Levi's Sweet Feet
Our sweet little guy, Levi, was born with idiopathic bilateral clubfeet. This means that there is no underlying condition to cause his feet to be clubbed, but there is no known cause at this time.
When Levi was 3 weeks old, he started seeing a doctor at Texas Scottish Rite to receive treatment for his feet. After 4 weekly casts, a minor surgery, and one more set of casts that stayed on for 3 weeks, Derek and I thought Levi was all fixed up and ready to wear his special shoes that keep his feet from turning back in. After less than a day in his new shoes, we knew something wasn't right. Levi couldn't sleep, wouldn't eat, and was screaming in pain. I contacted the nurses who assist the doctor and insisted they see us the next day. We went back to Scottish Rite to get a different type of shoe, but I still felt something wasn't right with Levi's feet. They just didn't look how I expected them to after 7 weeks of treatment by an "expert". As it turns out, a mother's instinct is always right. I sent pictures of Levi's feet to Dr. Dobbs in St. Louis, who confirmed that at least one of Levi's feet is complex. This problem resulted from improper casting performed by the original doctor's team. A complex clubfoot requires additional treatment, and has a much higher need for surgery and higher rates of relapse. Dr. Dobbs is one of two doctors in the states that are able to treat a complex case, and is confident he can get Levi's sweet little feet straightened out with additional casts and minor surgery. Unfortunately, there are high costs associated with getting the best treatment for Levi. This includes gas, lodging, and food for 6 days worth of driving, 7 overnight stays, and 10 days total in St. Louis. More than anything, we need prayers for safe travel and for successful correction of Levi's feet, but we appreciate any donation you feel led to make.
This process will be at least 5 weeks long, so we will be sure to update as Levi progresses.
https://wuphysicians.wustl.edu/for-patients/find-a-physician/matthew-b-dobbs