Name : Jennifer Palmer
Adult: 29 years old
City, State: Holyoke, Massachusetts
E-mail : mishoo321.cs
Areas of body affected: Right Femur and Patella
Personal History
I am 29 years old and a Radiography student. I was at clinical at my local hospital and stumbled on my own x-rays. Upon inspection, it was obvious to me that something was not right. I quickly realized that where I have been having pain for years showed something abnormal. Needless to say I was extremely concerned. I brought the x-rays to the nearest radiologist. After digging in my old medical chart, there was the word Melorheostosis, and the appearance of "dripping candle wax", in 1987. I was 14 then. I was never told. Then, when I was 14, I had twisted my knee. I had arthroscopic lateral retinacular release. I also remember having 'raised bumps' on the back of my right leg from my ankle to mid-thigh, and asking my doctor about them. I vividly remember him saying "Oh, those are just fatty deposits, nothing to be worried about." At 14?! I still have those 'spots.' Any pain I've had since I thought was a result of the surgery. I have been to the doctor numerous times over the years for hip and knee pain, even an orthopedic, even the same one who performed my knee surgery. No one did anything more than prescribe an anti-inflammatory, which I never took. Why would I--it wouldn't make my pain go away. I discovered myself that my right leg is almost 3/4 of an inch shorter than its counterpart. It was still not enough to get any attention.
A few months ago, I went to my doctor and insisted I have x-rays and an MRI, to see as much as possible. Surprise, I was again diagnosed with Melorheostosis. I was then referred to a Rheumatologist, who was very nice and did a very complete history BUT, she had never herd of it. She promised to do some research and filled a prescription for pool therapy. The therapy cost me $10 each time; they wanted me to go 3x a week. It was a little too costly for me since I'm a student, as a mentioned earlier. On my return visit to the Rheumatologist, last week, I'm afraid to say it was not worth the $10 copay. She shared the information she learned and copied some articles for me.