Allograph Research

A big part of my decision to do my senior solo as my WISE project is because I knew that I would be able to work and research my injury and my story to healing on a very intimate and focused level. This post is building off of a previous article I posted explaining what an allograph transplant is. This new article that I found I feel goes into better detail and is more clear about exactly what the surgery is and the expected healing process. The article says that the main reason people usually get this surgery is because of arthritis that has caused a wear in the bone. For me however, it was the repeated landings and poundings from dance and gymnastics as well as the repeated ankle twists and sprains that wore the hole in my bone. The goal of l of the surgery is to improve range of motion and strength, which is a very accurate way to describe it. One of the main reasons that I liked this article so much is because it shows why this surgery in particular is a better choice than other surgeries that could repair the same injury. Most other surgeries fuse the bones in the ankle and fuse the allograph, which almost certainly limits how much range of motion and usage of the ankle the patient will get back. With this allograph surgery, the ankle is not fused which allows for a faster and more complete recovery to a "normal" ankle. This is something that is very important to me as a dancer. In another article that I read, it said that this surgery is usually preformed on patients in their 60's and 70's, hardly ever is it done as someone as young as 17. With me being so young and wanted to be able to participate in sports and exercise for the rest of my life, fusing the bone is not a realistic solution. I also liked that this article went into the discussion of using cadaver bone. It is not something that is pleasant to think about. But when it comes down to it, I have a piece of someone else's, someone who died, bone is me. For me, I knew that this surgery was the right choice for me so the idea of using a cadaver bone wasn't out of the question for me, but I understand how some patients would not be comfortable with the thought of using someone who recently passed away's bone.

I found that reading articles like this have helped be understand why me dancing again is such a big deal. I have been itching to get out on the stage again for months, but as I learn more about what my body has actually been going through in the healing process, I am starting to realize just how big of an accomplishment it is for me to be able to dance again.

Keep an eye out for another post tomorrow, just finished reading past WISE students blog, and I have a feeling I will have A LOT to say!

-Abbie (      :http://www.mdmercy.com/footandankle/conditions/ankle_arthritis/allograft.html