Legg-Calve-Perthes Disease

Yesterday we had a scare. Let me first tell you that for Isaac it is not a serious case and the disease sounds much worse than it is.
Isaac has been complaining about some minor leg pain for awhile. I say minor because he would say his leg hurt but then would run around. I have never seen any bruising or swelling ether. I just assumed it was some growing pains or a pulled muscle. On Sunday he was running around in the cultural hall after church while we waited for Lachlan to get out of his meeting. That is probably the most physical activity he has gotten in a while, due to the constant snow we have been getting (its hard to run in the snow and to cold to be outside for long). On Monday he woke up in tears saying that his leg really hurt. Lachlan suggested we take him to the doctor and get him checked out. The doctor determined the pain is originating from Isaac's hip and had us get blood tests and an x-ray. We came home a little worried but not overly concerned (if that makes sense). About a half hour later the doctor called to tell us that his x-ray showed an abnormality and we needed to take him to Children Medical Center ER that night. So away we went. At the ER they looked at his x-rays and told us he has Legg-Calve-Perthes Disease (LCPD). We needed to limit his activity (like anyone can limit the activity of a four year old) and to see a pediatric orthopedic. So home we went. And started to read all we could find about it. Here is the run down... It is a disease that affects children ages 3-11, and is more common in white males. It has no known cause and has no medical cure (meaning the disease has to run it's course). It has four stages and will resolve it self with in a few months to a few years. The first stage is
the death of the top of the femur, due to lack of blood flow to it. It then becomes more dense with possible fracture of supporting bone. The second stage is the fragmentation and reabsorption of bone by the body. The third stage is called Reossification, basically when the body regrows new bone. And the final fourth stage is when the bone heals and the new bone reshapes.
Another name for this disease is Osteonecrosis meaning bone death, I know, it sounds scary.
Treatments for LCPD range from doing nothing to major surgery. There are factors that affect what treatment someone receives. These factors are age and health of the patient and how severe the bone has died. The younger and healthier the patient is the better the outlook. In Isaac's case he is four and therefore its good news. Today we went to the orthopedist and he showed us Isaac's x-ray. He is the most knowledgeable person on LCPD that we have talked to. Basically Isaac is in the age group where the disease often resolves itself and the orthopedic says Isaac has good range of motion in his hips. His prognosis is good and he is just going to be under observation and there is no need to limit his activity unless he starts to have more pain. So we will see the orthopedist in a few months to check on the progress of the disease.
Like I told you in the beginning the disease sounds much worse and for over 24 hour I have been worried about the worst case scenarios. But now Isaac seems to be fine and the pain is back to the point that it was before Sunday. I am just glad now and the worrying is back to normal levels.