Gronk going under 4TH TIME

[yukon cornelius]

I guess it's been asked but I'm gonna do it again...what happened to just putting a cast on the arm and letting the bone heal on its own? I broke my forearm when I was a teen and had a cast for 8 weeks....good as new when they took it off. Why all these rods and screws and forays into bacteria banks like all hospitals are? Seems as if it's a case of "who's the better specialist?" at work here. What next, kevlar skull implants to ward off concussions?

were you a elite NFL TE as a teenager?

 

[PatsWickedPissah]

I guess it's been asked but I'm gonna do it again...what happened to just putting a cast on the arm and letting the bone heal on its own? I broke my forearm when I was a teen and had a cast for 8 weeks....good as new when they took it off. Why all these rods and screws and forays into bacteria banks like all hospitals are? Seems as if it's a case of "who's the better specialist?" at work here. What next, kevlar skull implants to ward off concussions?

I understand the plate for the 1st break, an attempt to get him back for the playoffs. But with break #2 I too don't understand why a cast didn't suffice. Perhaps it's most likely the nature of the break in that something was needed to pull and hold the irregularly fractured bones together forcefully so that they fuze together. In any case only physicians with specific injury X-Ray and other data , not us football message board folks, understand the tradeoffs.

Back to the thread specifics. It is not new news that another operation would be needed, given the 2nd break in January inserted another plate. This was known back then.

 

[kennyb]

From the Herald:

"According to a source familiar with the case, Gronkowski is going to need a fourth operation to change the plate that’s securing the broken bone in the forearm.

The plate has to be switched, no matter what, and the surrounding tissue tested. The real question is if Gronkowski, who has been taking part in the team’s offseason program, will need a fifth operation.


If tests show the infection has been completely flushed out, the plate will be replaced, and the recovery process begins. If there are still signs of infection, that won’t happen."
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OK, why does the plate "need to be switched, no matter what"? Was this always in the cards that it would need to be "switched" at 4-5 months, or is it something new?

If there's no infection ie "flushed out", then the plate is replaced and recovery process "begins". So if there are signs of infection, then WHAT won't happen? The plate WON'T be switched? Will they then have to do a 5th surgery to swap out the plate after somehow beating the infection? Is opening it up aid in fighting the infection?

 

[kennyb]

I understand the plate for the 1st break, an attempt to get him back for the playoffs. But with break #2 I too don't understand why a cast didn't suffice. Perhaps it's most likely the nature of the break in that something was needed to pull and hold the irregularly fractured bones together forcefully so that they fuze together. In any case only physicians with specific injury X-Ray and other data , not us football message board folks, understand the tradeoffs.

Back to the thread specifics. It is not new news that another operation would be needed, given the 2nd break in January inserted another plate. This was known back then.

It was known back then that they'd need to operate again? Yes, but wasn't that just to "remove" the plate and it was to be AFTER the season?

Was it known 4 months ago that they'd need to operate now? And then operate AGAIN after the season (if all goes well) to remove THE NEW plate (put in in the 4th operation)?

It's a little confusing.

 

[captain stone]

I hope you're wrong, but to me it's entirely possible that he'll never be the same. Both the Pats braintrust and Gronk screwed the pooch on this one:

Coaches rushed him back when it wasn't necessary yet, then almost immediately after getting into the game with a still healing bone, they throw an out pattern to him. Brady throws it high and towards the sideline where only Gronk can get it. Problem is, the throw's hair too wide and Gronk stupidly goes up to get it, trying to make a circus catch on a ball where he's probably going to land out of bounds anyway. I applaud his effort and the way he plays the game, but I knew the minute I saw him go up that he was going to land on the arm. Kind of stupid of him if you ask me.

Tough break, but it was also preventable, and if Gronk doesn't come back healthy this year (and a lot of posters seem seem to be in denial about that possibility) then the Pats are pretty much cooked this year.

I've also thought about the call on that play the moment I saw it happen.
Bill just spoke at the symposium about the importance of practice, among other things, yet how much practice did Gronk have running that pattern before the Divisional game?
He seemed tentative at times in his first game back, during the Regular season finale, even while the 2 passes he caught went for 42 yards, including a TD; so should he have used as he was that early in the next game?
If Gronk showed anything, it was that he should've been used sparingly, if at all, unless it became absolutely neccessary for the team's survival, such as playing 2-score catch-up in the 4th quarter.

