surgery, my foot was completely open with the tendons exposed. They explained to me that because I am a diabetic, the wound had become so severely infected and surgery would not be enough; I was now going to need a skin graft. Once the skin graft was complete, I was sent to the Center for Wound Care and Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy (HBOT) to expedite the healing process. I didn’t get my hopes up, I knew my foot was in bad shape and there was a slim chance they were going to save it.

The very next day we went to the Wound Center and the nurses, the doctors, everyone was top notch! Together they came up a with a specialized treatment plan just for me. I started the hyperbaric oxygen therapy and completed 31 dives. Eric Shapiro, HBOT Program Manager, was just fantastic, I didn’t like being in that chamber but he always made me feel calm and relaxed. Michele Stiller, R.N. and the other nurses at the center were always so helpful and supportive. They even taught Carolyn how to properly care for my wounds and helped coordinate in home care to assist with the more advanced wound care.

At the end of the two and half year ordeal, I could not believe that Northwest Hospital actually saved my foot! After all the surgeries and therapy the doctors only needed to amputate my big toe! This was an amazing turn of events, a miracle! I thank God every day for the good people over at Northwest Hospital and I will forever be grateful to them.



Original Published Link I couldn’t walk, I couldn’t even sit or sleep

#CouldNotBelieve, #Dr.NorbertZemankiewicz, #HBOTProgram, #HyperbaricOxygenTherapy, #OrthopedicSurgeon #Diabetes, #Orthopaedics

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Breast Cancer Survivor Uses Her Experience to Help Other Women

Image
On a typical day at  Johns Hopkins Medical Imaging at Green Spring Station , patients coming in for imaging tests such as  MRIs ,  ultrasounds  and  mammograms have a comforting advocate available in the waiting room. Kate Pisano is a patient liaison — there to meet the needs of the patients by providing resources and support. With Kate’s smile and cheerful attitude, it’s not obvious that recently she too was a patient sitting in the waiting room confronting her own major health challenges. Two years ago Kate was fighting breast cancer and facing it alone as a single working mother of two teenaged sons. Months after a painful divorce, Kate noticed a lump in her breast while getting undressed. “I was afraid of what the lump might mean, so I waited several weeks before finally making an appointment with my doctor,” she said. That appointment led to a mammogram followed by a  biopsy . In April of 2012, Kate’s greatest fear was confirmed: She had breast cancer. “The diagnosis was a complet
Read more

Having pancreatic cancer a suspicious tumor on your pancreas

Image
https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=15&v=QDwctWY-DOQ Joseph “Cook” Edens III doesn’t let pancreatic cancer get in the way of living a full life. Edens was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and underwent a Whipple procedure at The Johns Hopkins Hospital. Unfortunately, a bout of pancreatitis returned, and in 2015, surgeon Christopher Wolfgang and his team performed a total pancreatectomy on Edens, removing his entire pancreas and spleen. The Arlington, Virginia, resident is now cancer-free and back to a busy lifestyle of work, sports and family time. About Johns Hopkins Pancreatic Cancer Care Having pancreatic cancer — or a suspicious tumor on your pancreas — is a frightening diagnosis. Johns Hopkins experts, some of the most experienced pancreatic specialists in the country, are working to dispel fear and create hope in patients with pancreatic disease. Pancreatic cancer, tumors and cysts are being treated with dramatic success at Johns Hopkins. The first step when dealing w
Read more

Howard's Weight Loss Journey

Image
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XfmgTU6L524 HOME››ABOUT LAHEY TEXT SIZE | SHARE | PRINT Howard's Story “I thank them for helping me get to where I’m at, and they keep telling me that it was all me doing the work. But, I know that if I wasn’t coming every two weeks to see them, I wouldn’t be this way.” They say timing is everything, and in April 2011, Howard Jardine was eager to change his life. Weighing in at 405 pounds, he decided it was finally time to join Lahey’s Medical Weight Loss program. Looking back, Howard says it was one of the best decisions he has ever made, as he found support from a team that encouraged and motivated him throughout his weight loss journey. At 405 pounds, Howard was the heaviest he had ever been, and the heaviest that he wanted to be. He was starting to feel the strain that the weight was causing on his relationship with his five-year-old daughter, and he didn’t want to miss out on her milestones. Howard’s mother was overweight and suffered a stroke a
Read more