Looking for podcast episodes covering Samantha Azzopardi aka the GPO girl.
Prefer single (or double if very detailed) episode format rather than serial type.
I’ve heard one podcast episode but would love to get some other takes.
Just wanted to share the timeline of my (not so) recent injury and treatment following.
October 2023. Fell off my horse. Clean break of left humerus roughly 1/2 way down. Simple injury, right? Had an ORIF the next day with 1 plate.
November 2023. 10 days post op, excessive pain, swelling and deformation of the humerus. Xray confirmed plate has come off and surgery re done 6 days later with 2 plates.
April 2024. (Multiple appointments, X-rays etc since November). Surgeon concerned that the bone is not healing. There is still a 1cm gap which has not improved at all since the second surgery. Lots of theories, guesses, ideas from the orthopaedic team. They settled on a specific ultrasound treatment to promote bone growth. Which nobody on the team knew anything about so they had to research it. Meanwhile, I am on ever increasing doses of controlled substances because of intense pain. Scans indicate that the plates are too long and rubbing my elbow and shoulder.
August 2024. I call orthopaedic doctor and request surgery instead of waiting on the ultrasound thing. The team recommended to wait for the ultrasound thing.
October 2024. Had a call from the orthopaedic doctor to advise they’ve decided to forget about the ultrasound thing and go for a revision ORIF instead.
November 2024. In person appointment where they basically just said what they already said over the phone.
January 2025. First revision surgery. All hardware removed, dead bone removed, cultures taken, flushed and cleaned. Left hospital 2 days later with a 3.5mm k wire and a shoulder brace as the only thing keeping my humerus from moving around.
January 2025. Cultures indicated infection in the site. PICC line placed for 2 weeks IV antibiotics with 6 months oral antibiotics to follow.
February 2025. Humerus is moving. K wire has snapped. Second revision surgery is due in 2 weeks so they apply a back slab for support until then.
February 2025. Second ORIF revision surgery. 2 plates placed.
April 2025. 6 week follow up. Feels really good. Slowly healing.
April 2025. Sudden pain at surgery site. Xray shows repair has broken down and screws have ‘backed out’ of the bone. General consensus is that infection is still causing bone damage so the screws will not stay in.
April 2025. Surgery to remove all hardware and clean surgery site. Temporary External fixator placed. PICC line placed for another 2 weeks antibiotics.
May 2025. Care is transferred to a bigger hospital. Surgeons recommend a more compact external fixator for 4 months. Placed on surgical wait list.
June 2025. Very unwell, high fever, debilitating pain. Ambulance to emergency. They discovered there is an infection at one of the pin sites. 3 days in hospital for iv antibiotics.
June 2025. Reoccurrence of the above. Hospital admits me with a view to doing surgery for the new ex fix the next day.
Surgery is a success. Continued antibiotics.
October 2025. Pin site infection. +++ pain. Hospital visit for IV antibiotics and pain relief.
The next 3 weeks are a blur of pain, doctors visits, X-rays and finally, being refused any further s8 pain meds due to our stupid laws.
November 2025. Severe infection. I can barely move. Present to emergency. I discussed with the surgeon that I’m not leaving until the ex fix is removed.
November 2025. Ex fix is removed. Surgeon wants to wait a few weeks to see if the bone is going to begin regenerating or if it’s completely dead. Sent home with just a brace to support (no internal or external fixation).
January 2026. Scans indicate bone is beginning to grow. (Not healing, there is a large displacement still). A good sign.
I am placed on the waiting list for surgery. Meanwhile, infection doctor oks stopping antibiotics. (So 12 months total antibiotics)
May 2026. Surgery. My humerus was lightly hollowed out (surgeon said like a canoe). Meanwhile, another team removed 20cm of fibula from the opposite leg complete with a couple of arteries and vessels. Fibula is placed in the humerus to bridge the gap. Microsurgery to connect up the blood supply. 2 incisions and 2 plates placed. Total surgery time was 14 hours. Doctor very happy with the state of the bone. No sign of infection. (Cultures taken to check ).
The first 12 hours post op were a blur. I tried to ring my husband but couldn’t work out how to use my phone. Had to ask the nurse to text him for me because I was too tired to keep trying.
Once I got out of the critical care post op unit, I was able to move around a little bit and could get a good look at my 3 drains (2 in the arm, 1 in the leg). Lots of gross stuff coming out.
Able to weight bear on the leg 48 hours post op, so very happy with that.
7 days post op, I’m still in hospital. I’ve managed to get off most of the pain meds, only got 1 iv cánula left (I had 5 when I woke up). I’ve still got my drains, but am able to get up and walk unassisted. Hopefully drain removal tomorrow and home by the end of the week.
I have made the decision that this is the last one. I absolutely cannot go through this again. I’ve lost 2.5 years to this injury. If this fails, I will be requesting amputation.
Sorry about the super long post. It’s more just a vent!