 

[captain stone]

man, I can't wait for my next colonoscopy...you had one of those yet?..they give you this hypnotic that suspends time and space...I swear to God, they put me on the table and said "turn sideways"...so I did...then the doc said .."OK, get up off the table"..and I looked at him like "hey, wha??? when are you going to do the thing with..that thing..and everything.."..and he says.."we're already done.."...I swear my eyes were open the entire time and I never saw a thing....

I opted for the general anesthetic when I had mine. I went to sleep right away, and didn't wake up until I had returned to the recovery area. May if there's a next time, I'll try the local flavor instead.

 

[Frezo]

man, I can't wait for my next colonoscopy...you had one of those yet?..they give you this hypnotic that suspends time and space...I swear to God, they put me on the table and said "turn sideways"...so I did...then the doc said .."OK, get up off the table"..and I looked at him like "hey, wha??? when are you going to do the thing with..that thing..and everything.."..and he says.."we're already done.."...I swear my eyes were open the entire time and I never saw a thing....

Yeah, I did have one. The doctor asked me if I wanted to watch on the TV. No thanks. I've already seen Time Tunnel in the 60s.

 

[Joker]

yeah, I watched the second time...weird..he's clipping these little protrusions but you never feel anything...don't know if it's the anesthesia or that there's no nerves inside the colon.

 

[supafly]

Perhaps it's most likely the nature of the break in that something was needed to pull and hold the irregularly fractured bones together forcefully so that they fuze together. In any case only physicians with specific injury X-Ray and other data , not us football message board folks, understand the tradeoffs.

I think you hit the nail on the head, PWP.

It seems that the plate was always needed for the healing process, due to the nature of the break and the specific bone(s) that were at risk.

Many here have said that the plate was put in so that "he'd be ready for the playoffs," but I think that the 6-8 week timeframe for healing was going to put him in line to probably play in the playoffs anyway. The insertion of the plate is most likely due to the nature of the injury.

It was known back then that they'd need to operate again? Yes, but wasn't that just to "remove" the plate and it was to be AFTER the season?

Was it known 4 months ago that they'd need to operate now? And then operate AGAIN after the season (if all goes well) to remove THE NEW plate (put in in the 4th operation)?

It's a little confusing.

I agree that it's a little confusing, kennyb.

From what I understand, you are right about the plate being put in with the idea that it would stay there until after the 2013 season. For one thing, it was a bigger plate that wouldn't make him as vulnerable to another break (unless it happened in the "perfect storm" setting), and it was likely put in to aid the healing due to the strange and rarer nature of the outside bone etc.

Another reason they didn't want to remove it is that any kind of surgery increases the chances at problems and infection, so you don't want to go in too many times--particularly in a small window of time like we're seeing.

So, NO...they did not plan on Gronk having to go back into surgery this May from what I understand. The surgery was planned on happening to remove the plate when the season of 2013 was completed. The infection that was discovered is the reason why they are needing to now "look around," and make sure it has cleared out and isn't spreading down throughout the bone.

If everything's okay, they'll replace the plate and everything will be fresh and ready to go. If there is still signs of an infection when they go in this time, they won't bother wasting their time/efforts in replacing the plate...that will be done with the upcoming FIFTH surgery. The only thing that will be done if they see signs of infection this time will be a thorough cleaning of the area to help to better remove that infection. The problem with having an infection is that they cannot really know until once they are in there, in terms of whether or not anything is still lingering.

 

[Raymond]

yeah, I watched the second time...weird..he's clipping these little protrusions but you never feel anything...don't know if it's the anesthesia or that there's no nerves inside the colon.

Nice. Nobody adds to a thread like Joe Kerr more while being misunderstood, ignored or reviled by so many for his obtuse comment to the subject at hand.

 

[Jackson 2]

yeah, I watched the second time...weird..he's clipping these little protrusions but you never feel anything...don't know if it's the anesthesia or that there's no nerves inside the colon.

Hey, Joker here's one for ya. My last colonoscopy, I woke up and the doctor and nurse were both laughing their ******s off. I asked, "What's so funny?" The nurse said, "When it was done, the Doctor thought you were awake and said that you had a nice-looking colon." My response while I was still under was, "Any chance I can get that posted in my high school yearbook?"