AIBU Broken leg still bent - is it normal like dr says?

[booksniffer100]

TW: discussion about broken bones

DS2 (12yo) broke his leg 10 weeks ago. It was both the tibia and fibula. It was a comminuted fracture and the leg looked obviously broken as he basically snapped both his shin bones. The paramedics who attended warned me it would likely require surgery and plates / pins.

He was knocked out in re-suss and they re-set the fracture by manipulating it back into place, which we understood to be an initial step and surgery would be discussed afterwards. The leg was cast and he was sent him home. There has been no formal mention of surgery since so I assumed that they were happy with the recovery and that his leg was healing well.

When the cast was removed at 7 weeks the x-ray showed that the bones were still angulated and his leg looks like he has another knee in the middle of his shin. He cannot weight bear on it and he either hops or limps when he walks. He's been 3 weeks out of cast now and it has't improved. No one has measured his legs to see if they're equal length.

I'm not a medical professional, nor have I ever broken my leg. Every person we have spoken to who has had the same injury had their leg pinned. I was happy to avoid surgery in the hope that it would heal well on its own but I feel we've exhausted that option and it's now clear the leg needs to be straightened properly. The hospital are telling me that this is normal and "eventually his leg will remember what shapes its meant to be and will return to its original shape"

I am aware that there is a shortage of surgeons so I'm struggling to believe that their assessment of his leg isn't influenced by this rather than my Ds's needs.

I've had a second opinion from the same department and they have repeated the opinion of the first dr. I'm awaiting contact from a private hospital for an independent opinion.

AIBU - Can anyone with more experience tell me is this normal or should I make more noise about it? Has anyone broken their leg and had the same experience and has their leg also straightened on its own as they've insisted it will?

EDIT: He has Ehlers Danlos Syndrome (the common kind). I'm not sure if this is relevant but someone with medical knowledge might know if it is?

Absolutely not normal. Bones do not ‘remember their shape’ … get him straight into a proper orthopedic pediatric surgeon for a full assessment. Pay to go privately if you can, you can always go back onto the NHS for any treatment. And you dont need a referral to go privately, just google pediatric orthopedic surgeons near me and see what comes up, or look for centers of excellence pediatric orthoedics

That's so not normal. I'd assume that they meant to list him for surgery and he got missed off the list. Call pals or as pp get a private referral

It’s impossible for anyone here to give any sensible advice without knowing the full story (including seeing the imaging, knowing the mechanism of injury, examining him & knowing his full history). If you’re not happy then ask them to explain their rationale again including the risks/benefits of surgery/conservative management & the likely functional outcomes of both and at what point they'd be prompted to change tack. Orthopods are usually super keen to operate so if they haven’t already there’s likely a good reason. It’s really not kids with broken bones that are affected by any shortage in operating time - it’s usually the old duffers who’ve been waiting years for their hip replacements that get bumped.

Thanks for your replies.

My instinct is that the leg needs straightening but I am also not a surgeon so my instinct could be wrong. @SeaToSki and @EggTheParrot I feel similarly to you and will be seeking another opinion, which will hopefully either put my mind at rest or prompt me to take further action.

When I asked what would happen if he could still not weight bear in two weeks (when they said he should be fully recovered) I was told they would not be drawn into a conversation about hypertheticals. This isn't very helpful as DS is also autistic and needs some time to prepare mentally (as most people would I'm sure). I also need to discuss his treatment with school. The response felt defensive which confused me because the communication had been amicable. I had requested a second look at his leg but I hadn't made complaints or been forceful about it.

@Greybeardy With regards to older people being bumped off the list, we live in one of the highest populations of elderly people in the country. Having worked in Adult Social Care in this area, I know that here it is services for young people that are compromised unfortunately. But I do of course understand that no one can tell me if my Ds's leg is recovering correctly based on my description. I just wondered if others had experienced the same thing and could either reassure me that it's normal, or tell me that it's not and I should be seeking independent advice. I feel a little at sea at present and knowing that the NHS is struggling as it is, I can't help feeling concerned that he might not be receiving the right treatment.

Can you afford to have at least an initial private consultation so you're sure of what's needed?

Childrens bones do remodel without surgery much better than adults would so sometimes that's why surgery isn't offered as it's thought to be best practice. Is it a paediatric specialist orthopaedic surgeon he has seen? I would make sure he has an appt and sees the consultant in charge of his care. They should be able to give more advice on healing time frames or if surgery is needed.