Bone Biopsy?
3Girls3xsTheFun
member
Hello, I hope it's OK for me to post here. My daughter has to have biopsy of a lesion in her sacral region. I'm just wondering if anyone else's child ever had a bone biopsy and what we should expect.
Here's a little background -- I'll try to be as brief as possible:
My 2.5 y/o DD has been having several tests because all of a sudden on Easter morning she woke up and couldn't walk. She was falling all over the place, couldn't stand, but didn't complain of any pain. The episode lasted for a few minutes, then improved to a limp. We went to the local ER, they X-ray her hip & leg and say she's fine, probably hurt herself without us knowing, and it should improve in the next few weeks.
She limped off and on and 12 days later the same thing happens -- she wakes up and can't walk. This time we take her to Children's Hospital of Philadelphia's ER (we live really close). They also X ray (it's clear again), do some blood work to check for infection (shows a slightly elevated sed level) and refer us to the ortho Dr. as an outpatient.
The ortho Dr. wasn't really concerned, but scheduled her for a bone scan w/sedation (ugh-- that was awful) just to be safe. 2 hours after the scan we are called and told the bone scan showes uptake in her right hip area. We were then sent for an MRI w/sedation (it just happened that I went in for a growth U/S for my pregnancy with DD3 the morning of her MRI and was sent straight to L&D for induction due to low fluid, so DH had to take her to the MRI alone and rush back to make it in time for DD3s arrival... he made it 2 hours before delivery -- it was a traumatic day for everyone). While I was in L&D recovery the ortho called and said she needed an U/S asap because the MRI showed a lesion.
The U/S didn't show any tumors or growths, which is what they were looking for, so we were referred to a rheumatologist @ CHOP for a consult. I just left his office and he said that she needs to have a biopsy of the lesion so we can see what we are dealing with. She is still having trouble walking and falls periodically for absolutely no reason.
I doubt this has happened to anyone else, but if it has I'd be glad to hear how it turned out!
My question is really about the biopsy process and recovery. This is the first invasive test she'll have and I'm trying to prepare myself. I assume the Dr. will go over this with us, but we don't see him for 2 more weeks. So, if your child had a biopsy, what should I expect?
Did I mention I've been running around like a mad woman to all these specialists and tests on about 3 hours of sleep a night, thanks to a newborn who nurses every 2 hours like clockwork? I'm literally running on empty and can't wait until we have some kind of a DX for Olivia.
If you made it this far, thanks for reading!
Re: Bone Biopsy?
Bone lesion and elevated sed reminds me a lot of what we went through with my son @ 6 weeks old. He had a lesion on his left arm (long bone). Trevor's arm was limp and although he never complained of pain, he could nit lift his arm either. He had a bone scan, MRI, x-rays, and lastly a bone biopsy. The bone biopsy was a pretty simple procedure. They pediatric orthopedic dr. took him into the OR and did a needle biopsy right into the bone. The procedure was quick, but due to the anesthesia he could not eat before hand and did have a bit of a recovery.
Trevor was dx. with Langerhan's Cell Histiocytosis - a rare blood disorder which causes lesions on bones, organs, and the brain. It is extremely rare. So much so that when I write it down on his medical history forms most drs. have never heard of it. Go to www.histio.org to get more information. Do not Google.
While rare, it can be treated and most children are fine.