Sad Things, Real People

Let’s begin with a warning: graphic pictures are in this post.  

Not inappropriate pictures, but medically graphic pictures.  These are not put here for shock value alone, but to show that incredibly sad things happen to real people.  And to remind us of just how blessed we are.

If you want some less graphic images, I might suggest you search Google Images for “Care Bear Stare,” or something similar.  I cannot personally verify that this is a safe, non-graphic search, but judging by the people I know who know so much about Care Bears, I assume that it is.  

For the sake of the faint-hearted who will not endure the pictures at the end of this post -- here is one of our little "care bear" caring:

Gracie loves to "go see babies;" here she is visting kids at the CREN.
She's also learned "Jeeza make baby feew betta" and often spontaneously reminds us of this truth
(for those needing translation, "Jesus makes babies feel better").

Okay, so now proceed at your own discretion.

Kids break bones here, just like they do all over the world.  Some breaks are bad, some not so bad.  And parents, of course, seek help when their child has a broken bone.  There are traditional bonesetters here who often do a remarkably good job at (as their title implies) setting bones.  They are to be commended for the impressive results that they often accomplish with no X-rays and with rather primitive materials.

At times, however, the outcome is quite disheartening.  And this is due, presumably, to a combination of factors working together against the favor of the child.  Perhaps the bonesetter applied the splint a bit too tight or failed to recognize a vascular injury.  The child may have complained of pain, an early warning sign of a worsening condition - but as the parent expects pain from a broken bone, and as the cultural expectation is to be quite stoic, the child’s complaints are scolded and ignored.  And even when the limb began to swell and blister and perhaps even drain pus or exude a foul smell, the parent may have hoped it would just get better.  Or maybe they didn’t have money to come to the hospital.  Or maybe the husband wasn’t home so the wife couldn’t get his permission to bring her child in.

In any case, the result is the same: a young child who loses a limb.  A limb that, if cared for properly, often would have healed with no noticeable long-term sequelae.  A limb that in some cases would have done well with no treatment at all, not even a splint.  A limb that, obviously, will be absent for a lifetime.

We are not used to seeing these kinds of cases because they don’t happen (if so, quite rarely) in our society.  We are blessed with relatively convenient access to health care.  We are educated enough to seek help when things are looking worse.  We don’t live under such harsh conditions that we have developed a pain tolerance that in some cases can be pathological.  And even if we are afraid we cant afford to pay, we still go in because we know that our society just doesn’t tolerate these type of disasters and someone, somewhere, would bail us out if it got really bad and we couldn’t pay.

So here goes, a brief look at some of the arm and leg disasters here in Niger.

A traditional splint made of bamboo-like grass stems.  The arm and hand are mummified in places and draining pus elsewhere.  A purplish dye has also been applied, presumably for some medicinal effect.

A few days later, after the amputation.
This young man had a greenstick fracture, often treated with a splint but will quite often heal well with no treatment at all.

Zakari did quite well with his daily dressing changes.

Following-up in the clinic after being discharged from the hospital - he has healed well.

Osteomyelitis (bone infection) of the tibia (shin bone) in a young boy.
The entire right side of his jaw bone was also infected. 

This young girl had a splint placed on her leg after a minor injury approximately one month before she arrived at clinic.
Her lower tibia and upper ankle are exposed beneath dead skin.  Her entire foot is mummified and shrunken.
She was taken for amputation the next day.

An older lady who had broken her tibia and fibula (leg bones between knee and ankle) after slipping on a step - not typically a mechanism with enough force to break these two bones.
She had received treatment in her village and came to our clinic after about three months.   

This is her first X-ray.  Both bones are broken but there appear to be some signs of preliminary healing.
However, there are also some concerning signs.

Her follow-up X-ray five months after the first X-ray (she has now been unable to walk for two months).
This X-ray was taken on the same day of the picture of her leg shown above.
You can see a tumor on the X-ray and missing portion of bone.  At this point, amputation was her only option.
She refused and is living out her remaining days while the tumor continues to grow.

Lady with neurofibromatosis (condition involving numerous, small growths along nerves).
Her case is rather unique in that she also has this large "related" growth on the back of her leg.

Hopefully (those who hung with us this far), you are as thankful as we are for how richly God has blessed us.  Again, this was not an attempt to overwhelm you or guilt you; it was an attempt to share with you what life is like for others.  Please join us in praying for the people in this post as well as the many others who suffer in ways that seem unthinkable to us.  Pray that they may come to know and experience TRUE comfort, hope, healing and peace which comes only through Jesus Christ.

For HIS glory,

DD&G